There’s nothing like a weekend day trip to one of the many picturesque towns and villages in the Munich area. If you’ve already visited the more well-known destinations such as Augsburg, Regensburg, or Starnberg, you may be running out of ideas for where to go next. However, there is a community on the S7 that not only has a Rococo monastery worth seeing, but also played an important role during the Munich peasant uprisings.
Architectural attraction
Photo: H. Helmlechner/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
The Benedictine monastery of Schäftlarn was founded in 762 by the cathedral cleric Waltrich. 940 years later, around 1702, the monastery building was to be rebuilt. The design was entrusted to the Baroque architect Giovanni Antonio Viscardi, who was also responsible for the Trinity Church and the Bürgersaal in Munich, among other things. The building was completed in 1707 and still stands today in its original form. The monastery church was also rebuilt and is now considered a Rococo gem. It took more than three decades to complete. It is richly decorated with stucco and painted in detail on the inside.
During the Munich peasant uprising in 1705, the monastery was the central meeting place for the rebels. From here they marched to Munich, where they ultimately perished in the Sendlinger Mordweihnacht (Sendling Christmas Massacre). The victims of the battle found their final resting place in the Old South Cemetery. As in Andechs and Benediktbeuern, the monastery in Schäftlarn was dissolved in the course of secularization. There used to be a brewery, a faience factory, and a mineral bath here. The latter remained in operation even after secularization, but was eventually closed down.
In 1866, King Ludwig I re-established the monastery and a high school was built within its walls. This school still exists today. Later, Prince Regent Luitpold elevated the monastery back to an abbey, and it remains so today. Thanks to its connection to the Isartalbahn railway, the municipality of Schäftlarn developed into a popular meeting place for Munich’s bohemian crowd, and even today it is worth a day trip.
Visit to Schäftlarn
Photo: Salvador Escriva/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
The municipality of Schäftlarn now consists of five villages, including the parish village of Kloster Schäftlarn. The municipality belongs to the district of Munich and is directly connected to the city by the S7 train line towards Wolfratshausen. During your visit, you can admire the Rococo church and view the monastery from the outside. Unfortunately, you cannot enter the monastery as it still houses a high school.
Instead, you can stroll through the Prälatengarten, where roses, lavender, boxwood, shrubs, and summer flowers bloom. But even in winter, you will find peace and relaxation here. From May to October, you can enjoy the Schäftlarn concerts, which bring you closer to Baroque music. If you don’t want to wait that long, you can of course visit a classical concert in Munich at any time. At the end of your stay in Schäftlarn, you should stop by the monastery shop. Here you can purchase products from the monks’ apiary and distillery.