St. Blasien Cathedral

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St. Blasien Cathedral: north facade
St. Blasien Cathedral
St. Blasien Cathedral in 1870, before the fire
The building after the fire in 1874

The St. Blasius Cathedral is in St. Blasien in the Waldshut district , in the southern Black Forest . The former abbey church of the St. Blasien monastery has a total height of 62 meters and was inaugurated in 1783. At that time it was the third largest domed church in Europe. With a span of 36 meters, its dome is currently one of the largest in Europe . The architect Pierre Michel d'Ixnard built the plait style building based on the model of the Pantheonin Rome. The church is used by the Roman Catholic parish of St. Blasius and is the venue for an international cathedral concert series that takes place every summer.

The popular name as "Black Forest Cathedral" does not indicate a bishopric; as a former monastery church, the church, like its predecessor, should actually be called Münster .

history

The previous buildings

Monastery complex around 1562

The first sacred building of the monastery at the current location was the Romanesque New Minster built under Abbot Otto I (1086–1108) . It was an important representative of the Hirsauer Building School. The old minster was consecrated in 1036 and, in contrast to the new one, was located to the left of the Steinbach, a small tributary of the Alb . Another change in the cross-shaped church was the building material: It was no longer made of wood, but of stone. The consecration took place either in 1088 or 1104 by the Constance Bishop Gebhard III. von Zähringen and Hezilo, the bishop of Havelberg . After severe damage by fire in 1322 and 1526 by the rebellious Hauensteiner during the Peasants' War, extensive repairs were necessary. They were completed in 1538 with the consecration by Auxiliary Bishop Melchior von Konstanz. The new cathedral was under Abbot Caspar II. Thoma 1581-1583 a new organ by organ builder Eusebius Ammerbach . As an artist, Caspar employed the Rottweiler painter David Rötlin and his journeyman Wolff Abent from Passau. The high altar of the New Minster was designed by the Dutch sculptor Hans Morinck . Abbot Caspar had new fountains made in addition to the interior decoration with works of art such as tapestries, church utensils and pictures. The bell founder Peter Füßli from Zurich cast a big bell on site; it weighed 76 quintals and cost 3,000 guilders.

During the Thirty Years War , St. Blasien was ravaged by the plague and the Swedes and the monks fled to Switzerland. From 1727 to 1742 Johann Michael Beer von Bleichten built a large baroque monastery complex with two inner courtyards under Abbot Franz II Schächtelin . In 1736 the old minster, which had been used as a parish church since 1620, was demolished. Until the 1760s, the partially preserved commercial and administrative buildings (chancellery, Bleiche, mill, infirmary) were built by the architects Johann Caspar and Franz Anton Bagnato , of which the last, the mighty gatehouse, bears the date 1767.

Destruction and new construction

Monastery complex in 1783
Aerial view of the former monastery in 2008
Completion year of the renovation in the marble floor including capsule with documents

A year later, in 1768, a fire broke out that severely damaged the monastery and destroyed the medieval cathedral church. A new building was built under Prince Abbot Martin Gerbert , who has been in office since 1764 . While the monastery buildings were largely restored to the old floor plan and some parts of the old building could be saved, Gerbert tackled a spectacular project for the church. He hired the French architect Pierre Michel d'Ixnard , a representative of the new braid style, and broke with the southern German, Italian-influenced Baroque of the Bagnato school, which had dominated until before the fire.

Habsburg crypt

Prince Abbot Martin Gerbert combined with the new building of the church an effort to transfer the remains of the first Habsburgs buried in Switzerland to St. Blasien. St. Blasien belonged to Upper Austria and, in view of an increasingly hostile Austro-Habsburg politics, it was Gerbert's strategy to profile St. Blasien as a “house grave” of the dynasty and thereby secure it politically. In 1770, in a solemn ceremony, he had the remains of several former Habsburgs transferred from the Basel Minster and from Königsfelden to St. Blasien:

