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Augustinian Monastery (Old Palace)

Community life in the monastery that had been here since 1125/1129 was governed by the Rule of St Augustine. Between 1645 and 1730 the monastery was extended into a complex of Baroque buildings. Four wings enclose a large, almost rectangular courtyard with an idyllic rose garden.

 

Several magnificently decorated rooms have been preserved: The Imperial Hall served in the 18th century as a festival and dining hall and the Garden Room with the Bedroom Cabinet was furnished for high-ranking guests. The Library Hall was even designed by the well-known artist Johann Baptist Zimmerman.

In 1803 the monastery was dissolved in the course of secularisation. 70 years later the complex was acquired by King Ludwig II when he bought the entire Herreninsel. He had living quarters furnished for himself in the monastery, which then became known as the ‘Old Palace’, and stayed here whenever he came to inspect the building work on the New Palace. King Ludwig II's former bedroom and the court kitchen can be visited.

The Museum »Paving the way for freedom and democracy – the 1948 Constitution Convention of Herrenchiemsee« can be visited in the Convent Wing and Princes’ Wing. It commemorates the Constitution Convention on Herreninsel and the origination of the Republic of Germany’s constitution.

 

Also on display in the Convent Wing are numerous masterpieces by the artists working at Chiemsee (Maler am Chiemsee Gallery).

Julius Exter (1863-1939) was an important painter, dubbed in his day the ‘prince of colour’. The Julius Exter Gallery in the Prelacy Wing provides an impressive overview of all the creative periods during the lifetime of this passionate artist.

The former monastery church, the so-called Island Cathedral (sacred buildings on Herrenchiemsee), was turned into a brewery building after secularization (1807). It can only be visited as part of a guided tour.