St. Leodegar in the courtyard
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The Hofkirche St. Leodegar is one of the landmarks of the city of Lucerne in Switzerland . The Hofkirche is the main church of the Roman Catholic parish of St. Leodegar im Hof, one of the eight Catholic parishes in Lucerne, and it is also the collegiate church of the collegiate monastery of St. Leodegar. The Hofkirche was partly built from 1633 to 1639 on the foundations of the Romanesque basilica, which burned down in 1633, and is one of the few churches that were built north of the Alps during the Thirty Years War and one of the largest and most valuable churches of the German late Renaissance.
history
At the site of today's court church, South Alemannic nobles donated a small monastery in 735/736, the patron of which was Saint Mauritius . A good twenty years later (760) King Pippin the Younger gave the monks of Lucerne five free people and their descendants as a service, and it was during this time that the Luciaria Monastery was first mentioned in a document. In the year 800 the small monastery went under until it was placed under the rule of Saint Benedict again by Abbot Wichard in the year 850. 1135 one of was from the independent monastery Murbach dependent provost . In the 12th century, Murbach named St. Leodegar as the main patron of the court church. In 1178 the provost's office in the courtyard donated a people priest pledge to the St. Peters chapel and thus an important element in the development of Lucerne was fulfilled. In 1291 the monastery was sold by Murbach to the Habsburgs because of its own difficulties . In 1433 the city of Lucerne, now a member of the Swiss Confederation , regained all rights over the monastery and in 1455 the Benedictine monastery was converted into a world-spiritual canon .
The monastery experienced a heyday during the Counter Reformation when Lucerne was a suburb of the Catholic cantons and the residence of the papal nuncio , who used the court church as his cathedral. In 1874 the parish was founded and the relationship between the canon monastery and the parish was reorganized.
Building history
Nothing can be said about the beginnings of the Hofkirche because no archaeological findings are available. The only documentary evidence is that a church with a vestibule must have existed in the second half of the 9th century. In the second half of the 12th century, a Romanesque complex with two towers was built. Over the years and centuries the church was expanded and lengthened.
On the evening of Easter Sunday, March 27, 1633, a roofer received an order from a canon to shoot jackdaws that had nested on the choir towers. With his shots he set fire to the dry wood of the church and set it on fire. The church burned to the ground and the towers burned out. The church treasure, the relief from the Maria-End-Altar and the Pietà, which can be seen today in the soul altar, could be saved. This fire represented a major disaster for Lucerne and the monastery and the authorities immediately decided to start rebuilding. A Jesuit from Ingolstadt, Jakob Kurrer (1585–1647), was commissioned to rebuild the court church.
The first service took place inside the church at Easter 1638. However, the new court church was only inaugurated after the artistic work inside the church had been completed. During the following centuries, large and small interior and exterior restorations took place. The last time an interior renovation took place in 2000/2001 under the direction of architect Damian Widmer. The interior of the church was cleared of dirt and the entire altar area was redesigned with an altar made of black basalt on a red area, created by Kurt Sigrist . On Palm Sunday, April 8, 2001, the Court Church was inaugurated by Bishop Kurt Koch .
Exterior of the Hofkirche
Towers : The two medieval towers are 69 meters high and have a square footprint with a side length of 9 meters. The gargoyles on the tower edges are created in the shape of dragon heads. A lily cross can be seen above the golden ball on the north tower and a rooster above the wind indicator on the south tower. The Hofkirche has eight bells in the two towers, each weighing between 700 kilograms and 5.25 tons. Another four bells are located in the choir tower of the church.
West facade : The middle section was redesigned after the fire of 1633 without including the towers. Above the archway, the coat of arms is framed by the two saints Leodegar and Mauritius . The sight of the west facade unites three epochs of architecture: Gothic (towers), Renaissance (middle section) and Baroque (gable). The second floor is divided into three parts by Corinthian pilasters. Behind this part is the Michael's Chapel, which is illuminated by the incident light from the two large windows and the beautiful rose window.