  1. Karl (* 1276; † a few days after birth) - son of King Rudolf I , originally buried in Basel
  2. Hartmann (* around 1263; † 1281) - son of King Rudolf I , originally buried in Basel
  3. Gertrud von Hohenberg (* around 1225; † 1281) - wife of King Rudolf I , originally buried in Basel
  4. Friedrich (* 1316; † a few days after birth) - son of Friedrich the Beautiful , originally buried in Königsfelden
  5. Elisabeth von Görz-Tirol (* around 1262, † 1313) - wife of King Albrecht I , originally buried in Königsfelden
  6. Leopold I (* 1290; † 1326) - son of King Albrecht I , originally buried in Königsfelden
  7. Heinrich (* 1299; † 1327) - son of King Albrecht I , originally buried in Königsfelden
  8. Gutta (* 1302; † 1329) - daughter of King Albrecht I , wife of Ludwig VI. von Oettingen , originally buried in Königsfelden
  9. Catherine of Savoy (around 1297–1304; † 1336) - wife of Duke Leopold I , originally buried in Königsfelden
  10. Elisabeth von Virneburg (around 1303; † 1343) - wife of Duke Heinrich , originally buried in Königsfelden
  11. Katharina (* 1320; † 1349) - daughter of Duke Leopold I , wife of Enguerrand VI. de Coucy , originally buried in Königsfelden
  12. Elisabeth (* around 1285; † 1352) - daughter of King Albrecht I , wife of Frederick IV of Lorraine , originally buried in Königsfelden
  13. Agnes (* around 1281; † 1364) - daughter of King Albrecht I , wife of King Andrew III. of Hungary , originally buried in Königsfelden
  14. Leopold III. (* 1351; † 1386) - son of Duke Albrecht II , originally buried in Königsfelden

The planned construction of a large crypt hall under the rotunda was never carried out, however. Prince Abbot Gerbert was satisfied with the burial of the ancestors of the Habsburgs under the winter choir.

Other elements

In addition to the bones of the Habsburgs as “political relics”, the monastery’s rich reliquary treasure was also intended for presentation. Martin Gerbert, d'Ixnard and the building director, Franz Joseph Salzmann, designed a central building based on the model of the Pantheon in Rome, which meant a departure from the traditional church building type of the nave church. An elongated choir building was planned for the monks to adjoin the rotunda. Construction began in 1772. Apparently in order to overcome differences of opinion with the abbot, D'Ixnard traveled to Vienna in December 1773 and showed Empress Maria Theresa the construction plans on her own initiative. In view of this “cheekiness of the architect”, his contract was not extended. From 1775 to 1777 the French architect Nicolas de Pigage worked as a consultant. In the following years the elaborate dome was completed, the wooden structure of which was built by the St. Blasier master carpenter Joseph Müller. In 1778 the dome roof was covered with sheet copper and the main stone was placed over the main portal, after another year the dome was painted and the two choir grilles were made by the Karlsruhe art blacksmith Carl Hugenest. The Freiburg artist Johann Christian Wentzinger created the ceiling painting. At the same time, Johann Kaspar Gigl finished the rotunda stucco and was commissioned to build the nine stucco marble altars. Although this was to be done according to Wentzinger's design, Gigl was allowed to change it at his own discretion. In 1781 the high altar and the two pulpit altars were built and the painting above the choir arch was completed. The carving work on the organ was done by Joseph Hörr from Blasiwald . On November 11, 1781, the name day of Prince Abbot Martin Gerbert, the first Holy Mass was celebrated in the new church. Work on the side altars began in 1782 and on September 21, 1783, Prince-Bishop Maximilian Christoph von Rodt from Constance inaugurated the domed church.

Fires, dismantling and reconstruction

In 1806, Elector Karl Friedrich received the Sanktblasischen property in return for his support for Baden from Napoleon in the war against Austria . The requisite expropriation of ecclesiastical territories had been prepared under constitutional law by the Reichsdeputationshauptschluss . With this, the monks' work of around a thousand years within the monastery came to an end. The monks went to Austria and in 1809 moved into St. Paul Abbey in Lavanttal . There they also brought most of the church's treasure, the library with 18,000 volumes and the art collection, including the Adelheid Cross . In 1808 and 1809 the Grand Duke had the church cleared, and the organ by Johann Andreas Silbermann was brought to the Stephanskirche in Karlsruhe. The bells and furnishings were intended for other churches. The fragile furnishings made of plaster of paris, marble and alabaster were largely broken during removal and transport. Intact parts of the interior were built into the town church of Waldshut, Liebfrauen, which was expanded by the former Blasian monastery builder Sebastian Fritschi . The copper cladding of the dome and the canopies from the construction period was replaced by cheap zinc plates. The removed roof covering was converted into cruisers in Karlsruhe . The church building, which was just 23 years old when it passed to Baden, seemed oversized for the parish of St. Blasien and raised the fear of high maintenance costs. The planned demolition was not carried out.

