Thalbach Convent, Bregenz (must see)

Thalbach Convent traces its beginnings to 1436, when a small chapel was established here. The first community consisted of pious women, known as Beguines, who later adopted the Rule of St. Clare and became a Poor Clare convent within the Franciscan tradition. For centuries, the site served as a place of prayer and enclosed religious life.

In 1782, Emperor Joseph II ordered the dissolution of many contemplative monasteries, and the convent was closed. The buildings were then used for secular purposes, including as a military hospital. In 1854, Dominican Sisters from Hirschberg in Prussia moved into the complex, restoring religious life and opening a new chapter.

Between 1674 and 1677, the convent had already undergone major rebuilding under architects Michael Kuen and Michael Thumb, leading figures of the Vorarlberg Baroque school. They created a symmetrical four-wing complex arranged around a central courtyard. This clear rectangular layout shaped daily monastic life, linking church, living quarters, and workspaces within one enclosed structure.

Inside the church, the space is simple and focused on the main altar. Its most important artwork is the 14th-century Madonna and Child known as the “Sedes Sapientiae” (Seat of Wisdom). The statue was brought here from Mehrerau in 1592, long before the Dominican period, showing that the convent had already become a place of pilgrimage and devotion.

Since 1983, the complex has been in the care of the spiritual family “Das Werk,” founded by Julia Verhaeghe. It remains a centre for spiritual formation and also houses the Catholic Women’s Movement of the diocese, continuing its long link between faith and community life.