St. Marien am Behnitz

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St. Marien am Behnitz

St. Marien am Behnitz is the second oldest Roman Catholic church in the Berlin area (after St. Hedwig's Cathedral ). It is located in Berlin-Spandau , was built in 1847/48, the interior was redesigned several times and in 2002/2003, on behalf and at the expense of private owners, was extensively restored to the reconstructed state of 1894/95 . The church and the rectory are under monument protection (Monument List Berlin No. 09085465), their architect is August Soller from the Schinkel School .

position

The church is located in Spandau on the street Behnitz 9, corner of Am Juliusturm in the locality Behnitz or Kolk , not far from the Havel and the Spandau lock , opposite the Spandau citadel . The island of Behnitz with the oldest settlement area of ​​Spandau was separated from the southern old town of Spandau by a Havel arm, called "German Rhine" , until it was filled in in 1912 and built over with the street Am Juliusturm , which is right next to the St. Marien Church leads past to the Juliusturmbrücke . Behnitz / Kolk and the old town are located on an island surrounded by the Mühlengraben and the Havel and were within the city walls built in the 14th century. The location Behnitz / Kolk is today separated from the old town center of Spandau by the western ramp to the Juliusturmbrücke in the course of the six-lane street Am Juliusturm . The street can be reached by stairs from the church.

story

1722 to 1850

The beginnings on the gun plan

The history of the first Roman Catholic church in Spandau after the Reformation - the medieval parish church of St. Nikolai had become Protestant in 1539 - began with the establishment of the royal rifle factory , for which a separate Roman Catholic church was planned. According to the will of the Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm I ( popularly known as the "Soldier King"), the Prussian army was to be equipped with weapons from regional production so that the money should not flow for imports abroad, but "stay in the country".

The missing skilled workers, who were mainly recruited in the arms factories of the mainly Roman Catholic city of Liège in Belgium , only wanted to move to Protestant Prussia if they were guaranteed free religious practice, including a pastor in their language and his care. By royal decree of 1722 they were assured of this, as well as the right to keep a few cows. However , the king had refused the request to be able to brew his own beer . Around 200 people - around 26 masters and several journeymen with their families - finally arrived, accompanied by the Dominican Father Ludovicus Belo (Belau) OP from the convent in Wesel , who was also a pastor for the Roman Catholic workers at the Potsdam location of the rifle factory. The armaments workers and their families on the rifle plan did not belong to the city of Spandau, but rather formed a separate community in political and ecclesiastical terms, which was not subject to the city's jurisdiction, the "ordinary city magistrate", but "immediate" (directly) to the royal court , so the order of the king of September 2, 1722. Ecclesiastically they were outside the reach of the evangelical pastors at St. Nikolai and formed a mission station that was subordinate to the Apostolic Vicariate of the North .

The second church on the rifle plan, built in 1766/67

In 1723 this first Roman Catholic church was built east of the Spandau Citadel on the Plan district (later: Gun plan and powder factory ) outside the Spandau city walls , a small, simple half-timbered building , which was probably subject to the double patronage of the Apostles Peter and Paul . It was the first newly built Roman Catholic church in Prussia after the Reformation, construction of the Hedwig Church in Berlin did not begin until 1747. As early as 1735, the little church had to be restored. In 1742 it was so dilapidated that King Frederick the Great ordered it to be demolished and rebuilt. The project was delayed by the Silesian Wars . The new building was not finished until 1767, more of a simple prayer house than a church. Here, too, the building quality obviously left a lot to be desired - only 17 years later the pastor at the time, Joseph Groß OP , complained in a letter to the king that the church “now looks much more like a desert than a house of God”. A major repair then took place in 1803.

With the bull De salute animarum , Pope Pius VII undertook a reorganization of the dioceses and church provinces in Prussia in 1821 as part of the reorganization of the Catholic dioceses in Germany after the Congress of Vienna ; Spandau went from the Apostolic Vicariate of the North to the Prince-Bishop's Delegation for Brandenburg and Pomerania of the Diocese of Breslau and became a parish; a church council has been in office since the 1820s .

Planning and construction of the church on Behnitz

Since around 1825, a new building was once again considered, including building it elsewhere. The Roman Catholic community in the military town of Spandau had grown much larger in the meantime, primarily due to the influx of soldiers who had been recruited in Roman Catholic parts of the country. The old church was not only dilapidated, but also out of place at the old location, as there were hardly any Roman Catholic workers left in the rifle factory. At that time there were three times as many Catholics living in the city of Spandau as on the rifle plan . Many of the original settlers had returned home, moved to other branches of industry and regions or moved to the city of Spandau. The living conditions on the damp rifle plan, which was criss-crossed by moats, were unfavorable and promoted rheumatism , gout and colds. Another reason for the downsizing of the Catholic community on the rifle plan was the fact that many members entered into marriages with Protestant partners and consented to the evangelical upbringing of their children. In addition, the pedestrian bridge had been closed as a direct route between the city and the gun plan because it was dilapidated and the government and the owners of the factory could not agree on who should pay for the repairs. To reach the church, a detour of 5 km was necessary. A petition by several workers living on the plan of May 31, 1836, as well as the sexton and the organist, who feared for their position, was directed against the relocation of the church from the rifle plan to Spandau; However, this was rejected out of consideration for strategic defense reasons. In the 1840s, 19 men from the community who were married to Protestant women and raised their children Protestants joined the German Catholic movement initiated by Johannes Ronge , but this group remained.

