The Catholic Pilgrim's Guide to Bingen am Rhein, Germany

Where St. Hildegard of Bingen lived and died, pilgrims walk in the footsteps of this visionary Doctor of the Church along the banks of the Rhine.

In 1150, a remarkable Benedictine abbess named Hildegard left the monastery where she had spent nearly forty years and led her nuns to a windswept crag at the confluence of the Nahe and Rhine rivers. There, on the Rupertsberg overlooking the ancient town of Bingen, she built a new monastery where she would write, compose, heal, and prophesy for the next twenty-nine years. Nine centuries later, pilgrims still come to this stretch of the Middle Rhine Valley to walk in the footsteps of one of the most extraordinary women in Church history. Hildegard of Bingen—mystic, composer, naturalist, and now Doctor of the Church—left an indelible mark on this landscape. Though her original monastery was destroyed in the seventeenth century, the town preserves her memory through museums, churches, and the surviving vaults beneath where her community once sang the Divine Office. Across the Rhine in Eibingen, Benedictine nuns continue her legacy in an abbey built in her honor, where her relics rest in a golden shrine. Today, a 137-kilometer pilgrimage trail bearing her name winds through the Nahe Valley to Bingen, dotted with meditation boards featuring her visionary writings. Bingen itself sits at the gateway to the UNESCO World Heritage Upper Middle Rhine Valley, where the river narrows dramatically at the legendary Binger Loch. The town's historic center, crowned by the medieval Klopp Castle, retains the atmosphere of Hildegard's era. On the Rochusberg hill above the town, pilgrims find the neo-Gothic St. Rochus Chapel with its Hildegard altar and relics, surrounded by herb gardens planted according to her botanical writings. Here, ancient devotion meets living tradition.

📜 History & Spiritual Significance

Hildegard was born in 1098 at Bermersheim vor der Höhe to a noble family in the Rhineland. At age eight, her parents entrusted her to the care of Blessed Jutta of Sponheim at the Benedictine monastery of Disibodenberg, some forty kilometers southwest of Bingen. There she took vows, learned to chant the Psalms, and began experiencing what she called "the reflection of the living Light"—mystical visions that would shape her life's work. When Jutta died in 1136, Hildegard was elected magistra of the growing community. But divine command soon directed her elsewhere. In a vision, God instructed her to "tell and write" what she saw, and to lead her nuns to a new home. Despite fierce opposition from the monks of Disibodenberg, who benefited from the prestige her reputation brought, Hildegard persevered. In 1150, she and twenty sisters moved to the Rupertsberg, named for the eighth-century St. Rupert of Bingen whose tomb lay there. On the Rupertsberg, Hildegard's creative genius flourished. She completed her major theological work Scivias (Know the Ways), wrote two more volumes of visionary theology, composed over seventy liturgical songs, and authored groundbreaking works on medicine and natural science. She corresponded with popes, emperors, and bishops, calling them to reform with prophetic boldness. When Emperor Frederick Barbarossa supported schismatic popes, she fearlessly rebuked him. In 1165, Hildegard founded a daughter house at Eibingen across the Rhine, personally crossing the river twice weekly to guide her nuns until her death. She died on September 17, 1179, at age eighty-one. Though her canonization was delayed for centuries, she had long been venerated as a saint. Pope Benedict XVI formally canonized her in May 2012 and, five months later, proclaimed her a Doctor of the Church—only the fourth woman to receive this honor.

☩ Pilgrimage Sites in Bingen

Bingen's Hildegard heritage unfolds across several sites on both banks of the Rhine. The historic town center sits where the Nahe flows into the Rhine, with the Rochusberg rising to the southeast and the Rupertsberg district across the Nahe to the west. Across the Rhine lies Eibingen, technically part of Rüdesheim but spiritually inseparable from Hildegard's story.

St. Rochus Chapel (Rochuskapelle)

Local Name: Rochuskapelle Address: Rochusberg, 55411 Bingen am Rhein, Germany GPS Coordinates: 49.9587000, 7.9142000 Google Maps: View on Google Maps Dedication: St. Roch, St. Hildegard of Bingen Historical Note: The first chapel on this hilltop was built in 1666 during a plague outbreak, invoking St. Roch's protection against pestilence. Destroyed during the Revolutionary Wars in 1795, it was rebuilt in 1814 following a typhoid epidemic. The writer Goethe attended its dedication and wrote a famous account of the celebration. After lightning destroyed the second chapel in 1889, the present neo-Gothic structure was completed in 1895, designed by Freiburg architect Max Meckel. Spiritual Importance: In the nineteenth century, the chapel became a center for Hildegard veneration when her relics were partially transferred here from Eibingen during times of upheaval. The ornate Hildegard altar displays eight gilded panels depicting scenes from her life, and a side altar contains two of her relics. The chapel sits amid herb gardens and orchards planted according to Hildegard's botanical teachings, with panoramic views across the Rhine Valley.