After the abolition of the monastery, several entrepreneurs set up factories in the buildings. From 1809, Johann Georg Bodmer ran a factory for the manufacture of cotton spinning and weaving machines. From 1809, the mechanic Heinrich Düggli manufactured weapons, which later became the Badische Gewehrfabrik . In 1811, the banker David Seligmann, who had been ennobled as Baron von Eichthal since 1814 , set up a spinning mill in the former monastery mill and converted the monastery's former wax bleaching facility into yarn bleaching.

On February 7, 1874, a fire broke out in the spinning mill and the east wing of the monastery complex burned down. The church dome also collapsed and the interior was devastated by the fire. Between 1878 and 1883, the Grand Duke of Baden had the outer dome rebuilt. The wooden beams were replaced by 20 arched trusses made of iron , which rest on the masonry and converge at the top. The shape of the dome was slightly modified for structural reasons, the opening between the rotunda and the choir was walled up and the church of the community was set up in the choir. In 1880 court painter Wilhelm Dürr made a triptych with St. Blaise, the Ascension of Christ and St. Fridolin as an altar painting . The restored choir church was consecrated in 1888. In 1910 work began on the inner dome, which was completed three years later. It was one of the first reinforced concrete domes, executed by the company Dyckerhoff & Widmann (see Jahrhunderthalle (Breslau) ). The actual inner dome is suspended from it as a decorative dome. On June 1, 1913, Archbishop Thomas Nörber consecrated the rebuilt church.

During the Second World War , four of the five bells were confiscated and removed from the towers in 1942. On August 2, 1951, five new bells were cast by Friedrich Wilhelm Schilling in Heidelberg; the consecration took place on September 16 of the same year. Four more bells were consecrated on July 9, 1961. The renovation of the choir room, the altars and the choir grille by the Cologne sculptor Elmar Hillebrand lasted from 1969 to 1971 .

On May 27, 1977 another major fire broke out in the monastery complex, which destroyed large parts of the west and south wings. The church was saved by the fire brigade.

Due to historical events such as the secularization in 1803, the state of Baden-Württemberg is obliged to maintain the cathedral St. Blasien structurally. Therefore, in 1981, the then State Building and University Building Authority in Konstanz began planning, financing and carrying out the renovation work on the church with Wenzel Ritter von Mann and architect Günther Mall and the Waldshut branch under the direction of architect Joachim Otte . The existing warm air heating in the rotunda was replaced by underfloor heating (warm air). A constant flow temperature should create a balanced room climate and prevent premature new soiling. The estimated total costs of 9.8 million DM for the interior renovation were met and all work was completed on time for the 200th anniversary in 1983.

The aim of the planning was a contemporary architecture with a return to the original design, i.e. the symbiosis of modern elements with the ideas of Pierre Michel d'Ixnard, as can be seen on the marble floor, which continues the design by d'Ixnard. This symbiosis led from the center of the marble floor over the, in an elaborate process, marbled pilasters and columns to the white dome. The floor, columns and dome were connected to one another in terms of design. The new "cold, white splendor" of the rotunda was viewed critically by the Catholic parish. The white chairs indicated as individual chairs also met with clear criticism. The same applies to the specially designed lamps. Experts called by the community also wanted to have colored windows installed. The unconventional approach of the planners succeeded thanks to the support of the preservation officer of the Freiburg branch, Hans Jakob Wörner . The result of the interior renovation received unanimous approval after the work was completed. Critics became supporters.

In 1985 an extensive exterior renovation of the cathedral including a new jointing of the natural stones was carried out. The round dome windows were made in two parts for better ventilation of the dome. The cast vases and all copper roofing had to be checked and renovated. Including many still existing bullet holes from the Second World War. The portal cross, the tower sun and the dome were gilded with a special coating for cost reasons. The state building administration deliberately decided not to reconstruct a balustrade above the portal.

In 1988, the entire forecourt was redesigned, again under local criticism. The aim of the planning by the State Building and University Building Authority of Konstanz was to create adequate free space for the cathedral. To do this, the local road leading directly past the cathedral had to be relocated. At the sides, clearance was created by removing hedges, bushes and trees. The Blasiusbrunnen, which gave the cathedral its name, was supposed to connect the outer to the inner area of ​​the cathedral. This is underlined in the evening by the specially designed lanterns. The Freiburg artist Walter Schelenz designed the fountain .

