The former Benedictine monastery of Reichenbach, which towers imposingly over the Regen Valley and offers a picturesque view, especially from the north, was founded by Margrave Diepold II of Cham-Vohburg and his mother Liutgard in 1118. It was settled from the Benedictine monastery of Kastl and Ettal Abbey near Oberammergau, founded in 1330 by Emperor Ludwig the Bavarian, was later settled from Reichenbach. With its medieval fortifications, the monastery resembled a mighty castle, and the remains of this complex are still preserved. The fire in the monastery in 1181 brought a setback, but the reconstruction succeeded very quickly. The confirmations of letters of protection by Pope Lucius III. and Emperor Friedrich I. in 1182 reaffirmed the legal status of the monastery. The monastery was first dissolved in 1556 after Elector Ottheinrich had introduced the Reformation throughout the Electoral Palatinate. The iconoclasts destroyed many of the monastery's works of art around 1570. After Maximilian of Bavaria had conquered the Upper Palatinate on behalf of the Catholic Emperor in 1621, Reichenbach was re-catholicized. In 1633 and 1641, Swedes occupied the monastery and with them, Protestantism returned for a short time. From 1695 the monastery was again an independent abbey. In the second half of the 18th century, the Reichenbach Benedictines developed a lively scientific and literary activity. These activities ended with the second dissolution of the monastery, which took place in 1803 in the course of secularization in Bavaria. The monastery property became state property. In 1820 the buildings were auctioned off. The monastery buildings found different uses, among other things, Heinrich Waffler founded a stoneware factory in 1841, which he ran until 1863. The Order of the Brothers of Charity acquired the building in 1890, moved into it as a convent and in the spring of 1891 began taking in and caring for people with mental disabilities. In 1972 they founded the technical school for curative education nursing assistance, today's technical schools for curative education nursing in Reichenbach and Tegernheim.
Source: Excerpts from Wikipedia and Upper Palatinate - Landscape - History - Culture - Art by August Sieghardt