Grünau Charterhouse

Grünau Charterhouse is a former Carthusian monastery, or charterhouse, in Schollbrunn in Bavaria, Germany. It was the first Carthusian monastery in Franconia and in today's Bavaria.GeographyThe charterhouse is located in the valley of the, a tributary of the Haslochbach. It is surrounded by the wooded hills of the Spessart.It lies in the municipal territory of Schollbrunn, part of the Main-Spessart district of Bavaria.HistoryIn 1216, a chapel was consecrated in the Kropfbachtal, dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Lawrence and Saint Nicholas. In the early 14th century, this chapel became the destination of pilgrims. At the chapel's location, Elisabeth von Hohenlohe, daughter of the Count of Wertheim, donated a Kartause or charterhouse in 1328. In 1333, Carthusians from Mainz, led by the first prior Heinrich Spiegel, settled here, making this the order's first monastery in Franconia and in what is modern-day Bavaria.The initial Kartause was replaced in the early 15th century by a larger building, housing up to 24 monks. In 1446, a new church for the monastery was consecrated. The Counts of Wertheim were the Vögte of the monastery and its church served as their burial place. It is possible that monks from Grünau settled in the 14th century at the charterhouses at Erfurt and Koblenz.