Although people occupied Reichenau in the
Bronze Age and
Iron Age, archeological evidence suggests that Reichenau was abandoned during the Roman era. It remained uninhabited until 724, when the
monk Pirmin received support from the Carolingian ruler
Charles Martel to build a monastery on the island. In the early 9th century, under the patronage of the
Carolingian dynasty and
Ottonian dynasty, the community flourished. In 816 the monastery church of the by-then abbey, was rebuilt in a cruciform
basilica style, and churches dedicated to the
Virgin and
Saint Mark were consecrated. Relics of
St. Mark arrived at the abbey in the mid-9th century. Two further churches were built on the island consecrated to Saints
Peter and
Paul (in 799) and to
Saint George (in 896). The abbey's
bailiff was housed in a two-storey stone building to which two more storeys of
timber framing were added in the 14th century, one of the oldest timber-frame buildings in southern Germany. It is today used as a museum of local history. The monastic community of the abbey produced several influential poets and authors, such as
Walafrid Strabo (who served as abbot) and scholars such as
Hermann of Reichenau and Abbot
Reginbert, as well as artists. The famous artworks of Reichenau include (in the church of St George) the
Ottonian murals of miracles of Christ, unique survivals from the 10th century. The
Plan of St. Gall, the only surviving architectural drawing from the Middle Ages, may also have been created on the island. Among the abbey's far-flung landholdings was
Reichenau, a village on the upper Rhine in the
municipality of
Tamins in the canton of
Graubünden, Switzerland, named for the abbey. In the 16th century, the territory of the
Prince-Bishopric of Constance was extended to include Reichenau, and as a result the influence of the abbey waned. During the
secularization of the Prince-Bishopric of Constance in 1803, many of the smaller chapels on the island were demolished. In addition, the manuscripts and archives held in the abbey were given to Karlsruhe and the University of Heidelberg library and the surrounding farms were parceled and sold. Today the island is also famous for its vegetable farms. The
Wollmatinger Ried next to the island is a large nature reserve, a
wetland area of reeds, which is used by many birds as a stopover during their annual migration. ==Transport==