St. Adalbert (Aachen)

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St. Adalbert (2012)

The provost church of St. Adalbert in Aachen was the collegiate church of a collegiate foundation and was consecrated in 1005. This makes it the second oldest church in the city after the Aachen Cathedral . St. Adalbert is located directly on today's Kaiserplatz and is consecrated to the 999 canonized Adalbert of Prague .

history

Folded sandstones and claystones of the Upper Devonian Condroz Formation below St. Adalbert

After the death of Bishop Adalbert of Prague and his subsequent canonization, Emperor Otto III decided. , who was an admirer and friend of Adalbert, to distribute some of the bishop's relics to selected churches in his empire (Gnesen, Prague, Rome). For this purpose he also ordered the construction of a collegiate church for the Free Imperial City of Aachen , which he dedicated to St. Adalbert and St. Hermes wanted to consecrate. This church should be visible from afar and therefore be built on a rock in front of the city made of Upper Devonian Condroz sandstones , which protrudes about seven meters from a swampy valley and about one kilometer east of the Aachen Palatinate along the old Roman road Trier is located. Like the imperial city of Aachen, the St. Adalbert monastery belonged to the diocese of Liège .

Seal of the Adalbertstift

Otto III. did not live to see the completion, but his successor Heinrich II had the church and the outbuildings completed. In the year 1005 it was finally given to St. Hermes and St. Adalbert and received, among other things, the skull relics of the two saints. The emperor appointed clergymen who formed the collegiate monastery and declared the church a legally free imperial imperial monastery . In addition, the monastery received numerous agricultural goods not only in the immediate vicinity, but also in more remote places such as Soiron , Olne , Lendersdorf (all 1005), parts of Vaals (1041), Baesweiler (1130) and Eilendorf (1238). In addition, the newly built Salvator Church on the Salvatorberg was awarded to the monastery from 1005 to 1059 , before it then fell to the cathedral monastery by imperial decree .

Due to the construction of the outer city wall at the end of the 13th century, which ran outside and directly along the Devonian slate rock, the church finally belonged to the imperial urban area. In the course of these construction measures at the beginning of the 14th century, the Adalbertsturm and the Adalbertstor were also built adjacent to the church property.

As a free imperial imperial monastery, the collegiate church was run by a community of priests, who initially numbered around 20 canons , under the direction of a provost . At that time, the basic structure of the church building was largely identical to today's one and only a little smaller in proportion. It was a three-aisled Romanesque pillar basilica with an exact orientation to the east. Under the choir there was still a crypt, in which masses were read during its function as a parish church (baptism law since 1018). In 1410 the church was provided with the Maria Magdalena bell and in 1523 with the Laurentius bell cast by the Aachen bell founder Johannes von Trier . Both bells are no longer there. There is currently a 4-part bell from the Otto company from Bremen-Hemelingen in the tower, which was cast in 1898.

Monument to Heinrich II.
Ambo
Icon cross (detail)
Emmaus icon
Shahid Alam

With the beginning of the French occupation from 1794, the free imperial monastery was dissolved by decree of Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte on June 9, 1802, although the church remained as a parish church in the diocese of Aachen. For this purpose, the church was extensively restructured for the first time in 1809 and the parish masses were no longer celebrated in the crypt, but in the church. Another fundamental renovation and partial new building with the extension to the five-nave church took place in the years 1875/76. After the population had increased significantly and the surrounding city quarters had expanded significantly, the need arose to renovate and expand the now dilapidated medieval church. The community had to raise a considerable financial commitment for this work. According to plans by the Cologne architect Heinrich Wiethase , the outer walls and the tower were removed, the crypt leveled and the church was largely rebuilt from red sandstone and based on old models in the neo-Romanesque style with five aisles with transept and west tower. It was also given a new bell, consisting of five bells, and received extensive, valuable interior fittings. In 1898 the church was finally rededicated. Only five years later, the two sculptors Carl Esser and Wilhelm Pohll furnished the retaining wall below the church, facing Adalbertstrasse, with a monumental seated figure depicting the church's founder, Heinrich II. Due to its significant history as a former collegiate church, the parish church was elevated to a provost church on December 12, 1935 and the pastors were given the right to use the title provost.

During the heavy bombing raid on Aachen on July 14, 1943, the church was set on fire by several phosphorus canisters that hit the music chamber. The building burned down almost completely within 7 hours, and the outer masonry was damaged by fire. However, after the end of the war it was rebuilt with great financial commitment under the direction of Günther Döring and the cathedral builder Joseph Buchkremer . The restoration measures included the erection of a steel roof truss from which the wooden beam ceiling of the nave is suspended; the vault of the southern transverse arm was repaired, and a Rabitz vault was installed in the north . When the nave pillars were repaired, their Romanesque core became visible. Furthermore, the interior was refurbished.

