The Abbey yard of Sct. Catharinæ Abbey.
St. Catharinæ Church and Abbey
St. Catharinæ Church and Abbey was built in the Middle Ages and founded by the The Black Friars, who until the Reformation were responsible for the church and the abbey. The abbey is today the best preserved abbey in Denmark; the oldest parts were built around 1200. Both the church and the abbey garden are open to the public.
Builders
Dominican friars, the so-called Black Friars built the church. Their black capes gave them their name. They were not allowed to posses anything and the church and abbey was financed by gifts and charity from the townsfolk.
St. Catharinæ Church and Abbey are named after the Egyptian princess Catharina. She was an erudite princess and dies as martyr in the year 307 because of her Christian belief. On the square in front of the church a fountain is raised in her honour.
Sct. Catharinæ Abbey is one of the most beautiful buildings in Ribe.
On shaky grounds
St. Catharinæ Church was built in 1228. There were no less than 10 churches and 4 abbeys in Ribe at that time, whereof only the Cathedral and Sct. Catharinæ are left. The grounds, on which the church was built, was swampy and and it was impossible to make the foundation stabile. The church tower sank and was askew. Parts of the tower were torn down, so it is a bit shorter than it was originally. Most of the church as we know it today was built in 1433, where the church was re-built. The church room was tripled and the church went from having one aisle to three aisles. Even though this rebuilding was extensive, the foundation was first settled properly in 1918. The church was then restored thorougly over 14 years.
Sct. Catharinæ Church and Abbey in Dagmarsgade.
After the Reformation
On Reformation, the friars were banned from the abbey in 1537, and King Christian III turned St. Catharinæ Church into a parish church. In order for the abbey not to be empty, it was used as a hospital for poor and unfortunate positioned persons. IT was later used as housing for rich singles, such as widows or hospital personnel. Between 1709 and 1862 parts of the hospital were used as bedlam, a kind of psychiatric institution.
The abbey buildings are today apartments for older single persons. The abbey garden and the church are open to the public, and the abbey is one of the best preserved abbeys in Denmark.
Sources:
Nationalmuseet: Danske kirker bind 2, Ribe Amt.
J. Kinch: Ribe Bys Historie I-II, 1869 og 1884.
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