EINSIEDELN. 723 EISENBERG. passes the house where Paracelsus (q.v.) is said to have been born. The monastery buihlinjrs, in the midst of a gloomy forest that was once ex- tensive, and surrounded by a quadrangle of walls, were six times partially or. entirely de- stroyed by fire before the seventeenth century, und'in 17'(M-1!» were rebuilt in the Italian style. At the entrance of the church are statues of the eniiH>rors Otho I. and Henry 11, In the nave is the black marble chapel, through the ,i;ratin<r of which is visible the renowned miracle-working image of the Virgin, small but richly bedecked and bejeweled. The gorgeous chandelier was given by Xapoleon 111. in memory of his mother. The monastery has a library of 40,000 volumes and 1200 manuscripts, a seniinarv, a iryinnasium, and a lyceum. It owes its origin to the hermit Meinraii. who erected a chapel for the inuige of the Virgin which had been given him by the Ab- bess ITildegard, and which has made Einsiedeln one of theinost famous of Catholic pilgrimages. The founder of the monastery was Eberhard, provost of Strassburg, who liegan the building in 934. Tlie town and district of Kinsicildn had a population of 85.51 in 1000. The Protestants number only S3. The picturesque vicinity alTords fine views of the Alps and the Lake of T.ucerne. Consult Brandcs, Die Feier des tauseiidjiihritien Bestrhriis von Maria Einsiedcln (Einsiedeln, 1862). EISELEN, i'zc-len, Ebxst Wiluelm Bebx- HABD (1793-184C). A German promoter of ath- letic exercise, born in Berlin. He established the terms still used in German fencing. In 1818 he opened a public gjiunasium in Berlin, which was followed in 1832 by one especially designed for the gynmastic training of girls. He was one of the foremost promoters of those athletic exercises which have directly and in- directly contributed to the physical improvement of the Germans, becoming bases of military train- ing, and conducing to the splendid successes achieved by the German arms during the nine- teenth century. It is interesting to note that it was largely from these transplanted gymnasia, or Turnvcreine, that some of the best German vol- unteers of the Civil A'ar in the United States were recruited. The literary productions of Eise- len include: Dnitxr-he Tunikiiii.tt, in association with Jahn (1816); Hanteliihtinijen, 3d ed. 1883) ; Ahhildunqen von Tuniiibungen (5th ed. 1889) ; Das dcutsrhc HiebfecMen (new ed. 1882) : Al)riss des deutachen Stossfechtens (new ed. 1889). EISENACH, I'zc-nac A town of the Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar, and former residence of the Principality of Eisenach, situated at tbe northwestern end of the Thuringian Forest and at the confluence of the Xessc with the Horsel, 45 miles west of Weimar (Map: Ger- many, D 3). The town is well laid out, and h.as a number of squares, one of which, tlie l.ufher- platz, contains the house where Liither lived while studying at Eisenach, and another. Karls- platz, is adorned with a bronze statue of T.iither. The most noteworthy ecclesiastical edifices are the Church of Saint' Nicholas, dating from the twelfth century, with an octagonal tower: the Church of Saint George, a large Gothic edifice with a bronze statue of Sebastian Bach, a na- tive of Eisenach. Other interesting buildings are the palace, erected in 1742; the town hall; the Klenida, an old castellated building dating from the thirteenth century, and now occupied by a club; the theatre; and the house where Se- bastian Bach was born. Xot far from the town, on a lofty eminence, is situated the Castle of Wartburg. the residence of the niedianal land- graves of Thuringia, dating proliably from the eleventh century, but mainly built in the suc- ceeding centuries, and recently restored. It con- sists of two main parts, the Vorburg and the Ilof- burg, the former containing the Kitterliaus and stables, and the latter the apartments of the landgraves. Among the rooms in the X'orburg, the most interesting is that occupied by Lu- ther while he worked on his famous transla- tion of the Bible. The Hofburg contains many halls of great splendor, including the Siingersaal, where, according to local tradition, the contests of the Jlinnesingers were held under the patron- age of the Landgrave llennann 1. (1190-1217), as described in the old poem, Kriec von Wart- burg. The castle is now occasionally occupied by the Grand Duke of Weimar. Among the educational institutions of Eise- nach, the most prominent is the gyn:nasium, for- merly a Latin school, which counted among its pupiis Luther and Sebastian Bach. Eisenach has some ^ell-developed manufacturing industries, and produces paint, chemicals, woolen goods, leather, potteiy, shoes, tobacco, and cigars. It owns its water-supply, has an electric street railway, ami is lighted by gas and electricity. The neighborhood of Eisenach is of remarkable picturesqueness, ornamented with splendid gardens and magnifi- cent residences. The town was founded in 1070, near the older town of Isenach, or Isenacum. It prospered under the protection of the landgraves of Thuringia, the owners of the Wartburg. and was, from 1590 to 1741. the residence of the princes of Eisenach. Population, in 1890, 21,399; in 1900, 31,442. Consult: Storeh, Beschreihmui der Stadt Eisenach (Eisenach, 1831): Schwerdt and .Jiiger, Eisenach tind die Wartburg (ib., 1871); Warnatz, Die Wartburg tind Eisenach in Sage und Geschichte (Vieima. 1881) ; Scheller, Eisenach tind Vmgebung. edited by Kiihner (Eisenach, 1898). EISENACH CHXJKCH CONFERENCE, or Evangelical Church Conference. The name given to periodical meetings of representatives of the Protestant churches of the (iernian States and Austria. The first was held at Ber- lin in 1846. and included rejjresentatives from nearly all the German States: the second at Eisenach, in 1852; and since 1854 they have been held every two years at the latter place. The aim is the discussion of questions of general in- terest and the promotion of unity among the in- dividual churches. The conference has lately undertaken the management of archa-ological in- vestigations in Palestine. Since 1852 the con- ference has published at Stuttgart a central organ, the Allgcmeine Kirchcnblatt fiir das evatigeli.':c]ie Dciitschlatid. EISENBERG, I'zf nberK. An old town in the Duchy of Saxe-.ltenburg. Germany, situated near the Saale, 24 miles west-southwest of .ltenburg. It contains a ducal palace, with a fine church and gardens, and manufactures woolens, velvet, pot- tery, and agricultural machines. Population, in 1900. 8764.
