Tegernsee Abbey

Tegernsee Abbey is a former Benedictine monastery in the town and district of Tegernsee in Bavaria. Both the abbey and the town that grew up around it, are named after the Tegernsee, the lake on the shores of which they are located. The name is from the Old High German tegarin seo, meaning great lake.Tegernsee Abbey, officially known as St. Quirinus Abbey for its patron saint St. Quirinus, was first built in the 8th century. Until 1803, it was the most important Benedictine community in Bavaria.Today, the monastery buildings are known as Schloss Tegernsee and are in the possession of the Wittelsbach family. The local Catholic parish church of Saint Quirinus is in the former abbey church. The former abbey premises also accommodate the well-known brewery Herzoglich Bayerisches Brauhaus Tegernsee, brew pub, restaurant and the Tegernsee Grammar School .HistoryFoundation and early historyThe monastic community at Tegernsee was founded in the mid 8th century . It was settled by monks from St. Gall and dedicated to Saint Quirinus of Rome, whose relics were brought here from Rome in 804. Soon, the monastery spread the message of Christianity as far as the Tyrol and Lower Austria.