St. Gallen is a city associated primarily with the Benedictine abbey, which dates back to the 7th century. It houses a magnificent monastery library, which for a century was the center of scientific life in this part of Switzerland.
In 612, in the place where St. Gallen founded his hermitage, the monk of St. Gall (St. Gawel). The hermitage was the nucleus of a monastery that adopted the Benedictine Rule in 747. The local monks rewrote books, and with time a monastery school was established here.
St. Gaul grew in the Middle Ages into one of the most important centers of culture, science and art in Europe, and the local abbots occupied one of the leading places in the European church. The monastery was also very rich, which helped in subsequent reconstructions.
The present-day appearance of the abbey quarter, entered on the UNESCO list, is the result of the last great reconstruction in the late German baroque and rococo styles. The best example of this is the ornate cathedral in St. Gallen. Among the highlights of St. Gallen is also a monastery library.
The city, which grew over time around the monastery, today can boast of well-preserved old buildings and numerous museums. The most important of them are the Natural History Museum, the Historical and Ethnological Museum, the Art Museum, and the Textile Museum.
There are also parks and natural attractions in the city. These include the Botanical Garden, Bird Park and Wild Animal Park, which was established at the end of the 19th century.