As part of a solemn pontifical office , the church was finally returned to its intended use on October 23, 1949. In 1970 the church was adapted to the requirements of the Second Vatican Council . Between 1985 and 1998, further refurbishment and renovation measures were required under the direction of the architect Gerd Gerards. The reliquary of St. Adalbert found his place in the side aisle, a new altar and tabernacle in the chancel, a new coat of paint, a newly designed baptistery under the tower and a new floor design, which symbolizes the Christian's life, changed the church permanently. A new ambo by Titus Reinarz in front of the steps to the chancel came into the church in 2007. The equipment is complemented by some icons by Todor Boychev (Bulgaria) and two tablets by the Aachen calligrapher Shahid Alam, which show a quote from the Revelation of John (Rev. 21: 6: I am the Alpha and the Omega ...) in Arabic script. The large icon cross of the Russian icon painter Vr. Andrey Davydov (Suzdal) was created for St. Adalbert in 2009/2010.

In the meantime, after a comprehensive reform of the community, St. Adalbert has been part of the newly formed Catholic parish Franziska von Aachen in Aachen-Mitte , which goes back to the namesake Franziska Schervier and is supported by the Sisters of the Poor from St. Francis . This parish also includes the parishes of St. Andreas, St. Foillan , Hl. Kreuz , St. Marien, St. Peter and the youth church kafarna: um and the Neue Gemeinde Zeitfenster . Today, the St. Adalbertkirche is not only home to its own parish, but also the Korean mission and the Spanish-speaking parish and also leaves its rooms to the Queer Community of Aachen, a group of Christian-oriented gays and lesbians, for their services.

Relics

Right from the start, the monastery had a large treasure trove of relics, which in the meantime has been expanded to up to 22 individual parts through donations, fragments of which were later passed on to other churches. In addition to the already mentioned head of St. Adalbert, among other things, also a thorn from the crown of thorns, a piece of the Holy Cross and the crib of Jesus, the head of St. Hermes, a shoulder blade of St. Laurentius of Rome , parts of the skull of St. Lucia of Syracuse and the skull of Pope Stephen I , arm bone of St. Sebastian and St. Christophorus , bones of St. Agnes of Rome , St. Catherine of Alexandria and St. Agatha of Catania , the hunting knife of Holy Emperor Heinrich II and pieces of cloth from the robes of St. Gertrud von Nivelles and St. Walburga . In 1608 the Archbishop of Cologne, Ernst of Bavaria, received parts of the relics of St. Stephanus and Quirinus von Neuss and St. Maria Magdalena and in 1698 the Adalbert Church in Liège Particle of the head of St. Adalberts. In 1932 the church received a relic of Holy Emperor Heinrich II from Bamberg. A comprehensive restoration of the reliquaries was carried out thanks to numerous donations between 2005 and 2008 by Herbert Cürvers, Kevelaer.

Bust reliquary of St. Adalbert

The copper-blown work of art with partial silver and gold plating has the dimensions 75 cm high including the oval wooden base, 47.5 cm wide and 38 cm deep. The date is after 1475.

In 1901 Johann Schreyer carried out repairs. The miter cross and the mantle clasp with the figure of Adalbert also come from Schreyer. All stones and settings and most of the rosettes have been renewed.

Bust reliquary St. Hermes

The bust reliquary of St. Hermes from the 14th century contains the skull of the saint as a relic. The reliquary is 51 cm high including the wooden base, 39 cm wide and 21 cm deep. In 1902 it was restored by Johann Schreyer, an Aachen goldsmith. The measures included the renewal of a beard part, the nimbus , the stones, the settings, the enamelled rosettes and the breast rosette as well as the color version by painter J. Lange. In 2005 there was another extensive restoration.

  • Bust reliquary of St. Adalbert

  • Bust reliquary of St. Hermes

  • Arm reliquaries of St. Sebastian and St. Christopher

  • Ostensorium around 1400

organ

St. Adalbert has a main organ from Orgelbau Rieger (Schwarzach, Vorarlberg) from 1965, and a choir organ from Wilbrand Orgelbau from 1972.

