Liebfrauenkirche (Zurich)

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Liebfrauenkirche Zurich, view from the Lindenhof
View from the Weinbergstrasse
The roof structure
inside view
View to the organ gallery
The west portal
The trailblazer, sculpture of John the Baptist by Albert Schilling

The Church of Our Lady is the Roman Catholic parish church for the city of Zurich's urban areas Niederdorf , the university district and parts of the Zurich mountain. It is considered the "most important replica of an early Christian basilica on Swiss soil". The Liebfrauenkirche is at Zehnderweg 9 near the main train station , the Central and the two universities of applied sciences ETH and the University of Zurich .

history

backgrounds

In the 19th century, Catholics from eastern and central Switzerland increasingly migrated to Zurich, which is why the need for a Catholic church arose in the reformed Zwingli city of Zurich. In 1842 the Zurich government rented the Augustinian Church to the Catholic community, which at that time made up about 5% of the population. After the Christian Catholics split off in 1871, the Roman Catholic believers built the church of St. Peter and Paul in the workers' quarter of Aussersihl in 1874 . The growing number of Catholics in Zurich meant that the parish of St. Peter and Paul became the largest Roman Catholic parish in Switzerland in the 1890s, which is why it became necessary to build more churches. Until then, since 1881, the Catholics living on the right of the Limmat had been holding Sunday and festive services in the cemetery chapel of the Hohe Promenade (today the Anglican Church of St. Andrew's), and since 1887 there has also been the possibility of attending church services in the private Catholic hospital Theodosianum on Kreuzstrasse , and in 1891 they had their first community center in the form of the journeyman's house on Wolfbach.

Development and construction history

In 1886 a church building association was founded with the aim of building a second Catholic church in Zurich next to the church of St. Peter and Paul Aussersihl. In 1889, a building site for the construction of a church on the shores of Lake Zurich could have been purchased, but this was prevented due to denominational reservations. After this failure, with the approval of the Bishop of Chur, an appeal for donations followed, which drew attention to the precarious situation of the mostly poor Catholics in Zurich and provided the necessary financial means for the purchase of building land and for the planning of churches. 1891 was both Unterstrass and in Oerlikon , the land for the church of Our Lady and the Sacred Heart Oerlikon to buy. The land purchase for the Church of Our Lady was indirectly linked to the decision to locate the Swiss National Museum . In order to win the Catholic estates for the Zurich location, an offer was made to enable the purchase of the desired building site for the Liebfrauenkirche. The building permit for the church was granted on August 19, 1892 by the community of Unterstrass, which became a district of Zurich through the incorporation in 1894, so that the city council of Zurich gave the Catholic church building association "to complete the worthy building, which is an excellent place among the buildings of the city takes ", congratulated.

General view inside.

In the years 1892-1894 the Liebfrauenkirche was built according to plans by the architect August Hardegger (1858-1927), who designed the church in the style of an early Christian basilica based on the models of Roman and Ravennatic buildings. Hardegger developed the idea for this together with the influential art historian and hermit Father Albert Kuhn (1839–1929), who convinced the church building association to build the church in this style.

The attachment of the Church of Our Lady to Italian models was intended to express the solidarity of the Roman Catholic Church in Switzerland with the Pope and with Rome , in the spirit of ultra-montanism in the time of the Kulturkampf . Through this positioning, the Roman Catholic Church, which was in the diaspora in Zurich, differentiated itself from both the Christian Catholic Church, which was separated in 1871, and the Reformed Church. The choice of Our Lady as patroness , which was made in consultation with the pastors and the Chur bishop, not only expresses the Marian piety of the time, but also the emphatic differentiation between the Catholic and the Reformed denominations.

Initially, the Liebfrauenkirche was planned for 1200 people and should have two church towers . For cost reasons, however, the church had to be reduced to 1000 seats and one of the two church towers had to be dispensed with. On May 13, 1893, the foundation stone was laid on the northeast corner of the tower. At the same time as the church, the first vicarage was built by Liebfrauen in neo-Romanesque style to the northwest below the church. The church was consecrated on October 7, 1894.

Simultaneously with the incorporation of ten suburbs on January 1, 1893, the parish of Zurich-Hottingen, belonging to the Liebfrauenkirche, was created. It encompassed the entire right bank of the city with the quarters of Wipkingen , Unterstrass, Oberstrass , Fluntern , Hottingen , Hirslanden and Riesbach, as well as the adjacent areas from Männedorf on Lake Zurich to Höngg on the Limmat.

