Augustinian Hermits' Church (Augustiner-Eremitenkirche)

AUGUSTINER EREMITENKIRCHEIn 1362 the citizens of Fürstenfeld asked Duke Rudolf IV to settle the Augustinian hermits in order to obtain a religious counterbalance to the aristocratic coming. The church and monastery were built from 1365 to 1368.
The monastery, which was demolished in 1956, consisted of an inner courtyard with a cloister surrounded by three wings. Archbishop Ortholph von Aponie consecrated the monastery in 1367. In 1480 troops of the Hungarian King Matthias Corvinus plundered it completely, monastery inmates were captured and brother Heinrich von Rattenburg was strangled (memorial plaque in the passage). Fires in 1503 and 1685 caused severe damage, and in 1683 the nearby powder tower exploded.
In 1685 the church was rebuilt under the direction of master builder Hueber. In 1811 the monastery was dissolved. In 1945 the church was damaged again.

1978 (800th anniversary of the city) and in the following years the church was completely renovated, and Gothic frescoes were exposed, apostles and prophets depicted in the circular medallion of the chancel. Large-format frescoes of kings and prophets can be seen at the beginnings of the ribbed vaults. There are further frescoes on the south wall, one of which is likely to be a representation of Duke Rudolf IV, while others depict a Turkish building and a Turkish head with a turban. The frescoes were created by Johannes Aquila, which is also reminiscent of a plaque at the church entrance.thermenhauptstadt.at/augustiner-eremitenkirche

Built from 1365 to 1368 as a splendid mendicant order church with adjoining monastery and expanded and redesigned in the following different stylistic periods. From 1964 the building, which was in danger of collapsing, was extensively renovated and the monastery was demolished.Source: Wikipedia