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Parish Church of St. Rupertus and St. Hildegard

Local Name: Pfarrkirche St. Rupertus und St. Hildegard Address: Gutenbergstraße 2, 55411 Bingen-Bingerbrück, Germany GPS Coordinates: 49.9708000, 7.8783000 Google Maps: View on Google Maps Dedication: St. Rupert of Bingen, St. Hildegard of Bingen Historical Note: This neo-Romanesque church, completed in the early twentieth century, deliberately echoes the architectural style of Hildegard's original monastery church. It stands in Bingerbrück, directly on the Rupertsberg where Hildegard built her first monastery in 1150. The church houses the Hildegard Centre, which offers guided tours and information about the saint's life. Spiritual Importance: Five magnificent stained-glass windows in the transept depict scenes from Hildegard's life. A small side chapel contains a reliquary shrine with relics of both St. Hildegard and St. Rupert, the eighth-century saint whose grave drew Hildegard to this site. This is the endpoint of the Hildegard Pilgrimage Trail, where pilgrims receive their final stamp.

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Museum am Strom – Hildegard von Bingen

Local Name: Historisches Museum am Strom – Hildegard von Bingen Address: Museumstraße 3, 55411 Bingen am Rhein, Germany GPS Coordinates: 49.9680000, 7.8970000 Google Maps: View on Google Maps Website: https://www.bingen.de/en/culture/museum-am-strom Dedication: St. Hildegard of Bingen Historical Note: Housed in a striking 1898 former power station on the Rhine's banks, the museum opened its major Hildegard exhibition in 1998 for the 900th anniversary of her birth. The building itself reflects the transition from Rhine Romanticism to industrial modernity, with neo-Gothic windows and soaring machine-hall ceilings. Spiritual Importance: The museum's largest permanent exhibition covers over 300 square meters dedicated to Hildegard's life and work. Detailed scale models recreate her destroyed monastery, while precious originals—including a 1553 first printing of her Physica—bring her world to life. Multimedia installations present her musical compositions, and a meditation gallery offers slide projections of her visionary imagery. The adjacent Hildegarden grows medicinal plants described in her natural history writings.

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The Rupertsberg Vaults

Beneath a nineteenth-century villa on Am Rupertsberg 16 lie the last physical remnants of Hildegard's monastery—the vaulted cellars that once stored wine beneath her church. Five stone arcades from the original monastery church survive above ground, incorporated into the villa's structure. The Rupertsberg Hildegard Society maintains these spaces, offering guided tours and a digital reconstruction that allows visitors to virtually experience the monastery as it appeared in Hildegard's day.

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Hildegard Forum of the Sisters of the Cross

Set atop the Rochusberg near St. Rochus Chapel, this modern center is run by the Sisters of the Cross, whose motherhouse has occupied the hill since the 1920s. The Forum offers exhibitions, lectures, and seminars on Hildegard's teachings. A restaurant serves meals based on Hildegard's nutritional principles, and an extensive medicinal herb garden grows over eighty plants she described in Physica.

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Abbey of St. Hildegard, Eibingen (across the Rhine)

Though technically in Rüdesheim, no Hildegard pilgrimage is complete without crossing the Rhine to Eibingen. The imposing Neo-Romanesque abbey, built 1900–1904, houses some fifty Benedictine nuns who continue Hildegard's spiritual legacy. They sing the Divine Office daily, including compositions by Hildegard herself. The abbey church contains the golden Hildegard Shrine with the majority of her relics, and the nuns produce wine from their vineyards and handcrafted goods in the tradition of Benedictine labor.

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Pilgrimage Church of St. Hildegard, Eibingen

In the village of Eibingen below the abbey stands the parish church, built on the foundations of Hildegard's 1165 daughter monastery. After a fire in 1932, it was rebuilt in 1935 incorporating stylistic elements from the medieval structure. The Hildegardis Shrine containing her bones draws pilgrims year-round, especially on her feast day when the relics are carried in solemn procession.

🕯️ Annual Feast Days & Celebrations

September 17 – Feast of St. Hildegard of Bingen Pilgrimage Church of St. Hildegard, Eibingen. On the anniversary of Hildegard's death, pilgrims gather from across Germany and beyond for a solemn High Mass followed by a procession carrying the saint's relics through the streets of Eibingen. The abbey nuns lead the singing of Hildegard's own compositions. Sunday after August 16 – Rochusfest St. Rochus Chapel, Bingen. This traditional pilgrimage feast honoring St. Roch draws thousands to the Rochusberg for outdoor Mass and celebrations. Though primarily devoted to St. Roch, the event also honors Hildegard, whose relics rest in the chapel.

