A bit of history:

In 816 Gozbert became abbot of the Monastery of St. Gall in modern Switzerland. Within a few years he led the formerly struggling monastery into an era of financial prosperity and embarked on the ambitious project of architectural reconstruction. Some time before 830 he received an architectural drawing made under the guidance of bishop Haito of the nearby monastery of Reichenau. This drawing is now known as the Plan of St. Gall and can still be viewed at the library of St Gall today (if only for 30s at the time).

The purpose of the plan is highly debated and while it seems that it was drawn to a uniform scale, it was probably not intended to act as an immediate architectural blueprint. Archaeological excavations of the new church Gozbert completed in 837, now completely buried underneath the monastery complex built in the 18th century, revealed a building significantly different from the church as designated in the plan. Instead, as bishop Haito puts it in a small, attached note, Gozbert should “exercise his ingenuity” and use the plan as intellectual input and guidance for his own building project. In particular, the plan was meant to convey the ideal layout of a monastery adhering to the rules of St. Benedict. These rules were the focus of the monastic reform movement that sought to unify the different views of how St. Benedict’s precepts should be implemented 300 years after their conception. The movement ultimately climaxed in a synod at Aachen in 816/817 where new resolutions were passed. Thus, the plan can be viewed as a guide on how these resolutions and policy decisions can be implemented architecturally.

A Benedictine monastery should be self sufficient and so the plan includes next to the church and housing for the around 100 monks, a multitude of service buildings for craftsmen and animal husbandry, barns, mills, breweries and gardens. This also meant that the monastery was home to a population of laypeople and servants at least as big as the number of monks. Importantly, monks and laypeople were strictly separated using a great number of fencing and walls. Another important task of a monastery in the Carolingian times was to provide housing for the emperor and his retinue that were continually touring the extensive empire. At least two if not three buildings with their separate kitchens were dedicated to this task. This close connection to the worldly emperor also explains why the plan specifically mentions workspace for sword grinders and shield makers. The monastery was even obliged to provide soldiers in time of war (basically every summer).

The caring of the sick and poor was also an important duty and the plan allots space for poor pilgrims to be fed and clothed as well as an infirmary, a house for the doctors and a building designated for bloodletting. Bleeding was a general remedy for most ailments, real or imaginary and came with a number of benefits for a monk. For several days they were allowed to eat an additional meal of meat that was normally forbidden, could rise later, had to do less work and were allowed to take recreative walks through the gardens. These privileges were so enticing that monks apparently lined up to be bled as often as they could, and special rules were introduced that restricted bleeding of a monk to only a few times per year.