Parish Church of St. Niklaus VS

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Church of St. Niklaus, which was consecrated in 1965. On the left the medieval church tower, which at 36.80 meters is the largest onion dome in Upper Valais. At the top right the striking Gabelhorn ( 3136  m above sea level )
St. Niklaus Dorf seen from the south with church and steeple. In the background from the left Embd , Törbel and the Bernese Alps

The parish church of St. Nicholas is Nicholas of Myra consecrated Roman Catholic church building in St. Niklaus in the Swiss canton of Valais . Today's church, which was inaugurated on July 18, 1965, with the medieval onion dome is located at the entrance to the old core of St. Niklaus Dorf, coming from the district capital Visp . Nikolaus von Myra gave both the church and the parish of St. Niklaus his name, the valley the name Nikolaital and the village, the political community and the civic community the name St. Niklaus. Nikolaus von Myra is both the patron saint of today's parish of St. Niklaus and the Nikolaital (also called Mattertal). The parish of St. Niklaus belongs to the Visp deanery of the diocese of Sion .

Mountain guide monument

The mountain guide memorial with a total of seven bronze plaques in honor of the British mountaineers of the Ladies' Alpine Club , the British mountaineers of the Alpine Club and the mountain guides of the St. Niklaus community . The larger stone is 3.70 meters high.

The mountain guide monument in honor of the British mountaineers of the Ladies' Alpine Club , the British mountaineers of the Alpine Club and the mountain guides of the parish of St. Niklaus , which is 3.70 meters high, has stood on the church square of St. Niklaus Church since 1995 .

Largest Nicholas figure in the world

Greatest Nicholas in the world. The church tower of St. Niklaus VS is dressed as St. Nicholas during the Christmas season .

The steeple of the parish church of St. Niklaus VS received an entry in the Guinness Book of Records in 2000 . During the Christmas season of 1998, the entire church tower, which measures 36.80 meters in height, was dressed as St. Nicholas under the slogan the tallest St. Nicholas in the deepest valley of Switzerland , with the onion cap serving as the head.

History: The large parish of St. Niklaus and its daughter parishes

Parish archive St. Niklaus, inventory, page 12 Provision H. (various documents), the oldest is from 1455. August 15, 1886.

In St. Niklaus there is neither a historical municipality nor a citizenship archive. The oldest surviving documents in the parish archive date from 1455 and 1506. And although the existence of the parish of St. Niklaus can only be documented in 1268 and its chaplaincy in 1329, the following find shows that the Christian religion in Valais already existed the decree Cunctos Populos (to all peoples) of the Roman Emperor Theodosius I was officially recognized:

  • In 377 AD, the Roman prefect Pontius Asclepiodotus had an inscription plaque affixed to a public building in Sitten , bearing the Christ monogram between Alpha and Omega , the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet . This is the first Christian inscription in what is now Switzerland.
  • In addition, the latest excavations in Glis have shown that the oldest baptismal font north of the Alps was found under the foundations of today's church, which is dated back to 615.

With the increasing collapse of the Roman Empire in the second half of the 4th and the first half of the 5th century, the Bishop of Sitten and the pastor of St. Niklaus soon assumed a position that had previously been intact - as a central power and empire structure - Had held members of the municipal and state administration. Jurisprudence, maintenance of public buildings and guaranteeing military protection were now part of the bishop's remit. Up to the High Middle Ages the development of an actual parish system took place, with the large parish, which goes back to the late Roman Pagus division, characterizing church life in the south . What the Bishop of Sitten was to the Valais, the pastor of St. Niklaus was to the Nikolaital .

The first known, still preserved document that speaks about the parish of St. Niklaus is dated May 12, 1268 in Raron . This document in Raron shows that the parish included the entire valley of Kipfen ( 897  m above sea level ) up to the Theodulpass ( 3295  m above sea level ).

Zermatt , Täsch , Randa and Herbriggen are all daughter parishes of St. Niklaus. The parish of Zermatt is mentioned in a document dated April 25, 1285. A village chapel was built around 1290. However, until July 13, 1927, Zermatt retained a certain dependence on St. Niklaus. Täsch broke away from St. Niklaus in 1423. Randa was raised to its own parish in 1730.