Also on behalf of the State Building Department, the Cologne sculptors Elmar Hillebrand and Theo Heiermann created 14 Stations of the Cross by March 1993 . From 1995 to 1997 the Schwarz organ was completely renovated for around one million DM . Like all construction measures between 1973 and 2003, this work was also initiated, financed and carried out by the State Building and University Building Authority Konstanz and its Waldshut branch under the direction of the architect Joachim Otte. During this period, the redesign of the side chapels, the disabled access, the underpinning (1978?) Of foundations using cement grouting, two newly reconstructed side altars, a choir side passage and an ambo (Elmar Hillebrand 1994).

The cathedral with its current appearance is the result of 30 years of constant care and monument conservation work by the state building administration. In addition to being used as a parish church, it now serves as a festive space for a variety of cultural events.

layout

Blasiusbrunnen on the cathedral square

Cathedral Square

In the middle of the cathedral square, in front of the domed church, stands the Blasius fountain. The bishop's figure is dated 1714 and was made by the Villingen sculptor Anton Josef Schupp (1664–1729). The sculpture of Saint Blaise , after whom the church and the place are named, is usually depicted with one or more candles as an iconographic attribute of the saint . The fountain sculpture dispenses with this and is limited to the classic bishop attributes crook , miter , pectoral cross and book ( Gospels ). The cathedral and cathedral square are illuminated by various light installations in the evening. There is a webcam above the cathedral square .

The main portal

architecture

The cathedral, built in plait style , is the dominant feature of the town of St. Blasien. If you approach the village from the neighboring villages of Bernau or Todtmoos , you will notice the 62 meter high domed church. A gold-colored ball with a gold-plated cross is attached to the top of the dome. The building consists of three main parts: a vestibule with towers, a rotunda-shaped lay house and an elongated choir. The wings of the northern monastery wing border the rotunda.

The square bell towers, each twelve meters wide and 30 meters high, together with the vestibule, form the front of the church. Each bell tower has a clock face . There are a total of nine bells in the towers. The two towers are closed off by small domes, the approach of which is covered by balustrades . A wide flight of stairs leads to the vestibule. Four free-standing Doric columns, each 15 meters high, support the stone framework. There is a large crucifix on the roof , which was created around 1928 by an unknown artist. The door wings of the main portal have wooden reliefs with two half-length portraits of Mary and Joseph. Above the main portal from 1778 is an oval medallion of the savior image Salvator mundi , surrounded by the writing “Hic factus est in caput anguli, psalm 117” (this has become the corner stone). The sculptures were created around 1778 by the sculptor Joseph Hörr .

Interior in the cathedral of St. Blasien
Model of the original dome structure
The elongated choir
The interior version, renewed in 1983

The large inner dome rests on 20 Corinthian columns arranged in a circle and arches up to a height of 36 meters. There are pilasters on the two-storey outer wall of the gallery . A gallery with 17 windows is accessible above the pillars . The inner dome is equipped with strongly structured stucco parts . In the transverse axis of the rotunda there are small balconies to the left and right; the one on the left, known as the Konventchörle , was previously accessible from the monastery. On the opposite side, the Abtschörle had an entrance from the abbot's apartment.

The elongated choir forms a contrast to the lay rotunda. Ionic columns stand on the long sides on a base wall and support a barrel vault with a semicircular cross-section. The wall of the side aisles behind the columns is divided by pilasters. The end of the choir is formed by a drawn-in yoke in which the organ stands. The high altar originally stood between the monk's and lay areas at the transition from the rotunda to the choir.

Pantheon in the Black Forest

The unusual layout of the church as a central building goes back to Martin Gerbert and shows that he was familiar with the architectural ideas of the Enlightenment and classicism. The central building was the ideal of the renaissance architects, but in the end it was not able to prevail against the traditional church longitudinal building. Gerbert and d'Ixnard ignored it. In addition, there is the clear proportions of the interior. The geometric ideality of the dome space consists in the design of the dome shell as a pure hemisphere, which is added to the drawing to form a full sphere with its base touching the ground, so that the dome diameter of 36 m corresponds exactly to the height of the room, and the column ring forms a cylinder half the height of the room. This distinguishes the room from the mostly higher rising domes of the Baroque, which are also mostly elevated in their outer silhouette (St. Peter's Basilica, Rome, Invalides Cathedral, Paris). The model for the design was the ancient pantheon in Rome, whereby Martin Gerbert, in his efforts to obtain relics of the saints, probably had the Christian rededication of the pantheon as the church of Sancta Maria ad martyres in mind. The Habsburg crypt was originally planned as a large crypt under the entire area of ​​the rotunda with an opening at the top, which would have given the building a further level of meaning. In fact, it was realized as a modest crypt under the organ (today empty, the bones since 1809 in St. Paul in Lavanttal).

