Frauenthal Abbey

10 February 2022

Frauenthal (Canton of Zug) is the oldest Swiss Cistercian monastery still existing where it was founded. Ulrich von Schnabelburg founded the abbey around 1245 for noble ladies. The name Frauenthal, a valley of women, also points to such an origin.

Due to the Reformation, the monastery was abandoned from 1530 to 1552. The Cistercian Abbey of Wettingen (today Wettingen-Mehrerau) took over the management of the monastery in 1573.

The monastery lies a few kilometres north of Cham, amidst woods and meadows on an island formed by two branches of the Lorze River. The monastery church is built in the style of the rococo period (1776/1777).

The monastery is the centre of a small village with 26 residential and functional buildings designed according to Cistercian tradition. They have been extended and renovated several times since the 17th century. The last major renovation dates back to 1997.

(Source and further information: Kloster Frauenthal).