The Ottonian dynasty succeeded in stabilizing the realm under the rule of King Henry I (876/936) and Emperor Otto I (912-973).
The union between the different tribes living in the kingdom of East Francia was growing. After his father’s death, Emperor Otto II (955-983) and his wife the Byzantine princess Theophanu (956-991) founded a Benedictine monastery in Memleben, where Henry I and Otto I had died.
The monastery was rebuilt and a new church was built in the thirteenth century. Large parts thereof are still preserved. In the course of the Reformation, the 16th century brought an end to the monastic life in Memleben, but the ruins and complex are open to the public nowadays.
The history of the Holy Roman Empire (of the German Nation from the sixteenth century onwards) is presented in a fine museum with topical exhibitions. (Source and further information: www.kloster-memleben.de).