GANDERSHEIM, a town of Germany in the Land of Brunswick, in the deep valley of the Gande, 48 m. S.W. of Bruns wick. Pop. (1933) 2,787. The convent church (Stiftskirche) con tains the tombs of famous abbesses, and the famous abbey (now occupied by provincial government offices) dates from the 11th century. There are manufactures of linen, cigars, aluminium and wire.
The abbey of Gandersheim was founded by Duke Ludolf of Saxony in 856. His own daughter Hathumoda was the first abbess and under her successor, Louis III. granted a privilege, by which the office of abbess was to continue in the ducal family of Saxony as long as any member was found competent and willing to accept the same. Otto III. gave the abbey a market, a right of toll and a mint. The abbey was ultimately recognized as holding directly of the Empire, and the abbess had a vote in the imperial diet. The conventual estates were of great extent, and the elector of Han over and the king of Prussia were among its feudatories. Protest antism was introduced in 1 568 and the last Roman Catholic abbess died in 1589; but Protestant abbesses were appointed to the foundation, and continued to enjoy their imperial privileges till 1803, when Gandersheim was incorporated with Brunswick. Gan dersheim is famous for its literary memorials ; Hroswitha, the famous Latin poet, was a member of the sisterhood in the 9th century; and the rhyming chronicle of Eberhard of Gandersheim is in all probability the earliest historical work in Low German.