🛏️ Where to Stay

Hildegard Forum of the Sisters of the Cross 📍 Address: Rochusberg 1, 55411 Bingen am Rhein 🌐 Website: https://www.hildegard-forum.de 🔗 Booking.com: hildegard-forum-bingen-am-rhein Thirteen barrier-free rooms in a peaceful setting atop the Rochusberg, operated as an integration enterprise by the Sisters of the Cross. The location amid herb gardens and vineyards offers direct connection to Hildegard's legacy. Restaurant serves Hildegard-inspired cuisine. NH Bingen ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 📍 Address: Rheinkai 1, 55411 Bingen am Rhein 🌐 Website: https://www.nh-hotels.com/hotel/nh-bingen 🔗 Booking.com: nh-bingen Modern four-star hotel directly on the Rhine with spa facilities. Views across the river toward Eibingen and the abbey. PAPA RHEIN Hotel & Spa ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 📍 Address: Am Rhein-Nahe-Eck 1-3, 55411 Bingen am Rhein 🔗 Booking.com: papa-rhein-hotel-spa Contemporary hotel at the confluence of the Nahe and Rhine, offering wellness facilities and a prime location for exploring Hildegard sites. Weinhaus Selmigkeit 📍 Address: Martinstraße 6, 55411 Bingen am Rhein 🔗 Booking.com: weinhaus-selmigkeit Traditional wine house with guesthouse accommodation in the heart of the old town. Family-run with garden terrace.

🚗 Getting There

By Air: Frankfurt Airport (FRA) lies approximately 50 kilometers east. From the airport, trains run regularly to Bingen via Mainz (journey time approximately 45 minutes). Frankfurt-Hahn Airport is about 50 kilometers west but has limited public transport connections. By Train: Bingen has two stations. Bingen (Rhein) Hauptbahnhof serves regional trains on the left Rhine bank, with connections to Koblenz and Mainz. Bingerbrück station, directly at the Rupertsberg, offers additional services. Both stations connect to the wider German rail network via Mainz. By Car: From Frankfurt, take the A60 toward Mainz, then the A643 and B9 along the Rhine to Bingen (approximately one hour). From Cologne, follow the A61 south to the A60 interchange (approximately two hours). Parking is available throughout town and at the Rochusberg. By Rhine Ferry: A passenger ferry connects Bingen with Rüdesheim and Eibingen on the opposite bank, operating frequently during daylight hours. This scenic crossing allows pilgrims to visit the abbey and pilgrimage church without a long detour. Local Transport: Bingen is compact and walkable, though the Rochusberg involves a steady climb. The Hildegard Trail through town is well-marked with "nun signs" directing pilgrims between sites.

📚 Further Reading

Books:

Articles & Online Resources:

🎥 Recommended Videos

Do you have specific YouTube videos about Bingen or St. Hildegard to recommend? Catholic streaming platforms like EWTN may have relevant documentaries.

🔗 Useful Links

🧭 Nearby Pilgrimage Destinations

  • Mainz (30 km) – The thousand-year-old Dom St. Martin holds the relics of numerous saints; seat of the archdiocese that once encompassed Bingen.
  • Maria Laach (60 km) – Ancient Benedictine abbey on a volcanic lake, one of Germany's finest Romanesque churches.
  • Trier (120 km) – Germany's oldest city, home to the Holy Robe of Christ and the tomb of the Apostle Matthias.
  • Cologne (120 km) – The magnificent Gothic cathedral enshrines the relics of the Three Magi.

🥾 Pilgrim Routes

Hildegard von Bingen Pilgrimage Trail (Hildegard von Bingen Pilgerwanderweg) This 137-kilometer trail begins in Idar-Oberstein and traces the stages of Hildegard's life through the Nahe Valley to Bingen. The route passes through Niederhosenbach (her family's seat), the ruins of Disibodenberg monastery where she spent forty years, and Sponheim before reaching Bingen. Fifty-nine information and meditation boards along the way present her writings in German and English. The trail concludes at the Parish Church of St. Rupertus and St. Hildegard, with optional continuation to the Eibingen abbey across the Rhine.

🪶 Closing Reflection

"The teaching of the holy Benedictine nun stands as a beacon for homo viator. Her message appears extraordinarily timely in today's world."

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— Pope Benedict XVI, Apostolic Letter proclaiming St. Hildegard a Doctor of the Church (2012)