After long negotiations and after clarifying the costs, the demolition of a house on the intended building site within the city walls, on the so-called “Behnitz”, one of the two oldest settlement areas in Spandau, began on July 7th, 1847. On September 8, 1847, the foundation stone for a new church building was laid there, which was to bear the patronage of St. Mary . This patronage is reminiscent of the 1239 by the askanischen Marquis founded the Benedictine monastery of St. Mary south of the city Spandau, which was canceled in 1558 due to the Reformation. The church at Behnitz is the second oldest Roman Catholic church in Berlin and the oldest Marienkirche in the Mark after the Reformation. The inscription on a lead plate in the foundation stone read:

“This stone was ad maj. D. gl. Et BMVH on 8th September 1847 as the foundation stone for this church, requested by Sr. Majesty the King Friedrich Wilhelm IV., On behalf of the prince-bishop of Breslau Melchior von Diepenbrock, blessed by the local pastor Franz Teuber and laid in the presence of this building executing Königl. Building inspector Manger, the mason Ribbe and the church officials A. Gerspacher and C. Bechmann. Sancta Maria ora pro nobis. "

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The consecration took place on November 21, 1848 by the Breslau auxiliary bishop Daniel Latussek , as Prince-Bishop von Diepenbrock could not travel for health reasons. After the completion of the church, the Sunday services took place in the new church, some weekday masses continued in the church on the rifle plan . The pastor initially stayed at the old church, as the construction of a new rectory on the Behnitz was delayed for financial reasons. When the living conditions became more and more unreasonable and Pastor Theodor Warnatsch even fell ill as a result, he moved into a rented apartment in the city, followed by Pastor Hanel. It was not until June 1852 that the church, parsonage and garden on the rifle plan were given to the military treasury for 1,560 thalers - less than the 2000 thalers estimated by government inspector Friedrich Wilhelm Butzke. From the proceeds, the rectory behind the church on the Behnitz was completed in 1852-1854. The buildings on the gun plan were then removed.

The church building

Preparations

St. Marien am Behnitz 1848

The property, which previously belonged to the Stienauer family, was owned by the master carpenter Bernhard, who left it to the Roman Catholic community for 3,000 Reichstaler and the assurance that he would receive  orders for the construction of the church. King Friedrich Wilhelm IV approved a grant of 12,970 Reichstalers, which was able to cover the costs of a simple half-timbered building . The community, however, wanted more and unanimously decided in favor of a solid building, which would, however, cost 5,420 Reichstaler more. The additional costs were raised through a Landeskollekte (around 5,000 Reichstaler) and voluntary monthly contributions, to which 76 Catholic households agreed, whereby a further 1,009 Reichstaler were raised with some donations. The king later approved a further 2,477 thalers and 10 groschen, including 500 thalers for the four corner turrets he wanted. The total cost was 21,458 Reichstaler.

At that time, plans for a new church were to be submitted to the Oberbaudeputation , the central authority for Prussian construction, for examination. In this case, August Soller , the secret building councilor , had to provide the decisive expert opinion . He refused the submitted plan, as it was not kept "in the ecclesiastical style" in the spirit of the king, but offered to deliver his own designs. The architectural historian Eva Börsch-Supan suspects that he was particularly interested in church building since he was a Catholic himself. In the years before, numerous simple, house-like churches based on the model of ancient structures had also been built in Prussia for fast-growing communities with little financial means . They were based on the " normal church ", a model design by Karl Friedrich Schinkel , which Friedrich Wilhelm III. had commissioned.

The draft that Soller had to assess looked similar. It came from the Prussian government building inspector Friedrich Wilhelm Butzke, who had initially made a half-timbered design, but after the community had decided on a solid construction, worked out a plan for an almost square church building based on the model of a Protestant sermon church . However, since the beginning of his government in 1840, the new King Friedrich Wilhelm IV preferred an alternative church building program that he had already developed as Crown Prince - and his officials were of course familiar with these ideas. The early Christian basilica , also a simple brick building, served as a model, but it was formally more interesting due to the stepped shape. In addition, this design was considered the creation of the Christian apostles and the king wanted to counteract the non-religious currents of the time, so to speak in their spirit.

Soller's counter-draft, which he had sent to the Ministry of Spiritual Affairs on July 15, 1846 , was submitted to the king - as were the drafts for all the churches to which he gave money. Only in the course of the restoration in 2002/2003 was it taken from the archives of the parish Maria, Hilfe der Christisten from the copy of the document, which had been placed in the tower button of the church on June 21, 1848 , that the king was in a cabinet order from May 1st 1847 had given the instruction that the solid construction draft of the church should be made by the secret senior building officer Soller. For a long time, the royal building inspector Julius Manger , who directed the building, was also considered the church's architect.

