Melk Abbey or Stift Melk is one of the world's most famous monastic sites. It was founded in 1089 but the current impressive Baroque abbey was built between 1702 and 1736 to designs by Jakob Prandtauer.
Melk managed to escape dissolution between 1780 and 1790 and survived other threats to its existence during the Napoleonic Wars, and also in the period following the Nazi Anschluss . The school, which was confiscated, was returned to the abbey after the Second World War and now caters for nearly 900 pupils of both sexes.
Since 1625 the abbey has been a member of the Austrian Congregation, now within the Benedictine Confederation.
