A new building as a sign of power
Following a huge fire during the night of 9 March 1697, which almost completely destroyed the imperial abbey, Abbot Emanuel Sulger ordered the Vorarlberg architect Franz Beer to rebuild the monastery. In just ten years, the architect built the 180 meter long complex comprising the Prelature and convent building, symmetrically divided by central and corner pavilions. Monks lived in the convent building while the abbot lived in the Prelature. The magnificent rooms emphasize the abbey's standing.