© Joachim Hoeft
Count Lothar II of Walbeck founded a collegiate monastery of the Benedictine order on the oval hilltop of the cathedral on the upper reaches of the Aller River around 942; as atonement for his participation in a conspiracy against the king and later emperor Otto I, the monastery was almost completely destroyed in 1219, and it did not survive the renewed reconstruction. During excavations the grave of the founder was discovered, remains of the sarcophagus are in the Walbeck village church. The imposing ruins of the church still bear witness to the monastery today. The site offers a beautiful panoramic view of the river valley and the surroundings of Walbeck.