Soller's plan was approved by the king, but came back with suggestions for changes: four "towers in the zinc casting process " were to be added to the building. It wasn't unusual. There are other examples especially of the king's interest in additional church towers, such as the Friedrichswerder Church in Berlin; however, he did not succeed in permanently changing Schinkel's famous building there. Stylistically, the little towers of St. Marien were somewhat questionable: they were neo-Gothic ornamental forms, so-called " pinnacles ", with which the king enriched new buildings several times, which incidentally reproduced much earlier architectural styles. At the same time, the king promoted the completion of the high-Gothic Cologne Cathedral .

The construction

View on a postcard from around 1907

The construction was carried out by local master craftsmen under the direction of Manger. The church is unmistakably one of the buildings of the Berlin school at the time . It lay in a north-westerly direction west of the street - the Behnitz - and was bordered by neighboring buildings. Accordingly, the facade is clearly designed as a front side.

Interior view 1861. Oil painting

The original interior probably does not go back to Soller, but was arranged by Manger. An interior picture from 1861 shows the condition at that time. Walls and pillars were painted light ocher, the dark brown coffered ceiling painted with white lilies, the three altar niches were provided with starry skies and marbled walls. While a color scheme of this kind, like the entire architecture, was also to be found in the Protestant churches of the time, the furnishings looked completely different here. Everything should look precious and was brightly colored - the altarpieces, the pulpit with its rich gilding, the chandeliers with glass hangings and the brightly colored stations of the cross on the pillars of the nave. The financial resources of the community were very limited. The apse to the northwest was probably windowless. Until 1894/1895 there was a high altar retable , which was dominated by a semicircular final painting of a Madonna enthroned , surrounded by angels , under an eyelash-like frame with pinnacles.

Sculptures of Saints Peter and Paul came from the church on the gun plan to the newly built Marienkirche; they were probably the patrons of the old church. They have been preserved to this day and are in the church.

In 1852 one was behind the church rectory from brick built and completed. 1854 There were two school buildings on either side of the church. The south side was built in 1827 and was demarcated by a wall in 1857. To the east stood the garrison schoolhouse, which the Roman Catholic community acquired at a public auction in 1878 . After it was raised by one floor, it served as a parish school from 1881, for which the parish employed two teachers and one teacher; School fees did not have to be paid.

Another story

19th century

Since its completion, the church has been the center of the Spandau procession on the Sunday after Corpus Christi , which had arisen in the 1830s on the old, provisional church on the rifle plan. After the high mass in the church, the core was the solemn Eucharistic procession around the Kolk , which at that time was still an island. At times several thousand Catholics from Berlin and Charlottenburg took part. The procession was no longer approved as part of the Prussian Kulturkampf from 1875 because it was understood as a provocation of the Roman Catholic minority towards the majority population.

Between 1851 and 1878 several minor repairs were necessary to the church, the costs of which were borne by the government. As early as 1868 the church tower was dilapidated and had to be rebuilt by the community. Because of the Kulturkampf in Prussia, there was no more state support after 1878. The owner, use and condition of the church have changed several times to this day. In 1894, the Breslau church outfitter Carl Buhl ("Special Institute for Church Development C. Buhl") received the order for a new high altar and two side altars. The new high altar, with its richly structured neo-Gothic formal language, was replaced by a painting of the Virgin Mary with a child, flanked by her parents Joachim and Anna ; these sculptures are in a canopy architecture . The side altars show a sculpture of St. Joseph and the Sacred Heart of Jesus as patrons ; the Joseph altar was donated by the Catholic men's association St. Joseph. At the same time, two windows were broken in the apse, the apse and the end walls behind the side altars were decorated by the painter Paul Nowag, and the pulpit was given new gilding. The old altars were processed into firewood, which resulted in a reprimand from the Prussian government to the church council for lack of piety.

The facade, partial view

20th century

Around 1900 around 9,000 Catholics lived in Spandau, the community had grown considerably, mainly as a result of the abandonment of the fortress and the subsequent industrialization, mainly due to immigration from the Roman Catholic Prussian eastern provinces. The previous church with 350 seats was sufficient for around 750 parishioners at the time of its construction - a rehearsal showed that it offered a maximum of 800 people - but became too small for the larger number of Catholics despite four holy masses on Sunday morning. So a bigger church was built - elsewhere, because considerations regarding the preservation of historical monuments and the boggy subsoil did not allow the demolition and a larger new building on the old square. The new parish church Maria, Hilfe der Christians was consecrated on October 30, 1910. The architect was Christoph Hehl , who had already drawn up plans to enlarge the church on the Behnitz.

Various usage concepts for St. Marien am Behnitz were discussed and rejected (warehouse, cinema, gym), finally the building was sold to the military administration in 1910 for a profit for 110,000 marks and became the church of the Spandau Roman Catholic garrison community , for whose space they currently needed was enough. To be on the safe side, the military had previously called in 800 men to calculate the capacity; they "had plenty of space".

