a monk of St. Gall who was Abbot of Einsiedeln from 1526 to 1544, restored a stricter observance. The abbey remained unaffected by the Protestant Reformation in Switzerland. Its leader, Huldrych Zwingli, had studied at the abbey for a period of time. Abbot Augustine I (1600–29) led the movement to create the Swiss Congregation of the Order of St. Benedict in 1602. Augustine established unrelaxed observance in the abbey and promoted a high standard of scholarship and learning amongst his monks. The Einsiedeln abbey church was rebuilt by Abbot Maurus between 1704 and 1719. In 1779, the abbey came under the control of France during its invasion of Italy, losing its status as an independent principality. In 1854, during a period of unrest in Western Europe, the Einsiedeln leadership became afraid that the abbey would be suppressed or dissolved. They sent a group of monks to southern Indiana in the United States to minister to German immigrants and develop a possible place of refuge. The monks started a new foundation, now Saint Meinrad Archabbey in St. Meinrad, Indiana. The abbey celebrated the millennium of Meinrad of Einsiedeln in 1861. The abbey started renovations in 1977 that were completed in 1997. Pontifical coronation Pope Pius XI granted a pontifical decree of canonical coronation towards its venerated Marian image on 21 March 1934. The rite of coronation was executed by the Archbishop of Milan, Cardinal Alfredo Ildefonso Schuster, coinciding with the abbey’s millennium on 14 September 1934. Marian cult and veneration The religious pilgrimages which have never ceased since the days of Saint Meinrad, have tended to make Einsiedeln on a par with the Basilica della Santa Casa and Santiago de Compostela, serving as a major stopping point on the Way of Saint James leading there. The statue of the Virgin Mary from the 15th century is enshrined within the chapel erected by Eberhard, and remains the venerated object of their cult and devotion. It is the subject of the earliest preserved print of pilgrimage, by the anonymous artisan Master E.S. in 1466. The chapel is located in the great abbey church. September 14 and October 13 are the main days of pilgrimage. September 14 is the anniversary of the consecration of the original church in 948 AD. October 13 is the anniversary of the translation of Meinrad's relics to Einsiedeln in 1039 AD. Status today Expansion to America Five monasteries were