Because of its central location, the parish of Liebfrauen also took on important functions for the public, social and political activities of the Catholics in Zurich. In addition to various Catholic associations and social institutions such as hospitals and dormitories, which were important for Swiss and foreign immigrants, the schools in particular should also be mentioned. Since 1897 there was a toddler school in the Liebfrauen rectory. Further teaching facilities were established in 1923 after the formation of the Catholic School Association: In 1923 the girls' school on Hirschengraben (today the seat of the Central Commission and the Vicariate General of Zurich and Glarus ) was inaugurated. In 1949 the second school building was opened at Sumatrastrasse 33, which today houses a secondary school and the 10th year of the Free Catholic Schools.

1954–1955 the first rectory was replaced by the current building, which was built by Karl Higi (1920–2008) as a simple cube.

In the years 1980–1981, the church was renovated according to plans by the architect Otto Glaus (1914–1996) and the crypt was installed. December 1981 was consecrated. During the renovation of the church, the two side altars were removed and the previous terrazzo covering was replaced by a new mosaic floor. When the church reopened after the renovation from 1980–1981, the Einsiedeln monastery gave the parish of Liebfrauen relics of the city saints St. Felix and Regula , which are kept in a niche under the popular altar of the Liebfrauenkirche.

In 1988 the new parish center, built according to plans by the architect Bert Allemann, was inaugurated by Bishop Cabrera from Los Alaminos ( Philippines ). Between 2010 and 2011 the church was renovated by the architects Staffelbach and Meier.

Daughter Parishes and the Presence

Since the parish area of ​​Liebfrauen was very large (it reached from Männedorf to Höngg), provisional places for worship were soon sought and the Liebfrauen area was gradually divided into independent parishes. Shortly after the foundation of the Liebfrauen parish, Herz Jesu (Oerlikon) went into business for itself in 1895. Küsnacht and Männedorf followed in 1898 . The daughter parishes of St. Anton (Hottingen) in 1908, Guthirt (Wipkingen) in 1923, Brother Klaus (Unterstrass) in 1933 and St. Martin (Fluntern) in 1940 were established in the Zurich area.

The parish of Liebfrauen is one of the medium-sized Roman Catholic parishes in the city of Zurich with 4,703 members (as of 2017).

Appreciation and building description

The Liebfrauenkirche is one of the most important and harmonious buildings of historicism in the Catholic diaspora. It rises on an artificially created terrace above Leonhardstrasse and Weinbergstrasse. For topographical reasons the church faces north. From the outside of the church it can be seen that the Liebfrauenkirche is a longitudinal building with a wide vestibule and basilical division into a main aisle and two aisles. The building is completed with a choir apse to which the bell tower was added. A closed ambulatory is laid out around the apse , which serves as a sacristy .

Church tower and bells

The tower is reminiscent of a Romanesque campanile and houses a ringing made of six bronze bells from the H. Rüetschi bell foundry from Aarau , which was consecrated in 1897 and raised into the tower. The bells sound in the striking sequence b 0 –des 1 –f 1 –as 1 –b 1 –des 2 and hang on steel yokes in two steel bell cages . The two large bells hang behind the lowest acoustic arcade , the others one floor above. Every Saturday evening from 7:00 p.m. to 7:15 p.m., all bells ring out - together with those of the other inner-city churches - to ring in Sunday.

The little bell hangs on the upper floor of the bell house.
number Weight volume
1 3300 kg b
2 2100 kg of the 1st
3 1000 kg f 1
4th 600 kg as 1
5 400 kg b 1
6th 250 kg of the 2nd

Interior and artistic equipment

The interior of the three-aisled Liebfrauenkirche is rhythmized by arcades on massive columns and by arcades of light . The open roof structure underlines the southern character of the church. There is a square presbytery in the raised choir. The choir is completed by a further drawn-in apse.

When the church was consecrated in 1894, the furnishings were simple. The walls were painted with a restrained quadrature painting and simple ornamental friezes . The windows with their diamond grilles did not have colored ornamental glass as planned, but simply plain, colorless glass. Only the roof of the church, which, contrary to the plan, was not designed as a coffered ceiling but as an open roof structure, showed rich ornamentation: the entablature was painted in color and its design was based on the church of S. Miniato al Monte in Florence. Due to lack of money, the liturgical furnishings were made simple but uniform.

The furnishings of the church were added piece by piece in the following years thanks to foundations and legacies , but it still appears uniform overall. A first highlight of the equipment was the design of the frescoes and mosaics by Fritz Kunz in the choir, whose works in Liebfrauen stand between the late Nazarene realism and the strict hieratic conception. The solemn consecration of the church and its altars took place from October 13 to 15, 1907.

In 1922, the gallery was expanded by the architect Anton Higi (1885–1951) , followed by the fresco cycle in the main nave and the mosaic above the west portal by Fritz Kunz in 1923–1924 . The sculptor Alois Payer (1878–1960) created depictions of the 14 Stations of the Cross until 1924 , which have been hanging on the walls of the church since then.

