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"On the right bank of the Rhine, the most important early church complex is located on the summit of the Eltenberg (Hochelten). Due to its exposed location in the landscape of the lower Lower Rhine, it is visible from afar and is therefore an important landmark.
The origins of the church lie in the 10th century. It was built as a simple wooden structure at the beginning of the 10th century northeast of the castle complex that existed at the time. In 967, the castle was converted into a free noble women's monastery. The Elten women's monastery developed into an imperial monastery and was thus also a secular dominion or an independent small state with a secular bailiff.
The wooden church was replaced by a three-aisled basilica. In 970, it was consecrated to Salvator and St. Vitus, but three years later only the latter patron is listed. To the north of the church, monastery buildings with a cloister were built. The chronology is based on the ceramics, which are discussed in detail by Janssen. Some burials to the north-east of the church date back to the 10th/11th century.
Under Abbess Irmgardis (around 1100-1129), the pre-Romanesque church was replaced by a new Romanesque building, which was consecrated in 1129 by Bishop Sigward of Minden (1120-1140) in the presence of King Lothar III.
The three-aisled church building, built in tuff from the Eastern Eifel, consists of a nave with four double bays in a tied system. The transept and choir were originally attached to the east. The tower to the west is considered to be the oldest in Rhenish church architecture. The collegiate church of Elten served as an architectural model for the Sigward Church in Idensen, built by Bishop Sigward between 1129 and 1134.
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