The political community of St. Niklaus is now divided into two parishes, namely the parish of St. Niklaus and Herbriggen. Herbriggen broke away from the parish of St. Niklaus in 1933, after the parish church of Mariae was built in Herbriggen. Due to a shortage of priests, the pastor of St. Niklaus also looks after the parish of Herbriggen ( parish association ).

Pastor from and in St. Niklaus

The St. Niklaus poet and theater director Johann Peter Imboden (1686–1764)

In 1227 and 1228 Walter de Chouson and de (von) St. Niklaus are mentioned as canon and in 1239 as deacon . He later became Vice Chancellor of the Chapter , Cantor and Chancellor . In 1272 Pastor Johannes von St. Niklaus or von Chouson is named. From 1257 to 1273 he was pastor in his home parish of St. Niklaus. In 1273 he became court chaplain to the newly elected Bishop Heinrich II of Raron . From 1465 to 1473 Nikolaus Schiner (around 1437–1510) was pastor in St. Niklaus, who became Bishop of Sitten in 1496 and abdicated after three years in favor of his nephew Cardinal Matthäus Schiner .

Josef Imboden (1835–1906) von St. Niklaus studied in Brig , Milan and Sitten . He became a priest, worked in the parish and Valais colony of San Jerónimo Norte in Argentina from 1892 to 1904 and then returned home.

Karl Burgener (1918–1994) was pastor in St. Niklaus from 1965 to 1993 and composed 126 pages of his own music.

Poet and theater director

Johann Peter Imboden was born in St. Niklaus in 1686. He was the son of Anna von Schallen and Meiers Jakob Imboden. The respected bailiff Lukas von Schallen von St. Niklaus presented himself a. a. also available as a director and theater poet . The two younger brothers of Johann Peter Imboden, Jakob Imboden and Josef Imboden were also Meier. Political careers extended into the Swiss Confederation . Johnann Peter completed his theology studies in Vienna , the then European cultural center.

Oldest local family book in the world, family statistics of the parish of St. Niklaus, Swiss canton Valais, edition 1861, 134 pages.

At the age of 43 he became a chaplain in his home parish of St. Niklaus in 1729. From 1730 until his death in 1764 he was pastor in St. Niklaus. During his pastoral care in his home parish, a new stately parsonage was built in St. Niklaus in 1735, which was renovated in 1967 and is still inhabited today by the pastor of St. Niklaus. In 1736 Johnann Peter started a new baptismal register . This is the fourth surviving baptismal register of the parish of St. Niklaus, which was used until 1849 and was then replaced by the fifth. A portrait of Pastor Johann Peter Imboden can be found in the parish church of St. Niklaus. This is the oldest surviving portrait of a pastor in the parish of St. Niklaus. It dates from 1738. At the top left of the picture it says “ETAT. SVE.SI: »and below it« ANNO 1738 ». Above these characters there is a chalice that stands on an altar, to the left and right of the chalice there is a star. The altar, the chalice and the two stars are encircled by a decorative pattern.

Johann Peter Imboden wrote, among other things, several popular plays , including tragedies , which he performed in St. Niklaus. Canon Dr. Albert Carlen as an important poetical creation, he writes: Even if Johann Peter Imboden had only written the piece " Genovefa ", he would have to be called a poet and certainly not the least. Some of the original writings are still in the parish archive of St. Niklaus.

The Brunegghorn , which was first climbed in 1853 by the St. Niklaus priest and chaplain

First to climb the Brunegghorn

On July 13, 1853, the St. Niklaus Pastor Josef Tantignoni (? –1896) and the St. Niklaus Chaplain Franz Xaver Tantignoni (1821–1897) carried out the first ascent of the Brunegghorn . Josef Tantignoni was born in St. Niklaus, was pastor in his home parish from 1849 to 1856 and died in 1896. Franz Xaver Tantignoni, who was a cousin of Josef Tantignoni, was also born in St. Niklaus in 1821, was from 1848 to 1854, 1863 until 1875 and 1886 to 1889 chaplain in St. Niklaus and died in 1897 in his home parish.

Author of the oldest printed local family book in the world

Peter Josef Ruppen (1815-1896), who was pastor in St. Niklaus from 1856 to 1862, published the family statistics of the laudable parish of St. Niklaus in 1861 , which is the oldest known printed family register in the world, like the German Central Office for Genealogy in Leipzig knows how to report. In the painting in the church of St. Niklaus, Pastor Ruppen holds an edition from 1857 in his hands.

