The Augustinian Canons’ monastery gives Markt Indersdorf a distinctive cultural focus. Its history dates back to 1120; the monastery church combines Romanesque origins with a later Rococo makeover. There is also a museum about the history of the Augustinian Canons, local markets and routes through the hilly landscape of the Glonn Valley. For your planning, this means you can combine architectural and monastic history with a visit to the market or a walking or cycling route.
Monastery Church: Romanesque Roots and Rococo
Count Palatine Otto IV of Wittelsbach founded the Augustinian Canons’ monastery in 1120. The monastery’s first church was consecrated in 1128 by Archbishop Conrad of Salzburg, in honour of the Mother of God and the princes of the apostles, Peter and Paul. After the great fire of 1249, the church and monastery complex were rebuilt. The church was built as a three-aisled Romanesque basilica without a transept, with three nearly equal-height apses, a flat wooden ceiling and a north tower. The foundations of this basilica survive beneath the church’s present Rococo makeover. Under Provost Gelasius Morhardt (1748–1768), the church acquired its Rococo makeover—two building phases that are clearly distinct in its history.
The Wittelsbach family’s history is also connected with the monastery: seven Wittelsbach counts palatine are buried within the area of the present-day monastery walls. This makes Indersdorf one of the early Wittelsbach family monasteries, alongside Scheyern and Ensdorf. As part of the Raudnitz-Indersdorf monastic reform, more than 24 monasteries in Bavaria and beyond were reformed from Indersdorf, with the support of the Bavarian dukes.
Museum and Changing Uses
The Augustinian Canons’ Museum is housed in the former sexton’s house and the adjoining north gate tower. Both buildings were part of the monastery complex and are now protected historic monuments. The permanent exhibition focuses specifically on the Augustinian Canons. It also explores the monastery’s changing uses after secularisation in the 18th century, including its use as an orphanage run by the Salesian Sisters and the Sisters of Mercy, as an educational institution under the Nazis, and as an international UNRRA centre for caring for foreign unaccompanied children and young people in the immediate post-war period.
After the end of the Second World War, Markt Indersdorf became a place of refuge for more than 1,000 young survivors of Nazi persecution. They initially found a protected environment here before returning home or emigrating. This story adds an important post-war perspective to the history of the monastery and its architecture.
Weekly Market and Event Dates
The Indersdorf weekly market is held every Saturday from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. in the Unterer Markt area on Freisinger Straße. As a “green market,” it offers food as well as produce from fruit and horticulture, agriculture and forestry, and raw natural products. If a market visit is part of your plans, check the published weekly schedule again before you travel.
The “Advent am Kloster” Christmas market takes place on the second weekend of Advent each year. The traditional market festival is held over two days on the first weekend of August, with a varied programme in the market square. For both events, check the dates for your travel year so you can plan your visit around the market or festival.
Walks, Cycling Routes and Hilly Landscapes
Markt Indersdorf lies in the varied hilly landscape of the Glonn Valley, with numerous walking and cycling routes through the valley and surrounding hills. Local route descriptions in a flyer from June 2021 give different starting points and distances: the “Views of Albersbach & Westerholzhausen” walking route starts and ends at Indersdorf station and is 8.5 kilometres long. A 9.5-kilometre section of the Oxenweg passes through Langenpettenbach to Westerholzhausen and starts and ends in Indersdorf’s market square. The Marterl cycling route is 12 kilometres long and starts and finishes at the Volksfestplatz. Check the route conditions for the Marterl cycling route before setting out.
The 7-Klöster-Weg offers another way to combine culture and activity. It is signposted throughout with a church logo and features information boards about its history. Its eastern loop can, for example, begin in Markt Indersdorf, where the route’s first monastery awaits visitors. The locally described routes therefore differ in length, starting point and theme, while the eastern loop of the 7-Klöster-Weg has its own monastic focus.
A Separate Look at Dachau
The wider destination of Dachau also has its own cultural and landscape focus: Dachau Palace was once a popular summer residence of the Wittelsbach family. The climb up to the palace rewards visitors with views across the Munich Gravel Plain, the Bavarian capital of Munich and as far as the Alps. This is a distinctive feature of Dachau; in Markt Indersdorf, the focus is on the monastery complex, its history and the routes in the Glonn Valley.
Discover more destinations: Niederroth, Karlsfeld, Bergkirchen, AltomĂĽnster, Haimhausen, Sulzemoos, Erdweg, Schwabhausen
Back to the overview of the wider destination: Dachau.
