Timisoara Cathedral
| Timisoara Cathedral | |
|---|---|
 Timisoara Cathedral |
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| Construction time: | 1736-1763 |
| Inauguration: | 1754 |
| Architect : | Joseph Emanuel Fischer von Erlach |
| Client: | Nikolaus Stanislavich , Carl Alexander Steinlein, Johann Theodor Kostka Edler |
| Dimensions: | 55 × 22 × 16.9 m |
| Tower height: |
35.5 m |
| Location: | 45 ° 45 '29.3 " N , 21 ° 13' 49.1" E |
| Address: |
Piața Unirii No. 12 Timișoara Timiș , Romania |
| Purpose: | Roman Catholic Cathedral |
| Diocese : | Diocese of Timisoara |
The Timisoara Cathedral (also Cathedral of the St. George , Romanian Catedrala Sfântul Gheorghe din Timişoara , Hungarian Szent György Római Katolikus Szekesegyhaz ) is a Roman Catholic Church on Cathedral Square ( romanian Piata Unirii ) in the center of I. district Cetate the western Romanian city of Timisoara ( German Timisoara ).
The cathedral is the cathedral of the Timișoara diocese and bears the patronage of St. George . After the Oradea Cathedral, it is the second largest baroque sacred building in south-eastern Europe . The floor plan of the cathedral church has the shape of a double cross, is 55 meters long, 22 meters wide and has an interior height of 16.9 meters. The towers are 35.5 meters high. The church is now a listed building .
history
The idea for the construction of the cathedral originates from the year 1732 by the bishop of the Tschanader diocese , Adalbert Freiherr von Falkenstein , who laid the foundation stone of the cathedral on August 6th 1736 under the administration of the state president Johann Andreas Graf von Hamilton . It was supposed to replace the St. George's Cathedral from Tschanad , which was lost during the Turkish era . In 1733, Emperor Karl VI. the now in Szeged bishopric to Timişoara.
The building was planned by court architect Joseph Emanuel Fischer von Erlach . Construction work had to be stopped after just one year due to the Russian-Austrian Turkish War . After the death of Baron von Falkenstein in 1739, Nikolaus Stanislavich, who had fled the Ottomans from Craiova, took over his successor and started building work again, which only peaked in 1746–1747. Bishop Anton Graf Engel von Wagrain , the successor of Stanislavich, vigorously pushed ahead with the construction work on the cathedral from 1751–1752. On September 8, 1754 ( Mary's Birth ), he celebrated the first Holy Mass , even if the completed half of the sacred building was separated from the construction site by a wooden shed. The high mass began with the world premiere of the Missa in honorem Sanctissimae Trinitatis, composed for the occasion by Michael Haydn .
The second construction phase lasted from 1755 to 1774. The construction management was taken over by the engineers Carl Alexander Steinlein (also Steindlein, Steindl, Steinl, Stein, * 1733, † 1810) and Johann Theodor Kostka Edler (* 1734, † 1807). They added the missing parts of the cathedral church, completed the masonry of the nave and built the two towers. They paid special attention to the cathedral's characteristic tower facade and the entrance hall. In 1761 the towers were completed and covered with shingles, as the cost of copper hoods was too high for the Viennese court.
The court chamber financed temporary bells in 1754 , and Bishop Engel had two new, larger bells made at his own expense. In 1762 the smaller and in 1763 the 150 kg heavy bishop's bell was lifted into the tower, made by the Oven foundryman Joseph Steinstock . Apart from the big bell, the other bells fell victim to the First World War . The remaining bell was restored in Germany in 1998.
In 1764 the tower clocks built by the Timisoara clockmaker Joseph Martin Kidt (also Kitt, Kidl) were used, which had to be replaced in 1893. In 1763 the building was completed except for the interior.
The interior was only provisionally furnished after the completion of the first construction phase in 1754. The semi-circular, made of marble existing high altar was with golden statues of saints and angels decorated and the Holy Trinity consecrated. The picture above the main altar was painted by Michael Angelo Unterberger in 1754 . This depicts Saint George in armor on horseback while he is fighting a dragon . In 1920 the altarpiece was restored by Josef Ferenczy . Next to the main altar there were two side altars. In 1766 the Temeschburg master carpenter Johann Georg Wittmann (also Widmann, Wiedmann Widemann, * 1728, † 1776) made the pulpit out of oak and linden wood and later also the church chairs. In 1768 the six side altars were built. Some of the altarpieces were painted by Johann Nepomuk Schöpf as early as 1722 and have Gothic , Baroque and Rococo style elements . Today the side altars are arranged as follows:
- The privilege altar with the altarpiece The Crucifixion and the statues of St. John and Mary Magdalene
- The altarpiece The Last Supper with two statues depicting hope and religion
- The altarpiece of Saint Joseph of Blessed Tode with two statues depicting the Annunciation and an image of the Blessed Virgin as the patron saint with the baby Jesus
- The altarpiece Mary's visit to Elisabeth with the statues of Saint Zacharias and Elizabeth and a picture of Saint Anne
- The altarpiece of Saint John of Nepomuk with the statues of two genii and an image of the suffering Savior
- The altarpiece The Blessed Virgin Mary and the Saints Sebastian, Rosalia and Rochus with the statues of the Holy Virgin and the martyrs as well as the image of Saint Anthony with the baby Jesus
Johann Georg Wittmann and the painter and gilder Franz Wagner (* 1741, † 1794) made the altars and the six oratorio windows in the years 1770–1774 . The two side altars in Gothic style were later made by the sculptor Johannes Müller during the tenure of Bishop Alexander Csajághy . They are consecrated in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the patron saint of the Kingdom of Hungary, and Saint Gérard , the first bishop of the Chanad diocese. The Viennese sculptor Johann Josef Rößler created the two larger-than-life statues of Saint Karl Borromeo and Saint Theresa that line the high altar, as well as other sculptural cherubim altar figures that were gilded by Anton Bössinger . The silver lamp for the high altar, the large gilded monstrance , the shepherd's staff , and several chalices were made by the Viennese goldsmith Josef Moser . In 1774 the construction and furnishing of the cathedral was completed 38 years after the foundation stone was laid. The cathedral church was solemnly consecrated on April 24, 1803 by Bishop Köszeghy .