The sacred buildings

Former baroque building
The rectory built in 1735.

The first glance of the visitor, who comes from Visp as well as from Zermatt, falls on the largest onion dome in Upper Valais, which is 36.80 meters high. The landmark of St. Niklaus was built in the time of the great Kaspar Stockalper , probably earlier, as it is a Romanesque square tower. A first look reveals the relationship between the three towers of the baroque building of the Stockalper Castle in Brig and the onion dome of St. Niklaus. In addition, the second wife of Kaspar Stockalper was Cäcilia von Riedmatten. The Riedmatten family has its roots in the hamlet of Riedmatten in what is now St. Niklaus. In 1726 the striking onion dome of St. Niklaus was completed again. In 1750 the top part of the tower and in 1964/1965 the entire tower was restored.

The church in St. Niklaus Dorf was the first church in the Nikolaital. In 1272 a church is documented that is consecrated to Nicholas as the church patron. As Peter Josef Ruppen, who was the pastor of St. Niklaus from 1856 to 1862, reports, the church always stood in the same place. On July 18, 1965, today's church was consecrated by Bishop François-Nestor Adam . The old and large demolished baroque building were u. a. the altars were taken over in the new building. In the National Museum in Zurich there is an altarpiece with the inscription "Death of Maria, from St. Niklaus, Wallis, 1475".

The current rectory was built in 1735 and renovated in 1967.

Medieval church tower of St. Niklaus Dorf seen from the north, which is the largest onion dome in Upper Valais. On the right the new church, which was consecrated in 1965.
The medieval church tower of the parish church St. Niklaus seen from the south side. On the right the sacristy which connects the church tower with the actual church building.

The parish of St. Niklaus and the parishes of St. Niklaus and Herbriggen have real gems in their chapels:

Chapel boys, which was built in 1762. During the interior renovation work in 1954 and the exterior renovation work in 1958, animal bones were found that suggest a Mesolithic settlement. In the background the Jungbach .
Ried chapel with Ried glacier in the background, from the right Dürrenhorn , Hohberghorn , Stecknadelhorn and Nadelhorn
chapel Location construction New building last work (as of 2015) Consecration Interior design Outside
Ried / Gasenried In the center of Gasenried at 1661.6  m above sea level. M. Two wooden tablets with a Latin inscription from 1467 or 1476 come from the chapel. Turn of the 17th to the 18th century 1976–1981 total renovation, 1987 installation of a gallery Theodule Church architecture with the Way of the Cross and reverse glass painting
Wide mats Two kilometers south of Herbriggen ( 1260  m ) on the western edge of the hamlet Breitmatten at 1283.2  m above sea level. M. March 30, 1635 Foundation of the governor Simon Truffer in favor of the chapel built by him in Breitmatten near St. Niklaus. 1988–1989 total renovation Simon and Jude Thaddeus Simon Petrus , Simon Zelotes and Judas Thaddäus are depicted on the small altar in the rural baroque style
Convertible beds 750 meters southeast of Gasenried ( 1659  m ) at an altitude of 1687  m above sea level. M. 1672 1984–1985 total renovation, whereby the chapel also received a small tower with a bell Maria Baroque Marien Altar and Way of the Cross in reverse glass painting from the 18th century On June 15, 2014 the Kapellenweg was inaugurated with a mass. The «Wasserleita» Nieschwasser stretches from the Riedbach out of the valley in a northerly direction, past the Schalbett chapel, along the current course of the road to Gasenried .
Matt sand Two kilometers north of Herbriggen ( 1260  m ) and 3.5 kilometers south of St. Niklaus Dorf ( 1120  m ) on the north-western border of the Mattsand settlement at 1229.5  m above sea level. M. ( St. Niklaus Dorf - Schwiedernen - Mattsand ) 1748 1986–1987 total renovation Margaretha Régence Altar with titular saint
Rittinen North below Gasenried ( 1659  m ) in the west of the hamlet of Rittinen at 1455  m above sea level. M. 1759 1979–1982 total renovation Maria Rococo altar with the Assumption of Mary, a picture of the Last Judgment , created in 1816 by Franz Josef Loacker, and the old way of the cross
Boys On the southern border of the Junge settlement at 1940  m above sea level. M. 1762 1982–1983 total renovation Maria In addition to Mary and Jesus , the altar also shows Nicholas of Myra and Theodul The rosary chapels along the Jungeweg from St. Niklaus Dorf to Alp Jungs go back to 1735.
Herbriggen In the center of Herbriggen at 1264.5  m above sea level. M. 1800 Reconstruction in 1850, the present church had to give way in 1933 Maria
Snappy 2.5 kilometers south of St. Niklaus Dorf ( 1120  m ) on the right side of the Vispa in the east of the hamlet of Biffig at 1264.4  m above sea level. M. 1951 Maria Baroque Notably in the hamlet Biffig the standing outside the chapel crossroads with the Passion of the 18th century.
Schwiedernen Two kilometers south of St. Niklaus Dorf ( 1120  m ) on the left side of the Vispa at the foot of the Wänguberg ( 2219  m ) or from Walkerschmatt ( 2139  m ) in the middle of the hamlet of Schwiedernen at 1164.4  m above sea level. M. ( St. Niklaus Dorf - Schwiedernen ) 1662 1953 James Baroque The Topaliweg leads from the Schwiedernen chapel ( 1164.4  m above sea level ) to an altitude of 2674  m above sea level. M. to the Topali hut .
Saint Nicholas Southwest of St. Niklaus Dorf in the hamlet of Birchmatten, which has almost grown together with St Niklaus Dorf, in the senior citizens' and nursing home at 1117  m above sea level. M. ( St. Niklaus Dorf - Birchmatten ) 1991 2008 enlargement Nicholas

