Vadstena Abbey - Chronology

Chronology

• 1346 - King Magnus Eriksson and Queen Blanche of Namur donate the royal estate Vadstena kungsgård to the foundation of a future monastery.
• 1370 - Pope Urban V give his approval to the plan of St Bridget.
• 1373 - Bridget dies in Rome.
• 1374 - The remains of Bridget are taken to Vadstena. Her daughter, Saint Catherine of Vadstena is elected Abbess of Vadstena.
• 1384 - The Abbey is officially blessed.
• 1391 - Bridget is declared a saint.
• 1430 - Queen Philippa is buried here and the Church of Vadstena Abbey is blessed.
• 1451 - Queen Catherine is buried here.
• 1495 - A printing press is installed at the abbey.
• 1527 - The Reformation bans the Abbey from accepting any new novices without special permission from the monarch. The nuns and monks are given permission to leave the community if they so wish.
• 1540 - The Catholic Mass is banned and Protestant services are held in the abbey.
• 1541 - The Abbey is allowed to receive private donations again, but most of its assets are confiscated.
• 1544 - The monarch specifically bans the abbey from preventing members from leaving.
• 1549 - The majority of the monks are evicted from the abbey.
• 1550 - The Abbey church is closed to the members of the abbey, who are limited to use of the former monks' chapel. The nuns and the few remaining monks are limited to the use of only the small wing of the abbey formerly the monks' section.
• 1555 - The male contingent of the Abbey is dissolved, and the monks leave Vadstena Abbey.
• 1567 - Danish soldiers loot the abbey during the Northern Seven Years' War.
• 1575 - King John III of Sweden allows the Abbey to accept novices without restriction again.
• 1580 - The Abbey is visited and reformed by the Papal Legate Antonio Possevino.
• 1587 - The first public Solemn Mass since the Reformation is celebrated in the presence of the King and Crown Prince.
• 1592 - A seminary for the education of Catholic priests is founded.
• 1595 - Duke Magnus is buried here and the monastic community of the Abbey is dissolved.
• 1641 - A home for retired and invalid soldiers are founded in the former abbey. It is closed in 1783.
• 1795 - A hospital for venereal diseases is founded in the former abbey. It is closed in 1909.
• 1810 - A prison is founded in the former nuns' wing. It is closed in 1825.
• 1826 - The former nuns' wing is transformed into a lunatic asylum. That is closed in 1951.
• 1935 - Sisters of the Order of Saint Bridget open a rest home on the estate.
• 1963 - The Monastery of Pax Mariæ of Saint Bridget is opened.
• 1991 - The monastery is raised to the status of an autonomous abbey.