The high altar and pulpit were designed by the architect August Hardegger . The tabernacle and the cross in the high altar were made by the central Swiss artist Josef Rickenbacher . The folk altar, ambo and the base for the candlesticks were made according to designs by the architect Otto Glaus. The font was made by Richard Arthur Nüscheler (1877–1950).

Pictorial program of the mosaics and frescoes

The picture cycle by Fritz Kunz was created using pictorial equipment and iconographic programs from early Christian basilicas. In the nave , scenes from the life of Christ and Mary are depicted. In the choir, the frescoes and the mosaic refer to the heavenly paradise with reference to the Revelation of John . The gold mosaic of the apse shows in the middle the enthroned Christ as King of heaven and world ruler over the four rivers of Paradise. His right hand is raised in blessing, in his left he holds the book of life . Our Lady and John the Baptist stand at his sides . The twelve lambs in the frieze below symbolize the disciples of Jesus and the believers who follow the divine Shepherd. The vision of heaven continues on the apse wall. Above the apse arch, the Lamb of God is depicted on an altar with seven candlesticks: Christ who sacrificed himself for the salvation of the world. Six angels float near with golden bowls from which smoke rises - a symbol for the prayers of the believers. Among the angels, 24 elders are represented who worship Christ and offer their crowns to the Lamb of God. The twelve apostles appear in a frieze that extends over the side walls. The articles of the Apostles' Creed are reproduced on their tablets . The theme of the triumphal arch wall is the proclamation of God's word . The four evangelists appear starting from the cross . In the arches, medallions with bust portraits of St. Felix and Regula, Clara , Elisabeth , Franz von Sales and Fridolin to saints who are especially venerated here. The preaching of Mary is represented among the evangelists. This is the beginning of the cycle of pictures of the nave. On the ceiling beams of the nave are the words of the Apostles' Creed, in the choir the Agnus Dei .

crypt

The crypt, front part

The crypt was built under the church between 1980 and 1981 according to plans by the architect Otto Glaus. Square supports support a shallow concrete barrel with stitch caps over the side aisles. Like the walls, the supports are clad with light-colored bricks. T. were not mortared. The central nave is three steps deeper than the side aisles. In contrast to the festive upper church, the crypt invites you to private prayer. The crypt was designed by important Swiss artists: the tabernacle and the ambo are by the Zurich artist Josef Caminada and underline the meditative character of the room. The Obwalden artist Alois Spichtig created the wooden Madonna in 1999. A tapestry depicting the sacrificial death of Christ was made by Franziska Gehr (born 1939) based on designs by her father Ferdinand Gehr (1896–1996). Further wall hangings were created by the Benedictine nuns of the Orselina TI monastery and will be changed depending on the time during the church year. As a special feature, the confessionals have small glass windows designed by the Zurich artist Max Rüedi .

organ

The Kuhn organ from 1983

The Liebfrauenkirche received its first organ in 1899. It was an instrument made by the organ building company Klais , Bonn, and had 39 sounding registers. In 1934 the organ was overhauled by Orgelbau AG in Willisau and expanded by six registers.

Today's organ was built in 1983 by Orgelbau Kuhn (Männedorf). The slider chest instrument has 51 stops on three manuals and pedal. The game actions are mechanical, the stop actions are electric.

I Hauptwerk C – g 3
1. Dumped 16 ′
2. Principal 8th'
3. Tube bare 8th'
4th Transverse flute 8th'
5. Viol 8th'
6th Octave 4 ′
7th Gemshorn 4 ′
8th. Octave 2 ′
9. Forest flute 2 ′
10. Mixture V 2 ′
11. Cornett V 8th'
12. Trumpet 16 ′
13. prong 8th'
II Positive C-g 3
14th Principal 8th'
15th Metal dacked 8th'
16. Quintatön 8th'
17th Principal 4 ′
18th Reed flute 4 ′
19th Fifth 2 2 ⁄ 3  ′
20th Octave 2 ′
21st third 1 3 ⁄ 5  ′
22nd Larigot 1 1 ⁄ 3  ′
23. Super octave 1'
24. Sharp III 1'
25th Vox humana 8th'
26th Krummhorn 8th'
Tremulant
III Swell C – g 3
27. Salicional 16 ′
28. Open flute 8th'
29 viola 8th'
30th Voix céleste 8th'
31. Principal 4 ′
32. Flûte douce 4 ′
33. Nasard 2 2 ⁄ 3  ′
34. Flageolet 2 ′
35. Tierce 1 3 ⁄ 5  ′
36. Pleinjeu V 2 2 ⁄ 3  ′
37. Basson 16 ′
38. Trumpet harm. 8th'
39. Hautbois 8th'
40. Clairon 4 ′
Tremulant
Pedals C – f 1
41. Bourdon 32 ′
42. Principal 16 ′
43. Sub bass 16 ′
44. flute 16 ′
45. Octavbass 8th'
46. flute 8th'
47. Viol 8th'
48. Octave 4 ′
49. Mixture IV 2 2 ⁄ 3  ′
50. trombone 16 ′
51. Trumpet 8th'