The original construction of the dome consisted of an oak roof truss spanning 36 meters, which carried the outer dome roof and from which the inner decorative dome was suspended, which was not a stone dome, but a stuccoed shell. Due to the factory fire on February 7th, 1874, the wooden structure of the dome caught fire, which caused it to collapse. Between 1884 and 1885, the outer dome was rebuilt from 20 arched trusses made of iron framework , which still exist today. The inner dome was rebuilt by Dyckerhoff & Widmann from 1910 to 1913 . The inner decorative dome was suspended from the technically innovative prestressed concrete ceiling.

With a span of 36 meters, the dome of the Cathedral of St. Blasien is one of the largest compared to other domed churches in Europe. The apex of the outer dome is 50 meters high, including the pommel and cross, the church reaches a total height of 62 meters, making it the tallest church in the Waldshut district. Further dimensions are:

  • Outer wall to outer wall: 43 meters,
  • Column height: 18 meters,
  • Length of the choir room from the choir grille to the end of the room: 36 meters.

The interior of the cathedral is now dominated by the color white. Inner columns, inner dome, floor and the white lacquered seating of the cathedral contribute to the bright overall picture. In the original state of the 18th century, colored accents on the altars and wooden furnishings muted the cold white tone somewhat.

The Berlin writer Friedrich Nicolai , who is considered a representative of the Enlightenment , said of St. Blasier Cathedral:

"Here is rich architecture without cranking, without Schnirkel, without all gilding and other overflowing or complicated Ziraten."

- Christoph Friedrich Nicolai, 1781

Furnishing

Dome with ceiling painting

In the middle of the inner dome is a large ceiling painting by the German painter Walter Georgi , which was created in 1912. It depicts the assumption of Mary into heaven. The picture replaces a painting by Johann Wentzinger that was destroyed by fire in 1874 and depicts the glorification of St. Benedict.

Above the gallery on the side of the altar is a colored representation from the founding legend of the monastery. The painting shows the knight Reginbert von Sellenbüren renouncing worldly life and handing over the deed of gift.

Remnants of the choir lattice, which was made between 1777 and 1779 by the Baden-Durlach court locksmith Carl Hugenest, have been placed on the inside of the portal. The two saints Peter and Paul are represented by two medallions driven into metal.

In the left bell tower the Peter and Paul Chapel is set up as a sacrament chapel. The focus is the painting of the two saints by an unknown artist. On the back of the chapel there are other representations of saints of Saint Anthony as well as Blasius and Joseph . Hans Schrödter created these pictures.

The Mary and Baptistery is located in the western bell tower . In the middle there is a Bavarian baroque altar, in front of which is a baptismal font made of gray marble. The altar depicts a Madonna in a radiant nimbus under a canopy (acquired from an art dealer in 1961). The font was created around 1912 in Karlsruhe.

The group of figures of St. Blaise with a woman and her child depicts Blaise of Sebaste , who was martyred in 316 and is the patron saint and namesake of the cathedral. He is shown saving a child from suffocation. The depiction is believed to come from a Vienna Ursuline convent from 1740 and was acquired in the art trade in 1968.

Side altar with a portrait of St. Benedict

There are six side altars in the vicinity of the rotunda. As part of the interior renovation of the rotunda in 1981/1983, two altars were made by the Stuttgart master plasterer Siller. Two altarpieces ( Nikolaus von Myra and a martyr not named by name ) are by Johann Christian Wentzinger from the time the cathedral was built. The others ( Elisabeth of Thuringia , Benedict of Nursia , Ignatius of Loyola and Teresa of Ávila ), which are stylistically adapted to the first two, come from the Innsbruck painter Wolfram Köberl from 1987. With six side altars in the front niches of the gallery, the planning concept of the renovation in 1981/1983 implemented.

The former monks' choir, which at the time of the monastery was separated from the rotunda, the prayer room of the people, by an opaque grid, is indicated by a transparent grid. Four medallions with depictions of Saints Blasius, Benedict, Scholastica and Vincentius as well as a crucifix (2004) created by Elmar Hillebrand are integrated into this choir grid .

