Loreto Chapel (Leibstadt)
The Loreto Chapel in the Bernau district of Leibstadt in the canton of Aargau is a typologically and historically interesting replica of the Casa santa (Holy House) in the Italian pilgrimage site of Loreto from 1672. Loreto chapels can be found in many European countries.
Since 13 December 1963, the chapel following a decision of the Aargau governing council under monument protection .
Furnishing
The Bernauer Loreto Chapel consists of two small chapel rooms under one roof. The actual Loreto Chapel, about 36 m² in size (standard dimensions: length 9.25 m, width 4.1 m and height 5 m) is located in the east. It was consecrated on October 29, 1676 by the exiled Basel auxiliary bishop and titular bishop of Chrysopolis, Kaspar Schnorf, to Mary , the Mother of God . The vestibule connected by a barred passage is adjacent to the west. It was used as the chapel of Bernau Castle, which was sold in 1846 . The high baroque furnishings in the cartilage of the two chapel rooms are largely from the construction period and are enriched by high-quality baroque epitaphs and portraits of the members of the Roll von Bernau family from the Uri line buried in the crypt. The high altar with the miraculous image is separated from the choir by a barrier with a wooden lattice and angels sitting on it. The image of grace was bequeathed by the von Roll family to the church in the opposite German Dogern in the 18th century and was therefore replaced by a smaller version during the last renovation. The walls of the chapel and the barrel vault were painted with the brick pattern typical of Loreto chapels and the starry sky. The former entrance on the north wall is offset to the south. Today it serves as a niche on the inside for a group of sculptures with Mary, Jesus and Joseph. In addition to the angel window above the altar, which is unique in Loreto chapels, two lateral windows at altar height were built in later. A simple, open, subdivided sacrament niche was built during the construction period.
A passage with a heavy lattice door leads into the actual castle chapel. It also contains two side altars from the period of construction in the cartilage style. An empty altar niche contains a modern brass plaque with the family tree of the von Roll family. Two rectangular windows illuminate the room. A separate entrance to the west towards the castle also comes from a later period. In both rooms there are several Baroque epitaphs of the von Roll von Bernau family as well as the portraits of the last lord of the castle, Karl Josef Antonius Sylverius Aloysius von Roll zu Bernau and his wife.
Local fama
The local fama claims that the childless builder of Bernau Castle, Franz Ludwig von Roll (1622–1695), had the chapel built in the hope of a regular owner. After the abundant blessings of children began, he vowed to build a church when it ended. A look at the family tree with several births before 1672 refutes the fama.
Classification of contemporary and art history
The Loreto Chapel in Bernau is traditionally regarded as the combined castle chapel and burial place of the von Roll family. However, these functions do not necessarily result from the construction method and the location east of the actual castle area. A function as a pilgrimage church as in the regional Loreto chapels on the Achenberg or in Stühlingen is not documented. The chapel is to the east of the castle on the other side of the moat. The main entrance, walled up during the construction period, is on the Rhine side, it was moved to the side facing the castle in the middle of the 18th century and given the alliance coat of arms of those of Bernau and Reinach. The use of the chapel as a family burial place did not begin until 1686. The first member to be buried in the chapel was the grandchild Katharina der Maria Agnes, who was born on July 13, 1686 and died on October 18, 1686.
The founding year 1672 at the beginning of which the Dutch War began appears of great importance . Since in 1415 the keep of Bernau Castle marked the border between Aargau, annexed by the Swiss Confederation, and the Austrian Fricktal, the castle, which was occupied in 1646, was located exactly on the border line and was therefore also under the protection of the Swiss Confederation. Franz Ludwig von Roll himself was in the service of the emperor and on January 24, 1690 was elevated to the status of imperial baron with the title "von Bernau". He was married to Maria Agnes von Schönau-Oeschgen, the daughter of the Austrian governor of the forest cities Marx Jakob von Schönau-Oeschgen. Since 1634, the residents of the town of Waldshut on the right bank of the Rhine fled to a hut town on the left bank of the Rhine near Full behind the Goldenes Kreuz inn on federal territory.
The Loreto Chapel, which was also consecrated to the town patroness of Waldshut, Maria, should have facilitated the spiritual and pastoral care of the refugees. Maria Agnes von Schönau, whose intellectual wealth was scoffed at by the Florentine geographer Giovanni Battista Nicolosi in 1647, was a pious lady who was devoted to the church and who in 1654 donated the largest amount of her own fortune to the Waldshut Capuchin monastery. The initiative to build chapels can therefore be ascribed to their ties to the right bank of the Rhine and an impending invasion of the French.
An interesting reference results from the comparison of the architectural details of the castle chapel with the plans drawn up by Probus Heine for the Capuchin monastery in Waldshut . The proportions, the roof structure, the door and recess frames as well as the rectangular windows are so closely based on the idiosyncratic Capuchin architecture that the planning can be ascribed to a Fabricíarius of the Capuchins, if not Probus Heine himself. Commissioned drafts by Kapuzinerfabriciarii for the donors of their monasteries were common practice in the 17th century. The altars are similar in style and structure to the interior of the Waldshut Gottesackerkapelle. They should therefore be attributed to the supraregional successful Waldshut altar builder Johann Christoph Feinlein and his handicraft businesses.
Loreto Chapel Leibstadt, window with plastered lower facet
Probus Heine window design
Loreto Chapel Leibstadt, sacrament niche
Probus Heine draft window reveal
Loreto Chapel Leibstadt, west facade
Probus Heine draft for a choir closure
Later use
At the end of the 18th century, the last baron, Karl Josef Antonius Sylverius Aloisius von Roll zu Bernau, failed to get started in industrial clothing and haberdashery manufacture. As part of the bankruptcy proceedings, Bernau Castle and the chapel were auctioned off. The castle, which was converted into apartments, burned to the ground in 1847. The Leibstadt community was able to acquire the chapel and the surrounding land and in 1859 set up a cemetery on the site.
Restorations
The art historical value of the chapel was only recognized in the 1950s. A first renovation with modern materials took place in 1955/56. A renewed restoration appropriate to the material took place in 1987/88 with funds from the Leibstadt community and the “Pro Leibstadt” foundation.
Web links
- Loreto Chapel Leibstadt in Horizonte Aargau
- Loreto Chapel Leibstadt. Flyer of the Roman Catholic Church in Aargau
- Loreto Chapel (Leibstadt) in the inventory of the canton of Aargau
Footnotes
- ↑ See section History on the online site of the Leibstadt community [1]
- ^ Robert Hilgers (ed.): Giovan Battista Nicolosi: Letter of January 29, 1646, in: Die Deutschlandreise, (Schäuble), Rheinfelden, 1977.
- ↑ Cf. Romualdus Stockacensis: Monasterium Waldishuttanum. In: Historia provinciae anterioris Austriae fratrum minorum capucinorum. Andreas Stadler, Kempten 1747, p. 236f.
- ↑ See Walther Hümmerich: Ordensbaumeister und Profanbauten, in: Kapuzinerarchitektur in der Rhenish Order Provinces. Self-published by the Society for Middle Rhine Church History, Mainz 1987, p. 99.