Sign : The entrance area is spanned with a cross vault and shows, in addition to Leodegar (with drill) and Mauritius (as a warrior with a flag), four other saints. The two door leaves again point in carved form to the two patrons of the court church (Leodegar and Mauritius).
Facade Hofkirche
Detail from the facade: Leodegar and Mauritius with coats of arms
Entrance door with St. Leodegar (left) and St. Mauritius (right)
Mount of Olives picture on the north tower
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Interior
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Niklaus Geisler (1585–1665) was responsible for the interior work and, with his assistants, shaped the altars, the choir stalls and thus the entire interior of the court church, which appears in a uniform form.
Church interior: The interior of the church shows the typical basilica structure with the large choir and the mighty high altar.
High altar : In its kind, the high altar is reminiscent of the Roman construction of the high baroque . This high altar is a gift from the then nuncio Ranuccio Scotti, who wanted a work based on a Roman image in this church. This altar was made from black Nidwalden marble . The altarpiece, created by Giovanni Lanfranco (1582–1647), shows Jesus in the Mount of Olives and an angel holding the chalice out to him.
Choir grille : This perspective choir grille was created by the Constance art locksmith Johann Reiffel from 1641 to 1643. It is in three parts and finely structured.
Maria-End-Altar : This altar is located in the north aisle and was saved in the fire of 1633. This side altar shows how the dying Mary is seated in bed and surrounded by the apostles. These celebrate the liturgy of death, as was customary when this altar was created in the 16th century. The apostles are depicted with a holy water kettle, candles and a cross.
Soul altar: This side altar shows Jesus' descent from the cross . The altar relief was created around 1640 and Niklaus Geisler had the task of integrating the Pietà , which was saved in the fire of 1633, into this picture. The soul altar shows Mary, the mother of Jesus as she was from John (right), a mourning Mary (left), Joseph of Arimathäa and Nicodemus (both with turban) and Mary Magdalene with the anointing oil.
Choir stalls : The choir stalls of the Hofkirche are a work of wood carving. Niklaus Geisler and his assistants worked on it from 1639 to 1641. Above the choir stalls the scene of the Annunciation is depicted with the Archangel Gabriel (on the south side) and Mary (on the north side). Today the canons of the collegiate monastery of St. Leodegar pray daily lauds and vespers in the choir stalls .
Seating : The old seating dates from 1637–1640 and is one of the oldest planned church seating in Switzerland. The ornaments in these benches take up the shape of the pulpit. On the southern side (the so-called men's side) you can see the former councilors' seats from the Ancien Régime , with which spacious individual seats were created.
New altar area : In 2001 the new altar area was designed with the red pedestal (red anhydrite ) and the cube-shaped celebration altar made of black basalt . Kurt Sigrist from Sarnen won the advertised artist competition .
Choir stalls
New altar area
Maria-End-Altar (left side altar)
Detail from Maria-End-Altar: Early depiction of a reading aid
Soul altar (right side altar)
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Treasury and Lucerne Abbey Treasure
Parallel to the sacristy in front on the south side of the church, there is an equally vaulted room on the north side with two Tuscan columns in the middle. From 1930 to 1933 this was redesigned into a real treasury with a massive safe for the Lucerne monastery treasure. Unique in Switzerland, the Lucerne painter Alfred Schmidiger (1892–1977) painted them entirely in the Art Deco style.
