Cisterscapes connecting Europe - We are a World Heritage Site!

Deutsche Version

The application of 17 Cistercian monastic landscapes from five European countries "Cisterscapes connecting Europe" was awarded the European Heritage Label on 17 April 2024 in Antwerp, Belgium. With this award, the European Commission recognised the outstanding role of the Cistercians for European integration. Cisterscapes is a European network that is based on a strong common history and has the potential to become an important mouthpiece for European cohesion.

International cooperation in an Interreg project

The Cistercian order has left its mark on the landscape since the Middle Ages. This cross-border cultural and natural heritage needs to be discovered and brought to the fore. To this end, the Cisterscapes partners have been implementing joint projects - such as the "Cistercian Way" long-distance hiking trail - since 2019. In the coming years, activities such as the "Visitation Tour" will strengthen the cohesion between the partners and regions.

The Cisterscapes partner sites Vyšší Brod in South Bohemia, Zwettl in the Waldviertel and Žďár nad Sázavou in the Visočina region work particularly closely together. They submitted a joint Interreg application on 30 November 2024. This will provide them with the necessary funding to create Cistercapes visitor centres, organise cross-border hiking and cycling excursions into the monastery landscape and hold exhibitions and concerts, workshops and lectures, gourmet weeks and craft markets. This Interreg project "Cistercian Landscapes: Vyšší Brod - Zwettl - Žďár nad Sázavou" started on 1 December 2023. Further details on the project can be found under this link.

Interreg funding was approved on April 4th 2024.

Events

Together on the way

The municipality and abbey Zwettl celebrated with their international partners and regional supporters the grand opening of the Cistercian Way in Zwettl.

Video "Cisterscapes - A European Story"

To get you in the mood for the "Cisterscapes" project, the district of Bamberg has produced a joint video clip in collaboration with the 17 monastery landscapes. The video entitled "Cisterscapes - A European Story" and those of the individual sites have been published on the Cisterscapes YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqCaUHoQZXI

Video "Cisterscapes World Heritage Project"

A film about the Cistercian monastery and cultural landscape was made in the Stiftsland region around Waldsassen. This video can be watched on the website https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CuBzVGwzWgA zu sehen.

Press releases

""Cisterscapes connecting Europe" - We are cultural heritage!

On 17 April 2024, the application of 17 Cistercian monastic landscapes from five European countries was awarded the European Heritage Label in Antwerp, Belgium. Find out more at this link

Steering committee and opening of a section of the "Cistercian Way"

On 26 and 27 April 2024, the Cisterscapes partners met in Žďár nad Sázavou. Find out more at this link

Europäische Partner rücken näher zusammen

Diese Woche besuchten zwei Vertreterinnen der Partnerstätte Kostanjevica na Krki in Slowenien Zwettl. Mehr dazu unter diesem Link

Further information on the project can be found at www.cisterscapes.eu zu finden.

Partner sites in the Cisterscapes network:
Altenberg, Bronnbach, Ebrach, Langheim, Loccum, Maulbronn, Schulpforte, Waldsassen (D), Wągrowiec (PL), Plasy, Velehrad, Vyšší Brod, Žďár nad Sázavou (CZ), Rein, Zwettl (A), Kostanjevica na Krki, Stična (SI).

Project leader:
Bamberg district in Bavaria

Current contributions can be found in the city archive