First of all, the new administration made some changes. Next to the main portal, two side entrances were created to avoid crowds, and steam heating and a gallery for a new organ were installed. The stalls have been renewed. Apparently out of an attitude of Protestant Prussian simplicity, all altars and figures were uniformly covered with brown paint; the traditionally dominant colors of a Marienkirche were blue, red and gold. Newly attached wall paintings by the painter Kottrup consisted largely of constructive lines and surface painting for reasons of cost. Only the chancel and the choir wall were richer and related to the military (St. Joseph, patron of the pioneers, the holy soldier Mauritius , the dragon slayer Georg ). The church was consecrated on December 8, 1912 by military bishop Vollmer. During the First World War and after its end in 1918, when the German army was partially disbanded and most of the military chaplains were dismissed, there were hardly any services . The church was closed in 1921, consecrated again in 1936 and used as a garrison church with its own pastor until 1945 , after an army had been rebuilt during the Nazi era . In 1937 the neighboring school building and the stables behind it were demolished due to the expansion of the Am Juliusturm street .

Interior after renovation in the 1960s

During the Second World War , St. Marien am Behnitz suffered severe damage, but from 1944 to 1952 it was still used as an overcrowded alternative accommodation for the almost completely destroyed parish church Maria, Hilfe der Christen am Askanierring (today: Flankenschanze ). Six services were held on Sundays, seven in winter, and three on weekdays. In the years that followed, the church continued to decline. It was not until 1962 that repair and renovation work began by the administrative office for former imperial property on behalf of the then owner, the Federal Republic of Germany , as loose bricks endangered passers-by. The two apse windows were bricked up, the existing plaster with all the old wall paintings was chipped off without a trace, the walls were then re-plastered and painted white. Such a “purification” of an “exaggerated form and color splendor of historicism” was typical in the opinion of the art historian Leo Schmidt around the middle of the 20th century, and it was just as typical to reconstruct the earlier colored version half a century later because the white version was denied the character of an independent version.

A smoldering fire in 1970 once again led to the increasing deterioration of the building, which was hardly ever used by the church. During the renovation work, the altars and figures were cleaned of soot and the walls were repainted, the wooden coffered ceiling was replaced with hardboard , onto which the previous ornamentation was screen- printed. In 1995 the Archdiocese of Berlin acquired the church from the Federal Republic. This did not change the low level of use, only baptisms and weddings took place, and small free-church and foreign congregations occasionally held church services. When it became clear that nothing could be changed in this situation, but the necessary renovation would be too expensive for the archbishopric, St. Marien am Behnitz was offered for sale. It was not sold to an Orthodox community because the liturgical requirements with the installation of an iconostasis would have meant a change in the interior that was critical in terms of monument preservation. It was sold to a Berlin couple who planned musical and literary events in the church, but also committed to having the rooms liturgically used by recognized religious communities .

Refurbishment and restoration 2002/2003

After the purchase at the end of 2001, discussions began between the new owners and representatives of various interested institutions about the manner and scope of the restoration work. At the same time, the aim of preserving monuments was also to be discussed in principle. Currently, a conservational point of view is predominantly represented, i.e. the preservation of a state as a result of a historical process, and not necessarily the restoration of a lost early state. There was agreement on this question, the owner initially only intended building-preserving measures and hardly anything else.

Central nave with a view of the altar after the restoration in 2002/2003

It soon turned out that the construction work had to be much more extensive than expected. In this overall larger framework, the client wanted to fall back on a historical design. The representatives of the monument authorities were skeptical because initially sufficient information was not available about any of the lost statuses. After considering all the circumstances, a joint decision was made to reconstruct the furnishings that had been renewed in 1894/1895. There were two relatively precise black and white photos here, and the first color version of the altars, which has since been rediscovered, allowed conclusions to be drawn about the color scheme of the interior as a whole, which at the time was known to have a uniform character. The fact that all measures without any public funding were financed exclusively with private funds was probably also helpful for the approval of the monument authority. The commissioning of a specialist company from Wroclaw with the restoration was seen as an element of historical continuity.

Work began in July 2002 and was completed in just 13 months. Then the building, which was in severe decline, was renovated inside and out, the slate roof was re-covered, the technical systems were modernized and the furnishings were restored with the help of around 60 restorers from various fields of work. The windows in the apse, which were closed in 1964, were broken open again and the two side entrances closed. Since the zinc cast towers on the facade had been lost, they were made from sandstone by the sculptors from the restoration company artis .

On December 7, 2003, the second Sunday in Advent, the Archbishop of Berlin, Georg Cardinal Sterzinsky , consecrated the new altar at the end of the restoration work .

To this day, regular weekly church services are held by the Roman Catholic parish Maria, Hilfe der Christians in der Kirche, and until 2018 also by the Roman Catholic, Croatian-native-speaking parish in Berlin.

The building

St. Marien am Behnitz is a rectangular brick building , the outside unplastered, three window axes long, relatively narrow and high. As a basilica , the church has three naves , with a higher central nave and two lower aisles. The central nave is pulled forward a little, with the low semicircular apse at the front. On the north side, at the height of the side altar, there is a small, low sacristy . The color of the bricks is a very light terracotta (the warm hue of baked clay, which can range from almost white to brown to deep red). Slender corner pilasters with the neo-Gothic turrets and comparatively steep sloping ceilings develop a certain tendency towards the vertical; A band of perforated shaped bricks runs beneath the sloping ceilings as a sparse, three-dimensional decorative element. Nevertheless, especially in the side view, the horizontal alignment based on classic models becomes clear, almost all of the individual forms are in this early round arch style. The vertical twin windows in the upper aisles of the central nave correspond to the simple windows of the aisles . In the facade above the simple portal there is a twin window and above it a rose window ; The choir gable also has such a round window. The door and window have no profiled archivolts , but only two to three steps in the walls .

