Schlüchtern

Schlüchtern is a town in the Main-Kinzig district, in Hesse, Germany. It is located on the river Kinzig, approximately 30 km southwest of Fulda. Schlüchtern has a population close to 16,000.GeographyLocationSchlüchtern lies in the Bergwinkel, the area between the Mittelgebirge or low mountains of the Vogelsberg, Spessart and Rhön. It is located on the river Kinzig, southwest of a hill called Landrücken.HistoryThe town itself is mentioned in a document for the first time in 1278. However, since by the mid-12th century there was a family using that name, the town is likely older than that.The oldest documented local establishment was the Benedictine abbey of Schlüchtern. A foundation document allegedly signed by Charlemagne was discovered to be a medieval forgery. A possible first mention of the abbey dates from 819, but cannot be attributed without doubt to this location. The earliest mention that irrefutably referred to Schlüchtern Abbey dates from 993, when Otto III granted the abbey sluohderin to the Bishop of Würzburg.The abbey became influential and by the High Middle Ages had acquired substantial land holdings far beyond the Kinzig valley. However, by the late Middle Ages its power was already waning. The Peasants' War and the Reformation accelerated its decline. The last (Protestant) abbot, Johannes Wankel, died in April 1609. Today, the abbey buildings continue to serve as a Gymnasium (school) and education facility for the regional Protestant church.