The Kartause

KAR-TOW-ZUH

The Kartause is one of the oldest standing monasteries in Europe. It was built in 1332 and the building we will be living in is 675 years old.

It was built by Albrecht II of the Hapsburg dynasty, serving as his palace and the Carthusian monastery. Albrecht and his wife Johanna are buried in the chapel.

By the 15th century the Kartause was the largest Carthusian monastery in the world and had one of the largest libraries in Christendom. It had so many frescoes and paintings that it became known as the "Sistine Chapel of the North." It held over 20,000 books.

Muslim Turks attacked the Kartause three times in the 16th century. It withstood all of them and the remains of one of the walls of defense is visible behind the hill. The Kartause was closed in 1782 by Josef II, influenced by the Enlightenment and anti-Catholic sentiments. All of the books and treasures were shipped to parishes and galleries around the empire, and the monks were disbanded.

Napoleon used the chapel at the Kartause as a stable for his horses, and many precious works of art were hidden there by the Viennese government during World War II. Soviet troops used the monastery as a military barracks during their 10 year occupancy of Austria from 1945 to 1955.

In 1983, architect Walter Hildebrand bought the monastery and renovated it to its present state to house Franciscan University, LCI (Language and Catechetical Institute) and ITI (International Theology Institute).

This will be my home for the next semester!