The slender bell carrier on the ridge above the facade gable protrudes on stone consoles over the facade. It is divided into three stages: a lower twin arcade with the bells, above a simple arcade, which may have been intended for a small bell, and a point with a cross above the tower ball.

In the interior of the church, octagonal pillars structure the three naves; the four middle are free, the outer ones are to organ empore or to the chorus connected with tongue walls. There are no vaults , but flat, coffered ceilings.

Interior decoration

The equipment in 2002/2003 was largely carried out by the Wroclaw company artis , which brought in other specialists. It was essentially based on the design made in 1894/95. The wall paintings on the choir walls and in the apse were designed on newly applied plastered surfaces based on historical models from old postcard photographs. Altar, pulpit , baptismal font , communion bench , confessional and church stalls are original pieces of equipment from the 19th century, the original color of which was largely exposed under the brown paint coating applied in 1910 and, if necessary, was supplemented in an artistically free adaptation.

Ceiling and gallery, walls, windows, chandeliers and sculptures

  • The church has a coffered ceiling with dark blue combined beams, rectangular cartridge fields are highlighted in blue and structured with yellow frame and wear one as quatrefoil stylized white lilies chalice single drawing.
  • The organ loft on the entrance side spans the whole church and is a wooden structure on four studs. Their color scheme was matched to the coffered ceiling without any ornamentation.
  • The upper third of the choir wall is dominated by a large round window, glazed according to a modern design. It bears an antique-like vegetal ornamentation, two angels in the arched gussets above the opening carry banners with the inscriptions “Maria Queen of Heaven” and “Maria Hilfe der Christisten”.
  • To the right and left of the choir opening stand halfway up the statues of the apostles Peter and Paul, which come from the church on the gun plan financed by King Friedrich Wilhelm I and probably originated around 1725; Today they do not have the baroque colored first version in gold, but the exposed second colored version from 1848. In open books in the hands of the apostles are quotations from 1 Petr 2,17  EU (“Fear God and honor the emperor”) and 1 Tim 6.12  EU to read.
  • The apse calotte was designed as a blue sky with three-dimensional gold-plated stars, the lower wall zone in the apse as a carpet with Moorish ornaments in red and brown tones. The altar walls in the side aisles, for which there were no photographic models, are designed like the apse painting with a blue, gold-starred upper field and a lower design as a stylized carpet.
  • Before the renovation, the windows were single glazed. There were no representations of the original windows with tracery in the upper area. Therefore, the glazing of the windows was redesigned by the Berlin company Berlin-Glas as hand-blown lead glass windows in a historicizing form with scenes and symbols of the Virgin Mary. The two windows in the choir each show Mary with the baby Jesus in a medallion on the right and the Pietà on the left , the windows in the side aisles show the Marian symbols such as star , ears of corn, lilies , cross and heart . All windows are framed by a quadruple frieze . The windows in the upper storey have no decor.
  • The round brass chandeliers hanging from the ceiling were freely designed by the restoration company artis . You have three levels in the main nave and one level in the side aisles.
  • The artis company also designed the Way of the Cross on the side walls, each with square metal panels with a relief-like depiction of the fourteen Stations of the Cross. In the front section of the two side walls hang the brotherhood flags of the Marian Congregation for the Virgin and the St. Joseph Men's Association, which were created at the end of the 19th century.