The splendidly furnished church was used as a military depot from 1788–1790 during the war against the Turks. Even during the siege of Timisoara in 1849 , the church, where the citizens of the city took refuge, was badly damaged. When a bomb tore the roof down, the citizens fled to the cathedral's crypt . Several Chanad bishops and canons, as well as aristocrats of the military class, were buried in this crypt. Between 1980 and 1982 the cathedral was restored under the direction of the architect Franz Braun , with the Milthalter brothers from Arad restoring the interior.
organ
Initially, the services in the “Cathedral Church” were musically performed by the “Kirchenmusici”, mainly through instrumental music . Even the first performance of the Missa in honorem Sanctissimae Trinitatis was interpreted by a choir and an orchestra without an organ, as the then completed cathedral section only had a small organ with a manual . The first organ worth mentioning was built in 1767 by the Viennese Paul Hanke in the Baroque style for 300 guilders . This organ was in operation until 1908, when it was replaced by Carl Leopold Wegenstein for 30,000 Austrian crowns with a new, more complex organ, which is still in operation today. The organ underwent major repairs and cleaning in 1983. It has 3 manuals, pedal , 48 registers and is operated electrically.
Today's disposition is as follows:
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crypt
In the crypt there are the graves of the bishops of the diocese of Csánad Nikolaus Stanislavich , Franz Anton Engl Graf von Wagrain , Emmerich Christovich , Alexander Csajághy , Alexander Bonnaz , Alexander Dessewffy and the diocese of Timișoara Augustin Pacha , Adalbert Boros , Sebastian Kräuter . The graves of Canon Georg Bauer , Canon Carlo Tazolli , Szentkláray Jenő or high-ranking officers such as Georg Rukawina zu Widowgrad , Karl Freiherr von Braum and others are also located here.
The first grave was erected in the floor of the crypt in 1741, before the cathedral was completed, on the death of the Italian canon Carlo Tazolli. The most recent tomb is that of Bishop Sebastian Kräuter (2008).
literature
- Hans Diplich : The cathedral in Timisoara. A contribution to their building history. With 69 illustrations on panels , Verlag des Südostdeutschen Kulturwerkes, Munich, 1972
Remarks
- ↑ Some authors assume that these were made by Johann Jakob Schellbauer from Vienna . From Dr. István Berkeszi, Dr. Nicolae Iliesiu, et al. Provincial engineers Carl Alexander Steinlein and Johann Theodor Kostka are given as construction managers . In his research, Hans Diplich came to the conclusion that it was not the latter who were responsible for supervising the first construction phase, but Johann Kaspar Dissel (also Diesel, Dißl, Distl, Distel, Tisel, * 1694, † 1768) and Johann Lechner . According to Diplich, the masonry work was supervised by foreman Phillip Maurer . The woodwork was done by master carpenters Christian Kaltwasser , Georg Michael Deller and Heinrich Müller . The locksmith work was entrusted to the master Georg Weiß , and the sculptor Johannes Michael Humbach carried out the stucco and decorating work.
Web links
- Timisoara Cathedral as a 3D model in SketchUp's 3D warehouse
- banaterra.eu (PDF; 60 kB), Claudiu Călin: Biserici Romano-Catolice existente azi pe teritoriul orașului Timișoara , February 21, 2007, in Romanian
- temeswar.info , Der Dom (The Roman Catholic Cathedral)
- banater-aktualitaet.de , Anton Zollner: The Cathedral Church , April 1990
- edition-musik-suedost.de , Franz Metz : Temeswar / Timișoara, The organ of the cathedral church , 2008
- banaterra.eu , tombs in the cathedral crypt
- banaterra.eu , Timisoara Cathedral
Individual evidence
- ↑ cultura.ro ( Memento from April 26, 2013 in the Internet Archive ), Lista Monumentelor Istorice 2004 (PDF file) of the Județ Timiș , entry 151 - TM-II-mA-06176
See also
Timisoara Cathedral | Katharinenkirche | Piarist Church of the Holy Cross | Millennium Church | Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus | Parish Church of the Nativity of Mary | Notre Dame monastery church “Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary” | Marienkirche | Church of the Holy Trinity | Church of St. Joseph | Church of the Assumption | Parish Church of Saint Roch