Belebtes Kloster — ARD Television Service Memleben

A Monastery Site of European Rank

Memleben Monastery is one of Germany's most important Ottonian sites – and for many historians, an "untapped treasure." The first Holy Roman Emperor Otto the Great died here in 973; his son Otto II founded Memleben Imperial Monastery in 979, which was one of the most significant spiritual and political centers of the empire in the 10th century. Today, an impressive ruin remains of this splendor – the second-largest church ruin in Saxony-Anhalt.

Live on ARD

On Whit Monday 2026 (May 25th), Memleben will be the setting for an unusual broadcast for an hour: ARD will broadcast a live Pentecost service from the Museum Kloster und Kaiserpfalz. State Bishop Gerhard Feige of the Evangelical Church in Central Germany (EKM) will deliver the sermon, and the service will be musically accompanied by a choir and an instrumental ensemble. It begins at 10:00 AM. The broadcast reaches a nationwide audience of millions – thus putting Memleben in the center of German media attention for an hour.

Belebtes Kloster — The Bigger Narrative

The event is part of the "Belebtes Kloster" (Living Monastery) initiative, with which the museum management in Memleben uses the site for lively programming beyond classic museum operations. Concerts, services, readings, guided tours – everything that brings the place to life beyond mere sightseeing. The ARD service is the most prominent program item in 2026, but by far not the only one.

Memleben and the Burgenlandkreis

Memleben is a district of the town of Kaiserpfalz, located in the south of the Burgenlandkreis in Saxony-Anhalt – at the transition from the Saale-Unstrut region to the Thuringian Basin. The landscape is of exceptional beauty: vineyards in the valley, castles on the heights, the monastery site itself nestled in a gentle hollow. Those who visit the service should plan a day for the region – Naumburg with its UNESCO World Heritage Cathedral is only 20 km away.