Altars and Principals

The high altar (2008)
Joseph Altar (2008)
  • The floor-to-ceiling high altar in the apse apse between the two windows essentially restores the condition from 1894/95. Although it is still based on given style elements from the late 19th century, it stands out from serially produced contemporary altars with its strong colors, the natural representation of the figures and the deliberate mixing of shapes from different styles, according to the conservators. The antependium of the Altarmensa shows the Last Supper in a polychrome wooden relief . In the altar there are relics of the holy martyrs Vincent of Agen and Ursula of Cologne . In the middle above the cafeteria is the two-door tabernacle with door leaves made of polished brass. He is flanked on the candlestick bench by two standing, winged angels . An exhibition niche crowned by a canopy is located above the tabernacle . Behind the tabernacle, a predella formulated in stylized architectural elements carries the three-part altar shrine in Gothic canopy architecture , each crowned by a cross. In the middle, high shrine between two stylized transepts with a floral motif, under a dome-like canopy with a lantern, stands the large sculpture of Our Lady in a red dress and blue cloak, crowned and surrounded by a nimbus of stars. Mary carries the baby Jesus in a white dress on her left hip . Mother and child have bowed their heads, their eyes fixed on the tabernacle below. The lower side shrines with the sculptures of Mary's parents have a pointed gable. According to the classic arrangement, St. Anne stands on the right in a green dress and dark red cloak with raised right hand and raised index finger, Maria as a child stands in front of her in a simple red dress. Saint Joachim in the shrine on the left is shown as a bearded shepherd in a brown robe and holds a silver shepherd's staff in his right hand.
  • The side altars on the straight end walls of the two side aisles have a three-part structure: the cafeteria with a carved antependium with gold-plated ornaments between two golden columns, a simpler predella and on it a reredos in the form of a single altar shrine with a pointed gable and a cross on top.
    In the shrine of the Sacred Heart Altar on the left side there is a statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus : a figure of Christ in a red cloak over a white undergarment, the right arm is stretched forward, the left hand points to the red heart, that of is braided around a crown of thorns and is crowned by a crown with a cross on top. In the middle of the cafeteria of the Sacred Heart Altar there is a simple two-winged tabernacle.
    The sculpture on the Joseph altar on the right shows St. Joseph in a brown-red cloak with gold braid, on the left arm the baby Jesus in a white robe with open arms. Relics of Saints Felix of Africa and Benignus of Dijon are buried in the Joseph Altar, which come from the high altar from 1848 and were transferred to the new Joseph Altar during the church renovation in 1894/95.
  • The celebratory altar was created as an unmistakably new ingredient by the Swiss sculptor Jo Achermann from blue-gray granite ("Herrenholz") in a deliberate contrast to the existing furnishings, which were oriented towards the 19th century . It stands in the middle of the choir between the communion bench and the high altar. The solid top of the table rests on two block-like supports that stand on a base plate, so that the shape as a whole closes into a cuboid. The surfaces are left rough on the outside and polished on the inside. Several layers of deep red glass are inserted into the tabletop, which is reflected as a red aura on the polished stone surfaces. The altar contains a relic of the holy preacher Vinzenz Ferrer , Dominicans like the first Catholic pastors in Spandau after the Reformation.
  • The other principles of the chancel - the ambo, sedilia , sideboard and candlesticks - were also designed by Jo Achermann and, despite their different materials, should be understood as a unit with the celebration altar. The ambo stands in front of the communion bench and is made of the same material and in the same cubic shape as the altar, the sideboard and sediles are made of wood and thus establish contact between the ensemble and the historical furnishings of the church, the candlesticks are made of metal with porous anthracite colored frame and partly with glass insert.

Pulpit and baptismal font

Pulpit and baptismal font (2008)
  • The wooden pulpit cage on an octagonal ground plan, pentagonal towards the central nave, has a classicist-neo-Gothic style and probably comes from the original equipment from 1848. The four panels were added to the pulpit in 1912; On zinc plates with a gold background they show the four occidental church fathers Ambrosius , Hieronymus , Augustinus and Gregorius , behind which semicircular niches are hidden, in which figures probably stood before 1912. The octagonal sound cover is crowned by a gilded cross over a concave curved canopy with a finial-like tip. The pulpit foot is designed as a hanging pine cone.
  • The baptismal font, also on an octagonal floor plan, is likely to come from the original equipment of the church, but is less of a high quality craftsmanship and simpler in design than the pulpit. The tip of the flat domed lid has a finial in the form of an open bud. It is now in front of the communion bench below the pulpit.

organ

Organ prospectus

The first organ in the newly built church came from the Berlin organ building company Lang & Dinse . Her size and until when she was in church is not known. The community was able to afford the organ for the price of 245 Reichstalers because money could be saved in the construction of the church building. In 1964, as part of a restoration of the church, a small series organ from the Walcker company was installed in the organ gallery. Because of their limited sound volume, the owner of the church decided to have a new instrument built.

Today's organ was built in 2003 by the organ builder Alexander Schuke Potsdam . The instrument has 35 stops on two manuals and a pedal . The tone and register action are mechanical. A special feature is the 8-foot fanfaro reed register as a solo voice, which is arranged horizontally above the console .

I Hauptwerk C – g 3
01. Drone 16 ′
02. Principal 08th'
03. Reed flute 08th'
04th Viola di gamba 08th'
05. Slack douce 08th'
06th Octave 04 ′
07th Pointed flute 04 ′
08th. Fifth 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′
09. Octave 02 ′
10. Cornett V (from f o )
11th Mixture V 02 ′
12th Cymbel III
13th Trumpet 08th'
II Swell C – g 3
14th Lovingly dumped 16 ′
15th Wooden principal 08th'
16. Praestant 08th'
17th Salicional 08th'
18th Double reed flute 08th'
19th Quintatön 08th'
20th Octave 04 ′
21. Fugara 04 ′
22nd Night horn 04 ′
23 Nassat 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′
24 Piccolo 02 ′
25th third 01 3 ⁄ 5  ′
26th Progressio harmonique IV
27 oboe 08th'
28. Fanfaro horizontal 08th'
Tremulant
Pedals C – f 1
29 Principal 16 ′
30th Sub bass 16 ′
31. Octavbass 08th'
32. cello 08th'
33 Octave 04 ′
34. trombone 16 ′
35. Trumpet 08th'

Bells

The first two bells that came into the tower after the church was built were dedicated to St. Mary and St. Francis of Assisi . They were cast in Berlin on July 22nd, 1848 and were heard for the first time a few days later. The bells at the price of 235 Reichstalers, like the organ, were also financed from funds saved during the construction of the church building.

