Kloster Ebernach

Kloster Ebernach stands beside the village of Sehl, a part of Cochem on the Mosel. Founded in 1130 as a priory of the Benedictine Abbey of Laach, it became a Franciscan house in 1887 under the brothers of the Holy Cross. The community now cares for people with disabilities in residential and work settings. The priory’s early history begins with a knight’s gift of the estate Evernacum, a name that hints at Celtic roots. After passing through private hands it was bought in 1881 by the provincial government and entrusted to the Franciscan brothers. During the Second World War the site served as barracks, hospital, prisoner-of-war camp and refuge for bombed-out townsfolk. In 2005 a memorial was erected for 199 disabled people deported and murdered under the Nazi euthanasia programme. Visitors find a church and a cloister set among vineyards and orchards. The modern living quarters and workshops blend with older buildings that were repeatedly adapted. A stone monument between church and tower marks the place of remembrance. The brothers continue their daily care of residents and outpatients across the estate and nearby homes.