The Lucerne monastery treasure is one of the oldest and most important sacred treasures in Switzerland. Its beginnings go back to the Middle Ages , the magnificent, large lecture cross and a silver missal binding - both foundations of the provost Ulrich von Eschenbach - date from the 12th / 15th centuries. Century. A masterly testimony to medieval goldsmithing is also a chalice from the Burgundy loot of the Confederates, captured in the Battle of Murten in 1476. The majority of the treasure objects, however, come from the 17th and 18th centuries, i.e. from the time after the rebuilding of the St. Leodegar in the courtyard, caused by the fire of 1633. In addition to numerous baroque chalices , elaborately crafted reliquaries and silk-embroidered liturgical vestments , there are five, almost life-size, silver reliquary busts to be mentioned here (Madonna, Johann Georg Krauer the Elder, Lucerne 1658; St. Josef , Franz Ludwig Hartnamm, Lucerne 1685; St. Franz Xaver , Joseph Gassmann, Lucerne 1747; St. Leodegar and St. Nepomuk , both Joseph Ignaz Saller , Augsburg 1754/55). Iconographically remarkable is a kneeling silver figure of St. Niklaus von Flüe by Zug goldsmith Fidel Brandenberg from 1772, which was saved from being melted down in 1798 (for reparations to France). A reverse glass painting by Anna Maria Barbara Abesch from 1741 with the motif “God's advice on the Incarnation” is extremely rare , with the Trinity depicted as three persons and the Holy Spirit as a woman.
The Lucerne Stiftsschatz is a member of the Association of Swiss Museums . It can only be visited with a guide.
Our Lady, silver bust, Lucerne 1658
St. Leodegar, silver bust, Augsburg 1754/55
AMB Abesch, God's advice, reverse glass painting 1741
Organs
There are three larger organs in the court church .
Big court organ
The so-called Great Court Organ is located above the west entrance on the gallery. It goes back to an instrument that was built between 1640 and 1648 by the organ builder Johann Geisler from Salzburg. The case was created by Niklaus Geisler in 1648 and is original. This organ had 48 registers (2,826 pipes ) on two manual works and a pedal . In the course of an enlargement of the gallery in 1820, the Rückpositiv was removed. Between 1858 and 1862 the organ was expanded by the organ builder Friedrich Haas to 70 registers with four manuals and pedal. The instrument was also equipped with a remote control, which was housed in the attic of the church.
In the years 1972 to 1977 the organ was rebuilt, restored and expanded by the organ building company Kuhn . The Rückpositiv was reconstructed. In the historical prospectus of the organ there is a pipe from 1648, which is the longest and heaviest organ pipe in the world from this time: It measures 10.7 m and weighs 383 kg. Some stops have been removed and are now (2015) re-integrated into the organ ensemble as an echo work on the northern gallery (see below). In 2001, three clear reed stops, which Haas had built in 1862, were reinstalled in the sound channel of the Fernwerk, the so-called Tonhalle . These are romantic timbres that are similar to the sounds of a harmonium or an accordion.
The Fernwerk has a special, worldwide unique effect register, a so-called rain machine . It is a wooden drum that is rotated in a circle driven by an organ wind. The drum is lined with sheet metal. There are metal balls in the drum that hit the metal wall of the drum via so-called baffles. The rain machine, together with the lower pedal registers, makes it possible to create “sound avalanches” right through to “organ thunderstorms”.
The slider chests -instrument today 84 Register (5,949 pipes) on five plants and Manual pedal; the registers of the remote work (and the echo work, see below) are on electro-pneumatic cone chests. Without the remote control, the main organ weighs around 30 tons. Most of the registers are historical holdings from 1648 (19 registers) and 1862 (36 registers). The key actions of the main organ are mechanical, the stop actions of the main organ are electric. The game and register actions of the remote control and the coupling are electrical.
The register switches are located on the historical console as follows: To the left of the manuals is the registration of the pedal, main work (I), three reed registers of the remote control (V) as well as the manual and pedal couplings. To the right of the manuals is the registry of Rückpositiv (I), Oberwerk (III), Récit (IV) and other remote works (V). Above the V. Manual (Fernwerk) are the rocker registers of the Echowerk and the coupling to the main organ.