The center of the cathedral church is the white and gray mottled rosette-shaped marble floor. The floor, which was newly installed on the occasion of the renovation in 1981/1983, originally goes back to plans by Franz Joseph Salzmann from 1772 that were not implemented . In the center of the floor, the year 1983 reminds of the renovation. An interested observer will notice that the friezes, contrary to earlier representations, become wider towards the outside. This little “trick” contributes to the harmony of the floor.

Organs

View of the Schwarz organ

Prince Abbot Martin Gerbert selected the famous Strasbourg Johann Andreas Silbermann in 1771 to build an organ that would match the church . Pierre Michel d'Ixnard drew the draft for the organ prospectus . This Silbermann organ had 51 registers . It was expanded in 1807 in the course of secularization and in 1813 Johann Ferdinand Balthasar Stieffell moved it to the Stephanskirche in Karlsruhe , where it was destroyed by bombs in 1944. On the balustrade in front of the organ there are still two groups of putti by the sculptor Joseph Hörr , which formerly belonged to the Silbermann organ. With the resumption of the separated choir as a parish church, an organ was built by Voith and Sons in 1879 . With the opening of the rotunda this organ became too small and in 1913 it was sold to the St. Dionysius Church in Gailingen .

Today's organ on the back wall of the choir was built between 1911 and 1913 by the organ builders Wilhelm Schwarz & Sohn ( Überlingen ). The organ case in the style of the earlier Silbermann organ is 12 m high, 7 m wide and 4 m deep, and with its dark natural wood forms a color contrast to the white interior of the church. During the renovation of the rotunda in 1981/1983, the state building administration (at that time the main cost bearer) refused a major overhaul of the organ with the demanded "Baroque" sound. The instrument was only cleaned and repaired in 1983. However, over the years, the original leather hides suffered from deterioration. In 1997 there was a financially favorable opportunity for a major organ renovation. The "baroque" was no longer relevant and it was more important to keep the organ in its originality, including the "romantic" intonation. The state building administration commissioned the organ builder Johannes Klais (Bonn). In addition, a new gaming table found a better assignment. Today the organ has 54 stops on three manuals and a pedal .

I Hauptwerk C – g 3
01. Principal 16 ′
02. Bourdon 16 ′
03. Principal 08th'
04th Bourdon 08th'
05. Flûte harmonique 0 08th'
06th violoncello 08th'
07th octave 04 ′
08th. Flûte harmonique 04 ′
09. octave 02 ′
10. Cornet III-VI 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′
11. Mixture V 02 ′
12. Cymbel IV 02 ⁄ 3 ′
13. Trumpet 08th'
14th Clairon 04 ′
II swell positive C – g 3
15th Quintathön 16 ′
16. Flute principal 08th'
17th Reed flute 08th'
18th Dolce 08th'
19th Salicional 08th'
20th Unda maris 08th'
21st Flute dolce 04 ′
22nd Fifth 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′
23. Progressio harmonique III 0 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′
24. Basson 08th'
25th clarinet 08th'
III Swell C – g 3
26th Lovely covered 0 16 ′
27. diapason 08th'
28. Night horn 08th'
29 Transverse flute 08th'
30th Gamba 08th'
31. Aeoline 08th'
32. Vox celeste 08th'
33. Octave 04 ′
34. Flûte octaviante 04 ′
35. Fifth 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′
36. Octavin 02 '
37. third 01 3 ⁄ 5  ′
38. Plein jeu V 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′
39. Basson 16 ′
40. Trumpet 08th'
41. oboe 08th'
42. Clairon 04 ′
Pedal C – f 1
43. Principal bass 16 ′
44. double bass 16 ′
45. Sub bass 16 ′
46. Echobass (= No. 26) 0 16 ′
47. Fifth 10 2 ⁄ 3  ′
48. Bourdon 08th'
49. flute 08th'
50. cello 08th'
51. third 06 2 ⁄ 5  ′
52. flute 04 ′
53. Bombard 16 ′
54. Trumpet 08th'
55. Clairon 04 ′
  • Pairing :
    • Normal coupling: II / I, III / I, III / II, I / P, II / P, III / P.
    • Super octave coupling: II / II (expanded up to g 4 ), III / III (expanded up to g 4 ), III / I, III / II, I / P, II / P, III / P.
    • Sub-octave coupling: II / II, III / III, III / I, III / II.
  • Playing aids : crescendo roller , 256-fold setter .