Today two bronze bells hang in the tower of the church. The second was donated by the parish in 1963.

No. Chime Weight
(kg)		 Diameter (
mm)		 Height
(mm)		 Caster Casting year Inscription (in the flank )
1 e " 154 636 550 F. Otto 1937 + ST. MICHAEL RUFE DEIN VOLK / AD 1937
(in two rows, opposite the foundry sign )
2 f sharp " 082 560 430 Petit & Gebr. Edelbrock 1963 ST. CAROLUS SERVIRE DOMINO CUM LAETITIA
( Latin : 'Holy Karl - serve the Lord in joy')

See also

literature

  • Christine Goetz , Constantin Beyer: First Marienkirche after the Reformation in the Mark. In: Christine Goetz, Constantin Beyer: City. Country. Churches. Sacred buildings ikm Archdiocese of Berlin. Kunstverlag Josef Fink, Berlin 2018, ISBN 978-3-95976-101-7 , p. 18 f.
  • Gunther Jahn: sacred buildings. St. Marien - Behnitz. In: ders .: The buildings and art monuments of Berlin. City and district of Spandau. Gebr. Mann Verlag, Berlin 1971, pp. 178-181.
  • Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. A forgotten work by August Soller. Nicolaische Verlagsbuchhandlung GmbH, Berlin 2004, ISBN 3-89479-117-9 (332 pages)
  • Franz Kohstall: History of the Catholic parish in Spandau: a contribution to the 50th anniversary celebration of the parish church of St. Maria on November 15, 1898. Commission publisher of Germania, Berlin undated [1898] (112 p.)
  • Franz Kohstall: History of the Catholic parish of Sankt Marien zu Spandau. Verlag von August Malinowski, Spandau o. J. [1924] (238 pages)
  • Spiritual Council [Willy] Nawrot: Festschrift for the 100th anniversary of the Catholic St. Mary's Church in Berlin-Spandau 1848 - 1948. Berlin-Spandau undated (1948) (8 pages)
  • Sven Scherz-Schade: St. Marien am Behnitz. In: Sven Scherz-Schade: Churches in Berlin. Churches, synagogues, mosques and temples. Berlin Story Verlag, Berlin 2005, ISBN 3-929829-29-0 , p. 99 ff.