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Couple:
- Normal coupling: I / II, III / I, III / II, IV / II, IV / III, V / III, I / P, II / P, III / P, IV / P, V / P
- Echo coupling: EW / I, EW / II, EW / III, EW / IV, EW / V, EW / P
- annotation
- (G) = pipe material wholly or partly from Johann Geisler (1650)
- (H) = pipe material wholly or partly by Friedrich Haas (1862, 1887 or 1892)
- (*) = Pipe material from before 1862
- (h) = from 1862 (Friedrich Haas)
Echowerk
In order to bring the stylistically diverse instrument back to perfection, original pipe stocks (1651/1862) - which were removed during the major renovation of the court organ (1972–1977) - were restored by the Orgelbau Kuhn AG company and returned to the “organ landscape”. The association "Friends of the Hoforgeln" has committed itself to financially secure the Echowerk for the next 20 years.
The Lucerne architect Andy Raeber in collaboration with the organ builder Claude Lardon refers with his design for the case to musical aspects that architecturally express the music of those times, 1651, 1862 and 2015.
The instrument can be played from the main organ. The registers are divided into two sections and a pedal.
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- Remarks:
- (H) Pipe material wholly or partly old from 1862 (Friedrich Haas)
- (G) Pipe material completely or partially old from 1898, 1919 (Friedrich Goll)
Choir organ (so-called whale organ)
The choir organ was built between 1842 and 1844 by the organ builder Thomas Sylvester Walpen (1802-1857), the last offspring of a well-known organ builder dynasty from the Valais. It is also known as the whale organ after its builder . The instrument has 27 registers (1137 pewter and wooden pipes) on two manuals and a pedal.
In 1941 the hitherto mechanical action was replaced by pneumatic action. In the 1980s the whale organ had to be shut down due to a defect. In 2003 the instrument, which had largely been preserved in its original substance, was rescued and restored on the initiative of the "Whale Organ Committee".
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- Coupling: II / I, I / P
Bells
A total of 8 bells hang in the two towers of the court church , 4 bells each in a tower. The six largest bells date from 1633 and are richly decorated with decorations and reliefs of saints. They form one of the oldest and heaviest uniform bell ensembles in the country. The two smallest bells are much older, but were added later to ring from other Lucerne towers.
| No. |
Surname |
Casting year |
Caster |
Weight (kg, approx.) |
Nominal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Theodul bell | 1633 | Simon Michelin, Nicolaus Subtil, Caspar Delson, Lorraine |
5150 | g 0 |
| 2 | Apostle bell | 3850 | a 0 | ||
| 3 | Weather bell | 2800 | h 0 | ||
| 4th | Festival bell | 2250 | c 1 | ||
| 5 | Hoop bell | 1550 | cis 1 | ||
| 6th | Prayer bell | 1050 | dis 1 | ||
| 7th | Museg bell | 1381 | 1000 | f 1 | |
| 8th | Chapel bell | 14th century | 700 | g 1 |
Surroundings
Rothenburgerhaus : It should date from around 1500. It is considered to be the oldest still existing urban wooden house in Switzerland. It served as a chaplain. Also Diebold Schilling lived in this house and wrote and illustrated there his famous chronicle. The last time the Rothenburgerhaus was renovated in 1968–1975 was saved from deterioration.
Grave halls : The court church is surrounded by the grave halls. These graves not only make it possible to study cemetery art and heraldry , but also give an insight into the history of the city of Lucerne, because it is here that influential Lucerne families in particular were buried. Hans Urs Cardinal von Balthasar is buried in the court cemetery. His grave is in the corner of the west and north sides of the burial halls. The cemetery was expanded in April 2004 to include an urn field (north of the Hofkirche).
Canons' houses : The court church is also surrounded by the so-called canon houses, some of which are 17th century houses (such as the “Peyersche Hof”, 1695). The canons live in these houses and the provost (head of the canons) is usually at home in the provost house.
Rothenburgerhaus
Burial halls, northern part
Provost office of the collegiate monastery St. Leodegar
Peyerscher Chorhof from 1695
Special occasions
On Thursday ten days before Pentecost, the church celebrates the feast of Ascension (Ascension Day) . On this day, during the 11 o'clock service in the Hofkirche, a statue of Christ is raised with a special mechanism (“hamster wheel”). This custom originated in the baroque period .
