Reichenau
Encyclopedia
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
of Tamins
Tamins
Tamins is a municipality in the district of Imboden in the Swiss canton of Graubünden.-History:Tamins is first mentioned in 1224 as Tuminne. In 1225 it was mentioned as Tvminnis and in 1399 as Tumins.-Geography:...
in the Canton
Cantons of Switzerland
The 26 cantons of Switzerland are the member states of the federal state of Switzerland. Each canton was a fully sovereign state with its own borders, army and currency from the Treaty of Westphalia until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848...
of Graubünden
Graubünden
Graubünden or Grisons is the largest and easternmost canton of Switzerland. The canton shares borders with the cantons of Ticino, Uri, Glarus and St. Gallen and international borders with Italy, Austria and Liechtenstein...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, where the two Rhine tributaries Vorderrhein
Vorderrhein
The Vorderrhein is one of the two sources of the Rhine. Its catchment area of is located predominantly in the Canton of Graubünden . The Vorderrhein is about long, thus more than 5% longer than the Hinterrhein...
and Hinterrhein
Hinterrhein (river)
The Hinterrhein is one of the initial tributaries of the Rhine in the Canton of Graubünden in Switzerland, flowing from the village Hinterrhein near the San Bernardino pass through the Rheinwald valley into a gorge called Roflaschlucht...
meet, forming the Alpine Rhine.
It is a major traffic junction of the routes from Chur
Chur
Chur or Coire is the capital of the Swiss canton of Graubünden and lies in the northern part of the canton.-History:The name "chur" derives perhaps from the Celtic kora or koria, meaning "tribe", or from the Latin curia....
towards the Oberalp Pass
Oberalp Pass
Oberalp Pass is a high mountain pass in the Swiss Alps connecting the cantons of Graubünden and Uri between Disentis and Andermatt.-Winter closure:...
and Lukmanier Pass
Lukmanier Pass
Lukmanier Pass is a pass in the Swiss Alps.The road from Disentis/Mustér in the canton of Graubünden leads through the Val Medel across the pass to the Blenio valley and Biasca in the canton of Ticino.The Pass is kept opened during the winter.-See also:* List of highest paved roads in Europe*...
and from Chur towards San Bernardino Pass
San Bernardino Pass
San Bernardino Pass is a high mountain pass in the Swiss Alps connecting the Hinterrhein and the Mesolcina valleys between Thusis and Bellinzona . Located in the far eastern side of the Western Alps it is not to be confused with the Great St. Bernard Pass and the Little St. Bernard Pass...
and Julier Pass
Julier Pass
The Julier Pass is a mountain pass in Switzerland, in the Albula Range of the Alps. It connects the Engadin valley with the rest of Graubünden...
.
The civilisation of the place is traced back until the year 500. The name originates from the Benedictine
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
Abbey of Reichenau on Reichenau Island
Reichenau Island
Reichenau Island lies in Lake Constance in southern Germany, at approximately . It lies between Gnadensee and Untersee, two parts of Lake Constance, almost due west of the city of Konstanz. The island is connected to the mainland by a causeway that was completed in 1838...
in Lake Constance
Lake Constance
Lake Constance is a lake on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps, and consists of three bodies of water: the Obersee , the Untersee , and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Seerhein.The lake is situated in Germany, Switzerland and Austria near the Alps...
which owned properties in this area during the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. The monastery was founded in 724 and drew to itself abbots with connections to the highest Carolingian
Carolingian
The Carolingian dynasty was a Frankish noble family with origins in the Arnulfing and Pippinid clans of the 7th century AD. The name "Carolingian", Medieval Latin karolingi, an altered form of an unattested Old High German *karling, kerling The Carolingian dynasty (known variously as the...
and Ottonian society; it housed a school, and a famous scriptorium
Scriptorium
Scriptorium, literally "a place for writing", is commonly used to refer to a room in medieval European monasteries devoted to the copying of manuscripts by monastic scribes...
. See Abbey of Reichenau
Reichenau Island
Reichenau Island lies in Lake Constance in southern Germany, at approximately . It lies between Gnadensee and Untersee, two parts of Lake Constance, almost due west of the city of Konstanz. The island is connected to the mainland by a causeway that was completed in 1838...
.
In the 14th century the first bridge
Bridge
A bridge is a structure built to span physical obstacles such as a body of water, valley, or road, for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle...
s were built over the Rhine tributaries.
A roadhouse was built 1570 to collect the bridge toll. In the 17th century the first buildings for the sovereignty of Reichenau were built which became the castle of Reichenau. The Rhaetian Railways reached Reichenau 1896.
Transportation
Rhaetian Railway operate services to Reichenau-Tamins (Rhaetian Railway station)Reichenau-Tamins (Rhaetian Railway station)
Reichenau-Tamins is a railway station serving the communities of Reichenau and Tamins in Switzerland. It is an important station for connections between the Chur-Thusis line and the Chur-Disentis line as is it is where the two lines diverge. From this station, there are trains to Chur , Disentis,...
nearby.