I Rückpositiv C – g 3
1. Reed flute 8th'
2. Quintad 8th'
3. Principal 4 '
4th Coupling flute 4 '
5. Hollow flute 2 '
6th Sesquialter II-III
7th Quintan II 1 1 ⁄ 3  '
8th. Scharff IV 1'
9. Krummhorn 8th'
Tremulant
II Hauptwerk C – g 3
10. Pommer 16 '
11. Principal 08th'
12. Pointed flute 08th'
13. Octave 04 '
14th Fifth 02 2 ⁄ 3  '
15th Super octave 02 '
16. Cornett V
17th Mixture VI 01 1 ⁄ 3  '
18th Trumpet 08th'
Tremulant
III Swell C – g 3
19th Engprincipal 08th'
20th Wooden dacked 08th'
21st Wooden flute 04 '
22nd Pointed Gamba 04 '
23. Principal 02 '
24. Fifth 01 1 ⁄ 3  '
25th Octave 01'
26th Terzcymbel III 01 ⁄ 6 '
27. Bear whistle 16 '
28. Schalmey 08th'
Tremulant
Pedals C – f 1
29 Principal Bass (Ext. No. 31) 16 '
30th Subbass (Ext. No. 32) 16 '
31. Principal 08th'
32. Sub bass 08th'
33. Choral bass 04 '
34. Rauschpfeife IV 02 2 ⁄ 3  '
35. Night horn 02 '
36. trombone 16 '
37. Clairon 04 '
  • Coupling : I / II, III / I, III / II, I / P, II / P, III / P

monument

Memorial plaque for Joseph Buchkremer

The entry in the list of monuments reads:

"Kath. Probsteikirche St. Adalbert former collegiate church, Adalbertstift
Kern 11th century, reconstruction 1875–1876, 1894–1897 ( Heinrich Wiethase ), reconstruction by 1949 ( Buchkremer , Döring);
3-nave, neo-Romanesque stone basilica with transept and west tower; located on the 2nd city wall on a hill; Nothing is left of the former monastery buildings. "

In memory of the chaplain at the time, Joseph Buchkremer, there is a commemorative plaque for the Ways Against Forgetting project , which is attached to the outer wall under the Heinrichs niche. It is engraved:

“The later Auxiliary Bishop Josef Buchkremer from Aachen worked as a youth chaplain in this church. In his youth work, he made no secret of his negative attitude towards the Nazis. In 1942 he was arrested because of negative statements about the SS and sent to the Dachau concentration camp. In 1945 he was liberated from the concentration camp. "

literature

  • Johann Jakob Kreutzer: Description and history of the former collegiate and current parish church of St. Adalbert in Aachen and the collegiate foundation that passed it . Publishing house Ludwig Cohnen, Aachen and Cologne 1839 ( digitized version )
  • Franz Bock : The reliquary treasures of the former imperial abbeys of Burtscheid and Cornelimünster, together with the sanctuaries of the former collegiate church of St. Adalbert and the Theresianer Church of Aachen: in memory of the Sanctuary Tour of 1867 . Cologne 1867 ( digitized version )
  • Karl Faymonville : The churches of the city of Aachen (= The art monuments of the Rhine province Volume 10, Department 2). Schwann, Düsseldorf 1922, pp. 273-305
  • Felix Kuetgens : The art and reliquary of St. Adalbert zu Aachen . Aachen 1925
  • Hubert Gatzweiler: The St. Adalbertstift in Aachen . In: Zeitschrift des Aachener Geschichtsverein 51, 1929, pp. 64–298
  • Robert Jeuckens: St. Adalbert Abbey and Parish in Aachen . Aachen 1951
  • Peter Raderschall: Church music to St. Adalbert . Aachen 1974
  • Bernd Andermahr: Churches in Aachen (= Great Art Guide . Volume 142). Schnell & Steiner, Munich et al. 1986
  • Catholic Probsteipfarre St. Adalbert (Ed.), Heinz Debye (Editor): You will be my witnesses. Festschrift for the Millennium of the Death of St. Adalbert . Aachen 1997
  • Heinrich Debye (Ed.): In good times and in bad. 1000 years of St. Adalbert . Aachen 2005
  • Dirk Tölke: Church art in the center of Aachen (= Great Art Guide . Volume 267). Schnell & Steiner, Regensburg 2012

Web links

Commons : St. Adalbert (Aachen)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Helga Giersiepen: St. Adalbert . In: The German inscriptions . DI 32, City of Aachen (1993), No. 60 ( digitized version ).
  2. ↑ Hans Hoffmann: Aachen in ruins - the old imperial city in the hail of bombs and afterwards. Vol. I: North. Wacholtz, Neumünster 1988, pp. 50-57.
  3. ↑ Information on the organs
  4. ^ Günther Borchers (Ed.): Landeskonservator Rheinland. List of monuments. 1.1 Aachen city center with Frankenberg quarter . Edited by Volker Osteneck with the assistance of Hans Königs . Rheinland Verlag, Cologne 1977, p. 13.

Coordinates: 50 ° 46 ′ 29.9 "  N , 6 ° 5 ′ 41.8"  E