See also

literature

  • Guido Kolb: 100 years of St. Peter and Paul. Zurich 1974.
  • Episcopal Ordinariate Chur (ed.): Schematism of the Diocese of Chur. Chur 1980.
  • Henri Truffer: Association of Roman Catholic Churches in the City of Zurich. Zurich 1989.
  • Flurina Pescatore, Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. (Swiss Art Guide, Volume 612/613). Ed. Society for Swiss Art History GSK. Bern 1997, ISBN 3-85782-612-6 .
  • Elias Wetli: Were the Three Kings in a corner? In: Parish Dreikönigen (Ed.): Reminder newspaper for the 50th anniversary. Zurich 2001.
  • Robert Schönbächler: Churches and places of worship in the city of Zurich. New Year's Gazette Industriequartier / Aussersihl, Zurich 2012.
  • City of Zurich, Office for Urban Development (Ed.): Catholic Churches of the City of Zurich. Inventory of Monument Preservation of the City of Zurich. Zurich 2014.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ André Meyer, based on: Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 37
  2. ^ City of Zurich, Office for Urban Development (Ed.): Catholic Churches of the City of Zurich. Inventory of Monument Preservation of the City of Zurich. P. 72.
  3. ↑ Elias Wetli, in: Reminder newspaper for the 50th anniversary.
  4. ^ City of Zurich, Office for Urban Development (Ed.): Catholic Churches of the City of Zurich. Inventory of Monument Preservation of the City of Zurich. P. 72.
  5. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 9
  6. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. Pp. 10-11
  7. ^ City of Zurich, Office for Urban Development (Ed.): Catholic Churches of the City of Zurich. Inventory of Monument Preservation of the City of Zurich. Pp. 72-74.
  8. ^ Rainald Fischer, in: Guido Kolb: 100 years of St. Peter and Paul. P. 195
  9. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 12
  10. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 12
  11. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 12
  12. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 13 and Robert Schönbächler: Churches and places of worship in the city of Zurich. P. 65
  13. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 8
  14. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 9
  15. ^ Henri Truffer: Association of Roman Catholic Parishes of the City of Zurich. P. 169
  16. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 16
  17. ^ Robert Schönbächler: Churches and places of worship in the city of Zurich. P. 65
  18. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 17
  19. ^ Henri Truffer: Association of Roman Catholic Parishes of the City of Zurich. P. 169 and Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 33
  20. ^ Henri Truffer: Association of Roman Catholic Parishes of the City of Zurich. P. 169
  21. ^ City of Zurich, Office for Urban Development (Ed.): Catholic Churches of the City of Zurich. Inventory of Monument Preservation of the City of Zurich. P. 71.
  22. ^ Rainald Fischer, The Catholic Churches in the City of Zurich, in: Guido Kolb, 100 years of St. Peter and Paul. Pp. 190-191
  23. ^ Catholic Church in the Canton of Zurich. Annual report 2017. p. 84.
  24. ^ Rainald Fischer, The Catholic Churches in the City of Zurich, in: Guido Kolb, 100 years of St. Peter and Paul. P. 195
  25. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. Pp. 17-18
  26. ^ Rainald Fischer, The Catholic Churches in the City of Zurich, in: Guido Kolb, 100 years of St. Peter and Paul. P. 195
  27. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 18
  28. ^ Robert Schönbächler: Churches and places of worship in the city of Zurich. P. 65
  29. ^ Rainald Fischer, The Catholic Churches in the City of Zurich, in: Guido Kolb, 100 years of St. Peter and Paul. P. 195
  30. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. Pp. 14-15
  31. ^ Rainald Fischer, The Catholic Churches in the City of Zurich, in: Guido Kolb, 100 years of St. Peter and Paul. P. 195
  32. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 15
  33. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 16
  34. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. Pp. 32-33
  35. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 35
  36. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. Pp. 27-28
  37. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 285 ff.
  38. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. P. 30
  39. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. Pp. 36-37
  40. ^ Flurina Pescatore and Marius Winzeler: The Catholic parish church of Liebfrauen in Zurich. Pp. 35-36
  41. ↑ organ portrait on the website of the company Kuhn Organ Builders AG. Retrieved March 30, 2011.
  42. ↑ For disposition (PDF; 53 kB) on the parish website.

Web links

Commons : Liebfrauenkirche  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 47 ° 22 '46.5 "  N , 8 ° 32' 42.2"  E ; CH1903:  683,553  /  248228