HOW A MONASTERY (ALSO) BECAME AN ECONOMIC ENGINE 

With its flourishing businesses, Admont Benedictine Abbey is one of the most important employers in the region. The origins of these businesses and the challenges faced by the Benedictines of Admont over the centuries.

Depopulation and forced disposals

After this heyday, the Benedictine abbey entered a period of decline in the early 16th century. Like almost all religious houses in the country, the abbey in Admont had to pay for the financing of the Turkish wars and had to sell a quarter of its possessions in 1529. Over the course of several decades, almost all the properties located outside of Styria were sold off. The consequences of the Reformation were even more serious. The new ideas had set in motion a veritable depopulation of the monastery, as a result of which there were only two monks left in Admont Abbey in 1581. It was not until the Counter-Reformation, which was motivated by church politics, that the continued existence of the abbey was secured. Energetic abbots were sent to Admont, who succeeded in re-establishing a solid personnel and economic basis and restoring the monastery to its former strength.

Setting up the first companies

As splendid as the Benedictine monastery was in the early 19th century, its economic situation had become dire. This was primarily due to the French Wars, which had a significant impact on the political and economic events of the time. The end of the manorial administrative and operational structures also presented the Benedictine monastery with the challenge of having to find new sources of income. After all, supplies from nature, labour and monetary payments from the numerous subjects had formed the basis of the monastery's economy for centuries, which finally collapsed with the revolution in 1848. The reason why, with great effort, it was finally possible to reorganise the monastery's finances was that the Benedictine monastery had already established a second mainstay since the 17th century: its commercial enterprises. Mining and ironmongery were the first of these. The wine industry on the estates located in present-day Slovenia was also already being promoted at that time. Old records show that as early as the 17th century, half of all income came from these areas. Forestry still played a minor role at that time. The reason for this was that although the Benedictine monastery had extensive forests at its disposal, it had to make most of them available to the sovereign for the production of charcoal. 

From a flourishing economy to a financial crash

Around 1840, the Benedictine monastery ceased mining as well as all other areas of the iron industry. The hammer mill in Trieben, which had once been the largest in the whole of Styria, was converted into a sheet metal factory. At the same time, the previously expropriated forests could be utilised again, making forestry an important pillar of the monastery's economy in the late 19th century. A few decades later, Admont Abbey broke new ground with the construction of the first power station, laying the foundation stone for today's electricity supply company ENVESTA in 1911. In 1921, the abbey grammar school was re-established after an interruption of 100 years. Just two years later, a sawmill was opened, from which STIA and Admonter AG would emerge many years later. At this time, the economy of the Benedictine monastery flourished to such an extent that even works of art could be purchased and restored. However, the upswing was to be short-lived. After just a few years, the abbey lost large sums of money that it had invested in war bonds in a patriotic spirit. Money that would have been urgently needed in the course of the economic slump after 1930. The global economic crisis triggered by "Black Friday" also made itself felt in Admont: Huge quantities of timber were brought to Austria from the Soviet Union at dumping prices, causing the domestic forestry industry to collapse. For the Benedictine monastery, the most important economic sector at the time collapsed almost overnight. The winery also brought in very little income due to several failed harvests in succession and was therefore unable to stabilise the finances of the Benedictine monastery. In order to continue paying wages and salaries, loans had to be taken out, while at the same time a considerable tax debt accumulated. To avert the threat of bankruptcy, the experienced economic director of Kremsmünster, Father Bonifaz Zölß, was entrusted with the management of Admont Benedictine Abbey in 1935. He not only ordered a rigorous savings programme, but also the sale of some properties. In the following years, the Admonterhof in Graz, St Martin's Castle near Graz, the Ratzerhof near Marburg and the Zeiring provostry in the Pölstal valley as well as several smaller properties were sold off. However, as the proceeds from the sales were still not enough to pay off the mountain of debt, numerous works of art and valuable books were also sold. Gothic paintings and sculptures, including the Admont Madonna, and more than 70 medieval manuscripts as well as numerous old printed works were either turned into cash or delivered directly to the tax authorities. By the end of 1937, the renovation was essentially completed and the recovering economic situation did the rest to get the finances back on track.