International conference, organised by the Academy project St Mary at Helfta
Organisers / Scientific Directors
- FOVOG, TU Dresden: Prof. Dr Mirko Breitenstein, mirko.breitenstein@tu-dresden.de
- Academy of Sciences and Literature, Mainz: Dr Hannes Engl, Hannes.Engl@adwmainz.de
- Saxon Academy of Sciences and Humanities, Leipzig: Dr Katrin Rösler, roesler@saw-leipzig.de
Contents
The Premonstratensian Order counts among the most influential yet least researched religious reform movements of the twelfth century. Unlike the more contemplatively oriented Cistercians, the Premonstratensians actively took on pastoral duties, built up parish structures, and deliberately secured episcopal offices. The conference addresses two central questions.
First, it explores the Order‘s social relevance: which social groups – ranging from the lesser nobility and ministerials to craftsmen and, notably, large numbers of women – contributed to the founding and rapid spread of Premonstratensian houses, and what motives lay behind their involvement?
Second, it examines the Order‘s spatial impact: how did these communities establish themselves legally and economically, and what part did they play in shaping new structures of lordship and cultural landscapes – from the well-established core regions of France and the Empire to the peripheries of Europe, including the Baltic region, the Iberian Peninsula, Ireland, and the Holy Land? Speakers from seven countries approach these questions from a comparative regional perspective, offering fresh impetus for the study of religious communities in high medieval Europe.
Programme
WEDNESDAY, 3 March 2027
2:00 p.m. Welcome
2:15 p.m. Introduction
Hannes Engl (Tübingen):
The social relevance and spatial impact of the Premonstratensians in medieval Europe
Section 1:
A new order spreads across the world: legal and social frameworks
2:45 p.m.
Katrin Rösler (Dresden):
Norbert of Xanten, Prémontré and Magdeburg. The Premonstratensian Order between Cohesion and Diversity
3:30 p.m.
Ingrid Ehlers-Kisseler (Bad Nauheim):
Norbert’s of Magdeburg Reform Efforts – Opportunities and Challenges for the Expansion of the Order
4:15 p.m. Coffee break
4:45 p.m.
Sandra Groß (Dresden):
Separating the Fire from the Straw – The Dissolution of Premonstratensian Double Monasteries in the Ilfeld Circary and Female Agency
5:30 p.m.
Steven Vanderputten (Ghent):
Unaffiliated Communities of Regular Canons in an Age of Orders and Congregations: Institutional and Ideological Responses in Twelfth-Century Lorraine
THURSDAY, 4 March 2027
Section 2: The social relevance and spatial impact of the Premonstratensians in the heartlands of medieval Europe
10:00 a.m.
Ghislain Brunel (Paris):
L’abbaye de Prémontré au XIIe siècle : une économie dirigée. Enquête sur les donateurs et leur famille
10:45 a.m.
Robin Moens (Leuven):
Mont-Cornillon near Liège and Holy Cross near Metz. Two Urban Abbeys? Characteristics of the Communities, Patrons and Acquisition Policy of Both Institutions During the Twelfth Century
11:30 a.m.
Arnaud Baudin (Troyes):
The Establishment of the Premonstratensian Order in Champagne (1121–1152). The role of Thibaut IV of Blois and the aristocratic networks
12:15 p.m. Lunch break
2:00 p.m.
Ivonne Korneman (Leipzig):
Female Agency between Norm and Practice. The Case of the Premonstratensian Nuns of the Diocese of Kraków
2:45 p.m.
Petr Kubín (Prague):
The Arrival and Rise of the Premonstratensians in the Czech Lands During the Přemyslid Period
3:30 p.m. Coffee break
Section 3: The social relevance and spatial impact of the Premonstratensians on the peripheries and transitional zones of Latin-Christian Europe
4:00 p.m.
Flocel Sabaté Curull (Lleida):
Premontré in the Crown Of Aragon: Border, noble ties and difficult survival
4:45 p.m.
Jesse Harrington (Cork):
The Premonstratensians in Ireland and Scotland
5:30 p.m. Guided tour of Strahov Monastery
FRIDAY, 5 March 2027
9:00 a.m.
Florian Hartmann (Aachen):
Premonstratensians and Territorial Expansion in the Diocese of Ratzeburg
9:45 a.m.
Helmut Flachenecker (Würzburg):
The Premonstratensians in margine Europe and their connection to Europe. Monastic cultural landscapes in the Baltic Sea region face competition on many fronts
10:30 a.m.
Wolf Zöller (Saarbrücken):
The Premonstratensians and the Holy land. Bridging Latin East and Wets (12th–13th Centuries)
11:15 a.m. Coffee break
12:15 p.m.
Mirko Breitenstein (Dresden):
Summary and closing remarks followed by a concluding plenary discussion
Sponsors