See also

literature

  • Christian Imboden: Mountains: job, calling, fate . Rotten Verlag , Visp 2013, ISBN 3-907624-48-3 .
  • Karl Burgener: Parish and Church of St. Niklaus . St. Niklaus 1976.

Web links

Commons : Parish Church St. Niklaus VS  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Christian Imboden, Berge: Beruf, Berufung, Schicksal , Rotten Verlag, Visp, 2013, pages 10 and 11
  2. ↑ a b Peter Josef Ruppen, family statistics , 1861, page 119
  3. ^ Karl Burgener, Parish and Church , 1976, pages 19 ff.
  4. ↑ Guinness Book of Records, Millennium Edition, 2000, p. 232
  5. ↑ Ludwig Imesch, Das Wallis , page 11
  6. ^ Andres Furger, Switzerland between antiquity and the Middle Ages , 1996, page 64
  7. ↑ Beatrix Mesmer, History of Switzerland and the Swiss , 1986, page 126
  8. ^ Karl Burgener, Parish and Church , 1976, page 20
  9. ↑ a b J. Ruppen and V. Summermatter, Family Statistics , 1975, page 456
  10. ↑ Urban Fink, Hervé de Weck and Christian Schweizer (eds.): Shepherd's staff and halberd . Theological Publishing House Zurich, 2006, page 58
  11. ^ Karl Burgener (1918-1994), pastor of St. Niklaus from 1965 to 1993, composer, writer, songwriter, choirmaster and conductor
  12. ^ Albert Carlen: Theater history of the German Wallis. Rotten Verlag, Visp 1982, page 45
  13. ^ Karl Burgener: Parish and Church of St. Niklaus. Self-published, St. Niklaus 1976, pages 61 f.
  14. ^ Albert Carlen: Theater history of the German Wallis. Rotten Verlag, Visp 1982, page 70
  15. ↑ Christian Imboden: Mountains: Profession, Vocation, Fate. Rotten Verlag, Visp 2013, pages 50 and 108
  16. ↑ Christian Imboden, Berge: Beruf, Berufung, Schicksal , Rotten Verlag, Visp, 2013, pages 32 and 38
  17. ^ P. Henry de Riedmatten: A St. Niklaus family: the Riedmatten , BWG Volume XIII, pages 531-561
  18. ^ Christian Imboden, Berge: Beruf, Berufung, Schicksal , Rotten Verlag, Visp, 2013, page 10
  19. ↑ Peter Josef Ruppen, family statistics, 1861, pages 127 f.
  20. ^ Karl Burgener, Parish and Church of St. Niklaus , self-published, St. Niklaus 1976, page 27
  21. ↑ Hans Anton von Roten: The governors of Wallis 1682-1699 , 1969/1970 , page 50

Coordinates: 46 ° 10 '39.9 "  N , 7 ° 48' 11"  E ; CH1903:  six hundred twenty-eight thousand one hundred and forty  /  114096