Bells

For the bells of the domed church, the bell founder Benjamin Grüninger from the Villingen bell foundry Grüninger built a foundry on site in 1781. The largest bell was cast on September 18, 1781. Father Franz Kreutter wrote a special report about the casting of this bell . She had a weight of 6150 kg. When the monastery was closed in 1806, several bells were removed from the towers and distributed to other churches. The largest bell went to the collegiate church in Karlsruhe , five more went to the Karlsruher Stephanskirche . Some smaller bells remained in the towers of the domed church. It was not until 1879 that St. Blasien received a new bell. Two old bells were kept, four new ones were cast. During the First World War , on September 3, 1918, two bells were smashed, but not taken away. In 1919, the Grüninger company in Villingen made two new bells from the remaining bell metal . During the Second World War , all but one of the bells were confiscated for military purposes. The remaining one could not be rung due to a crack.

Today the cathedral has a 10-part bell, which was cast after the Second World War. On September 13, 1951, the Heidelberg bell founder Friedrich Wilhelm Schilling completed five new bells, ten years later four more were added. A tenth bell with the tone f has been added to the ringing since 2005, which is dedicated to Pastor Wilhelm Schuh (1901–1993). The dedication is intended to commemorate the pastor and honorary citizen of the city of St. Blasien, who was involved as a pastor as well as the initiator of the new bells after the Second World War. The 4 big bells were delivered on the evening of July 7th, 1961 and were presented to the St. Blasiern by Pastor Wilhelm Schuh with the words: “The bells have had to come down from the towers three times: the first time after secularization, the second time in World War I, the third time in World War II, each time more irreverent and brutal. And there is a cruel truth that has remained in our consciousness: where the bells are silent, the demons rule. If these bells have to go down from the towers a fourth time, then grace us all, God ”, presented. On July 9, 1961, the bells were consecrated by the Archabbot of Beuron, Benedikt Reetz .

No.
  		Surname
  		Casting year
  		Caster
  		Mass
(kg, approx.) 		Diameter
(mm) 		Strike tone
(16th note)
01 Peter 1961 Friedrich Wilhelm Schilling ,
Heidelberg		 6152 2161 ges 0 -1
02 Marien 3040 1706 b 0 -3
03 Blasius 1712 1421 des 1 -1
04th Benedictus 1328 1262 it 1 -3
05 Stephen 2005 Albert Bachert, Karlsruhe 1018 1143 f 1
06th Elisabeth 1951 Friedrich Wilhelm Schilling ,
Heidelberg		 835 1100 ges 1 -1
07th Joseph 562 950 as 1 -1
08th Reginbert 403 850 b 1 -1
09 Nicholas 229 710 des 2 -1
10 Ignatius 151 610 it 2 -1

For the designation Dom

The new German word Dom is borrowed from the French “dôme” (= dome, cf. English “dome”) and is used to designate important domed buildings (cf. Dome of the Rock , Invalides Dome ). For this reason the domed church of St. Blasien is also called the cathedral. The tourism industry also speaks of the Black Forest Cathedral . This meaning of the word cathedral is to be distinguished from the designation cathedral in the sense of bishop's church, originating from the Latin "domus ecclesiae" (house of the church) or "domus episcopalis" (house of the bishop). The former Benedictine abbey church of St. Blasien was never a bishop's church and since the abolition of the monastery has had the status of a parish church of the Catholic parish of St. Blasius.

See also

literature

  • Paul Booz, Marianne Booz: Building and Art History of the Monastery of St. Blasien and its domain. Schillinger-Verlag, Freiburg 2001.
  • Hermann Brommer : St. Blasien / Southern Black Forest. Schnell & Steiner, Regensburg, 30th edition. 1988.
  • Erich Franz: Pierre Michel d'Ixnard 1723–1795. Life and work. Konrad, Weissenhorn 1985.
  • Heinrich Heidegger, Hugo Ott (ed.): St. Blasien. Festschrift on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the monastery and parish church . Schnell and Steiner, Munich 1983, ISBN 3-7954-0445-2 .
  • Claus-Peter Hilger: St. Blasien Cathedral, southern Black Forest . Kunstverlag Josef Fink, Lindenberg 2006, ISBN 3-89870-218-9 .
  • Franz Xaver Kraus : The art monuments of the Grand Duchy of Baden . Volume 3: The art monuments of the Waldshut district. , Academic publishing bookstore JCB Mohr, Freiburg im Breisgau 1892, p. 68 ff.
  • Franz Xaver Kraus: The church treasure of Sanct Blasien, now to S. Paul in Carinthia (= The Art Monuments of the Grand Duchy of Baden Volume 3, supplement), Freiburg im Breisgau 1892.
  • Peter Schmidt-Thomé: Excavations in the cathedral of St. Blasien, Waldshut district . In: Denkmalpflege in Baden-Württemberg , 12th year 1983, issue 3, pp. 128–132 ( PDF ).

