Vreta Abbey
 |
| Vreta Abbey |
 |
| The Douglas Chapel |
 |
Greve Robert Douglas
(But he is not on the list of those buried here?) |
 |
Grave marker for Gustav Otto Douglas
It is not confirmed that this is in Vreta |
Vreta Abbey, in operation from the beginning of the 12th
century to 1582, was the first nunnery in Sweden, initially
Benedictine and later Cistercian, and one of the oldest in
Scandinavia. It was located in the municipality of Linköping
in Östergötland.
The exact year of the foundation is
not known. The abbey was founded by King Inge I of Sweden
and Queen Helena on the orders of Pope Paschal II, which gives a date
range for the foundation: Paschal became pope in 1099; the date of
Inge's death is disputed, but probably occurred around 1105 or a little
later. In the following decade King Inge the Younger and Queen Ulvhild
made large donations to it.
Vreta Abbey was a house of
Benedictine nuns until 1162, when it was turned into a Cistercian
nunnery. The first Cistercian abbess was Ingegerd, sister of Charles
VII. A second sister, Helena of Sweden, widow of Canute V of Denmark,
entered Vreta as a nun after being widowed in 1157, and other members of
the Swedish and Danish royal families were also here.
In the
13th century, Princess Helena Sverkersdotter of Sweden were among its
abbesses. It was a prestigious establishment, thought to be the burial
place of the kings Inge the Younger, Filip Halstensson and Ragnvald
Knaphövde. It served as a school for daughters of Sweden's ruling
families and nobility.
Vreta Abbey has entered folklore as the
scene during the 13th century of a number of prominent abductions of
girls for marriages disapproved of by their families.
The following are buried in the Douglas Chapel:
Douglas, Adolf Robertsson b. Dec. 3, 1651 d. Aug. 17, 1674
Douglas, Anna Louise Dorotée Ehrensvärd b. 1855 d. 1930
Douglas, Axel Gustafsson b. May 30, 1689 d. 1693
Douglas, Axel Robertsson b. Nov. 14, 1650 d. May 18, 1673
Douglas, Carl Israel Wilhelm b. Apr. 20, 1824 d. Jan. 14, 1898
Douglas, Carl Robertsson b. Aug. 2, 1656 d. Apr. 27, 1678
Douglas, Carl Ulrik Gustafsson b. Jan. 4, 1699 d. Jan. 21,
1700
Douglas, Carl Wilhelm Wilhelmsson b. Oct. 4, 1754 d.
Nov. 2, 1822
Douglas, Eleonora Lowisa Sophia Dohna-Carwinden
b. Jan. 27, 1726 d. Jan. 30, 1797
Douglas, Gustaf Robertsson
b. May 23, 1648 d. 1705
Douglas, Hedwig Stellansdotter
Mörner b. unknown d. 1705
Douglas, Ludwig Wilhelm August b.
Nov. 24, 1849 d. Jul. 20, 1916
Douglas, Märta Catharina
Montgomery b. Sep. 22, 1762 d. Aug. 21, 1839
Douglas, Robert b. Mar. 17,
1611 d. May 28, 1662
Douglas, Robert Robertsson
b. Jul. 22, 1662 d. Apr. 16, 1665
Douglas, Ulrika Eleonora
Gustafsdotter b. Nov. 7, 1691 d. Sep. 12, 1698
Douglas,
Wilhelm Gustafsson b. Jan. 6, 1683 d. Apr. 8, 1763
Douglas,
Wilhelm Otto Wilhelmsson b. Feb. 26, 1721 d. Sep. 14, 1776
Douglas, Wilhelm Robertsson b. Nov. 20, 1646 d. Feb. 17, 1674
Falkenberg, Beata Margareta Gustafsdotter Douglas b. Sep.
15, 1694 d. Mar. 6, 1773
Falkenberg, Gabriel Henriksson b.
1685 d. 1756
Any contributions will be
gratefully accepted
|
