- Achel Abbey
The Trappist Abbey of Achel or Saint Benedictus-Abbey or also Achelse Kluis (which means
hermitage of Achel), which belongs to the Cistercians of Strict Observance, is located inAchel in theCampine region of the province of Limburg (Flanders ,Belgium ). The abbey is famous for its spiritual life and its brewery, which is one of fewTrappist beer breweries in the world. Life in the abbey is characterised by prayer, reading and manual work, the three basic elements of Trappist life.History
17th to 18th Century
On 30 January 1648, at the and of the
Eighty Years War , theTreaty of Munster was signed betweenSpain and theNetherlands . The result of the treaty was that theCatholic mass was not allowed in theDutch Republic . Therefore Catholics fromValkenswaard and Schaft built achapel in Achel which was part of thePrince-Bishopric of Liège . The early roots of the Abbey date back to 1686, whenPetrus van Eynatten , a son of themayor ofEindhoven , founded a community ofhermit s ofSaint Joseph . The community would flourish until 1789 when they were expelled from their convent after the French revolutionary army invaded theAustrian Netherlands . The abbey was sold to Jan Diederik van Tuyll van Serooskerken (Utrecht, 6 August 1773-Heeze, 9 July 1843).19th Century
On
21 March 1846 theTrappists fromWestmalle Abbey founded apriory inAchel (first founded in Meersel-Dreef on 3 May 1838 in a former monastery of theOrder of Friars Minor Capuchin ). The abbey and its 95hectare s of land had been bought by thepriest Gast fromHeeze on 9 April 1845 with the support of several beneficiaries. The first beer to be brewed on the site was the "Patersvaatje" in 1852. In 1871, the priory was granted the status ofabbey and beer brewing became a regular activity. By reclaimingwaste land , theagriculture andcattle -breeding of the abbey prospered. In addition several daughter-houses were founded inEcht ,Diepenveen , Rochefort and the abbey of "Notre Dame de l'Emmanuel" in Kasanza in 1958 (Belgian Congo ) [ [http://users.pandora.be/markvdb/kasanza/ Notre Dame de l'Emmanuel] ]20th Century
At the beginning of
World War I (1914) the monks left the abbey. TheGermans dismantled the brewery in 1917 to salvage the approximately 700kg of copper. AfterWorld War II a new abbey was built between 1946 and 1952, but only two wings of the planned four were completed. In 1989 the abbey sold most of its land to the "Dutch National Forest Administration" and the "Flemish Government". In 1998 with the support from the trappists fromWestmalle andRochefort brewing started again.References
ource
* J. Van Remoortere, "Ippa's Abdijengids voor Belgie", Lanno, 1990
External links
* [http://www.achelsekluis.org/english/frame_en.htm Achel Abbey]
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