Web links

Commons : Dom St. Blasien  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

References and comments

  1. ^ Cathedral of St. Blasien. Catholic Church Congregation St. Blasien, accessed on July 28, 2018 .
  2. ^ Franz Xaver Kraus (Ed.): The art monuments of the Grand Duchy of Baden . Volume 3: The art monuments of the Waldshut district. Academic publishing bookshop JCB Mohr, Freiburg im Breisgau 1892, p. 68 ff.
  3. ↑ Ernst Adolf Birkenmayer : A Habsburg funeral service . In: Contributions to the history of the Waldshut parish, Freiburg diocesan archive, Volume 21, Herderverlag, Freiburg, pp. 254-257. [1]
  4. ↑ Ludwig Schmieder, St. Blasien , 1929, p. 216.
  5. ↑ Stephan Kessler : A Pantheon on the Black Forest , in: Dom St. Blasien Südschwarzwald , Lindenberg 2006, p. 36.
  6. ^ Hermann Brommer: Book review Rudolf Morath: Joseph Hörr , in: Schau-ins-Land 104, 1985, p. 310 f.
  7. ^ Carl Wilhelm Schnars: Guide through the Baden and Württemberg Black Forest , 2nd increased edition, Wagner, Freiburg, 1868, p. 257.
  8. ↑ Medard Barth: St. Fridolin and his cult in the Alemannic area. An attempt . In: Freiburger Diözesan-Archiv 75, 1955, p. 172 ( digitized version ).
  9. ^ Article in the Badische Zeitung on the inauguration of the bells .
  10. ^ Thomas Schupp: History of the Schupp family from Villingen , accessed on June 23, 2011.
  11. ↑ Blasius in the Ecumenical Lexicon of Saints .
  12. ↑ tourismus.stblasien.de: Webcams ( Memento from February 15, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) , accessed on June 23, 2011.
  13. ↑ Stephan Kessler: A Pantheon on the Black Forest , in: Dom St. Blasien Südschwarzwald , Lindenberg 2006, p. 34.
  14. ↑ See list of the largest domes of their time .
  15. ↑ On the foundation of the St. Blasien monastery .
  16. ↑ The St. Blasien monastery after its reconstruction under Prince Abbot Martin II Gerbert .
  17. ^ History of the Silbermann organ building family ( Memento from September 28, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; 191 kB).
  18. ↑ For the history of the organs in St. Blasien see Friedrich Wilhelm Schwarz: The great organ work in the city church St. Blasien. A historical appraisal of the earlier organ and a description of the present organ , [Überlingen] 1914; Information on the website of the Cathedral Parish of St. Blasien ( memento of March 10, 2016 in the Internet Archive ).
  19. ↑ Technical data of the organ restoration .
  20. ↑ To the technical data and the disposition .
  21. ↑ Konrad Sutter: From the history of the monastery of St. Blasien - The bells and their fates. In: Badische Heimat 1978, issue 2, pp. 263–278; Konrad Sutter: Bells - companions through the history of the monastery . In: Heinrich Heidegger, Hugo Ott (Hrsg.): St. Blasien. Festschrift on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the monastery and parish church . Schnell and Steiner, Munich 1983, ISBN 3-7954-0445-2 , p. 275 ff., With photo on p. 73.
  22. ^ Full bells on Youtube ( Memento from July 3, 2014 in the Internet Archive ).
  23. ↑ Press release of the cathedral parish of St. Blasien on the Stephen bell .
  24. ^ Bernhard Steinert : Sankt Blasier Land p. 274
  25. ↑ Sound recording of the peal on YouTube
  26. ↑ Information about the bells on the website of the Archdiocese of Freiburg
  27. ↑ Tourist information on St. Blasien Cathedral .
  28. ↑ German Dictionary , Vol. 2, p. 1233 .
This article was added to the list of articles worth reading on June 23, 2011 in this version .


Coordinates: 47 ° 45 ′ 36 "  N , 8 ° 7 ′ 48"  E