Web links

Commons : St. Marien am Behnitz  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ www.berlin.de: Monument database , accessed on September 7, 2021.
  2. ↑ King Friedrich Wilhelm I, September 2, 1722, quoted in: Franz Kohstall: History of the Catholic Parish of Spandau. Spandau 1924, p. 28 f.
  3. ↑ Franz Kohstall: history of the Catholic parish Spandau. Spandau 1924, p. 29.33.
  4. ^ A b c Gunther Jahn: The buildings and art monuments of Berlin. City and district of Spandau. Berlin 1971, pp. 142–145, here p. 143.
  5. ^ Gunther Jahn: The buildings and art monuments of Berlin. City and district of Spandau. Berlin 1971, pp. 142-145.
  6. ↑ Franz Kohstall: history of the Catholic parish Spandau. Spandau 1924, p. 46.
  7. ↑ Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The prehistory. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 23–38, here p. 33 f.
  8. ↑ Franz Kohstall: history of the Catholic parish Spandau. Spandau 1924, p. 48.50.
  9. ^ Gebhard Streicher, Erika Drave: Berlin city and church. More -Verlag, Berlin 1980, ISBN 3-87 554-189-8 , p. 240.
  10. ↑ a b Christine Goetz: Art and Church. In: Kath. Kirchengemeinde Maria, Hilfe der Christians (ed.): Festschrift 100 years Maria, Hilfe der Christisten Berlin-Spandau 1910–2010 . Oranienburg (WMK-Druck) undated [2010], pp. 15–19, here p. 15.
  11. ↑ Franz Kohstall: history of the Catholic parish Spandau. Spandau 1924, p. 53.
    ad maj. D. gl. Et BMVH = Latin ad majorem Dei gloriam et Beatae Mariae Virginis honorem 'for the greater glory of God and for the glory of the Blessed Virgin Mary': Sancta Maria ora pro nobis = 'Holy Mary, pray for us'.
  12. ↑ Franz Kohstall: history of the Catholic parish Spandau. Spandau 1924, p. 54 f.
  13. ↑ Franz Kohstall: history of the Catholic parish Spandau. Spandau 1924, p. 57.
  14. ↑ a b c d Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The prehistory. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 23–38, here p. 38.
  15. ↑ For example: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Prehistory. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 23–38, here pp. 33 ff .; after Franz Kohstall: History of the Catholic Parish of Spandau. Spandau 1924, p. 51 should a simple half-timbered house according to the estimate 16,541 Rtlr. 3 groschen cost 5 pfennigs, a decorative half-timbered house 18,613 Rtlr. 3 Groschen 5 Pfennige, a solid house 20,889 Rtlr, 23 Goschen 8 Pfennige, according to Kohstall (p. 50) the request for financing to the king also mentioned 5,420 Reichsthalers additional costs.
  16. ↑ Franz Kohstall: history of the Catholic parish Spandau. Spandau 1924, p. 51.
  17. ^ A b Eva Börsch-Supan: St. Marien am Behnitz - a work by August Soller. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 49–54, here p. 50 ff.
  18. ↑ Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Preface. Berlin 2004, pp. 13–19, here p. 15.
  19. ↑ a b c d Eva Börsch-Supan: St. Marien am Behnitz - a work by August Soller. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 49–54, here p. 53 f.
  20. ^ Eva Börsch-Supan: St. Marien am Behnitz - a work by August Soller. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 49–54, here p. 52 ff.
  21. ↑ Helmut Kißner: The mother. The church of St. Marien am Behnitz. In: Kath. Kirchengemeinde Maria, Hilfe der Christians (ed.): Festschrift 100 years Maria, Hilfe der Christisten Berlin-Spandau 1910–2010 . Oranienburg (WMK-Druck) o. J. [2010], p. 23 f., Here p. 23.
  22. ↑ Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The prehistory. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 23–38, here p. 38; On the drawing from 1868 shown there on p. 40, the lettering on the two school buildings seems to have been swapped.
  23. ↑ Lena Krull: "A masterpiece of young Berlin Catholicism". In: Lena Krull (Ed.): Processions in Prussia. Catholic life in Berlin, Breslau, Essen and Münster in the 19th century. (= Religion and Politics , Volume 5.) Ergon-Verlag , Würzburg 2013, ISBN 978-3-89913-991-4 , pp. 216-251.
  24. ↑ Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: Changes since 1894. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, p. 63 f.
  25. ↑ Franz Kohstall: history of the Catholic parish Spandau. Spandau 1924, p. 72.
  26. ^ Andreas Tacke : On the renovation, demolition and new building plans between 1896 and 1900. Christoph Hehl and St. Marien am Behnitz. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 87–94, here p. 92.
  27. ↑ Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: St. Marien becomes a garrison church. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 23–38, here pp. 83 f.
  28. ↑ Leo Schmidt: The new altar. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 283–288, here p. 283.
  29. ↑ Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The time after 1945. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, p. 95 f.
  30. ^ A b Dieter Nellessen: Conservation considerations. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, p. 107 ff.
  31. ↑ a b Helmut Kißner: The new relic. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, p. 289.
  32. ↑ Michaela van den Driesch: The restoration of the painting and the inventory. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 161–263, here p. 163.
  33. ↑ Michaela van den Driesch: The restoration of the painting and the inventory. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 161–263, here pp. 163 f. (Ceiling), 169 f. (Gallery).
  34. ↑ Michaela van den Driesch: The restoration of the painting and the inventory. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 161–263, here pp. 165 ff.
  35. ↑ Michaela van den Driesch: The restoration of the painting and the inventory. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 161–263, here pp. 168 f.
  36. ^ Christiane Mergner: The new windows. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 275-282.
  37. ↑ Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Preface. Berlin 2004, pp. 13–19, here p. 16.
  38. ↑ a b Helmut Kißner: The relics. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, p. 79 ff.
  39. ↑ Michaela van den Driesch: The restoration of the painting and the inventory. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 161–263, here pp. 227–234.
  40. ↑ Michaela van den Driesch: The restoration of the painting and the inventory. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, p. 234 ff.
  41. ^ A b Leo Schmidt: The new altar. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 283–288, here p. 285.
  42. ↑ Michaela van den Driesch: The restoration of the painting and the inventory. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 161–263, here pp. 1170, 205 f., 208 f.
  43. ↑ a b Francis Kohstall: history of the Catholic parish Spandau. Spandau 1924, p. 52 f.
  44. ^ Tibor Kiss, Matthias Schuke: The new organ. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, pp. 291–298, here p. 291.
  45. ↑ More information about the organ
  46. ↑ Martin Recker: The history of the community of St. Marien and its places of worship. In: Kath. Kirchengemeinde Maria, Hilfe der Christians (ed.): Festschrift 100 years Maria, Hilfe der Christisten Berlin-Spandau 1910–2010 . Oranienburg (WMK-Druck) undated [2010], pp. 11–14, here p. 12.
  47. ↑ Klaus-Dieter Wille: The bells of Berlin (West). History and inventory. Gebr. Mann Verlag, Berlin 1987, ISBN 3-7861-1443-9 , p. 143.
  48. ↑ Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The time after 1945. In: Helmut Kißner, Cordia Schlegelmilch: The Church of St. Marien am Behnitz in Spandau. Berlin 2004, p. 95.
  49. ^ Gerhard Reinhold: Otto bells. Family and company history of the bell foundry dynasty Otto . Self-published, Essen 2019, ISBN 978-3-00-063109-2 , p. 588, especially p. 540 .
  50. ↑ Gerhard Reinhold: Church bells - Christian world cultural heritage, illustrated using the example of the bell founder Otto, Hemelingen / Bremen . Nijmegen / NL 2019, p. 556, in particular p. 498 , urn : nbn: nl: ui: 22-2066 / 204770 (dissertation at Radboud Universiteit Nijmegen).

Coordinates: 52 ° 32 '20.8 "  N , 13 ° 12' 28.4"  E