On Thursday ten days after Pentecost, the cath. Church the feast of Corpus Christi . On this day, the two parishes of St. Maria zu Franziskanern and St. Leodegar meet in the courtyard at 9 a.m. for the common Eucharist on Franziskanerplatz. Then the faithful make a pilgrimage in a procession from the Franciscan church to the court church. The final blessing will be donated there. The procession is accompanied by First Communion children, Swiss Guards , "Lord God cannon", knights from the Holy Sepulcher and various foreign-language missions.
Image of Christ, which is raised
Winding mechanism in the attic for the image of Christ («hamster wheel»)
Corpus Christi procession in the old town of Lucerne
Corpus Christi: final blessing on the steps of the court church
On the first Sunday in December of the year, the Lucerne “Hofsamichlaus” moves out of the Hofkirche. Surrounded by the trumpet sounds of his heralds, “Samichlaus” gives a short address to the numerous listeners. Then he goes on his way to visit the many children from the parish area, regardless of their denomination, to praise them, to warn them, to give them gifts and to listen to the verses. The "dwarfs", acolytes, servants and " Schmutzli " accompany him on his tour . This custom has existed at least since 1908, as shown by photos and newspaper clippings.
More pictures of the Hofkirche and surroundings
Saint Beat and Dragon above the main portal
Sign north side
Sign south side
Coat of arms of the «Hofgeissen», who pushed ahead with the renovation of the Walpen organ
Baptismal font of the court church
Christmas crib (set up from December 24th to Epiphany)
Marienbrunnen near Hofkirche (connected to the old fountain network of the city of Lucerne, drinking water)
Grave halls: epitaph of the knight and bailiff Bernhard Fleckenstein, dated 1659 (near the rectory)
Grave halls: epitaph for Schultheiss Rudolf Mohr, died 1701 (north side of the grave halls)
Grave halls : epitaph for Jost Bernhard Hartmann, died 1752 (north of the Zinggentor)
literature
- Lothar Emmanuel Kaiser: St. Leodegar in the courtyard. Lindenberg, Luzern 2003, ISBN 3-89870-132-8 .
- Hofkirche Luzern. In: Archeology, Monument Preservation and History. Historical Society Lucerne, yearbook 20/2002, pp. 53–108.
- Court church in Lucerne. In: Karl-Heinz Göttert, Eckhard Isenberg: Organ Guide Europe. Kassel u. a. 2000, ISBN 3-7618-1475-5 , pp. 204ff.
- Jakob Friedrich: The choir organ in the Hofkirche Luzern. Männedorf 2006, DNB 984003770 .
- Fabrizio Brentini: Lucerne. Abbey district in the courtyard. (= Swiss Art Guide. No. 522). Ed. Society for Swiss Art History GSK. Bern 1992, ISBN 3-85782-522-7 .
- Dora F. Rittmeyer: From the church treasure of the Church of St. Leodegar in the courtyard of Lucerne. In: History of the Lucerne silver and goldsmith's art from the beginning to the present. Lucerne 1941, pp. 48-134.
- Bernhard Fleischlin, Franz Alfred Herzog: The court church in Lucerne. Lucerne 1944.
Web links
- Parish of St. Leodegar in the courtyard, Lucerne
- The Lucerne monastery treasure in the monastery and parish church of St. Leodegar in the courtyard
- Report on the SRF Tagesschau, April 2, 2018: Church treasures of national importance
- Lucerne Court Organ
Individual evidence
- ↑ Urs-Beat Frei: A hidden gem: the treasury in the Lucerne court church. In: Jahrbuch Architektur 17/18 , Lucerne School of Technology and Architecture, Lucerne 2018, o. P.
- ^ Bernhard Fleischlin, Franz Alfred Herzog: The Court Church in Lucerne. , Lucerne 1944, p. 110.
- ^ Dora F. Rittmeyer: From the church treasure of the Church of St. Leodegar in the courtyard of Lucerne. In: History of the Lucerne Silver and Goldsmith's Art from the Beginnings to the Present , Lucerne 1941, pp. 57–62.
- ^ Georges Klausner: Three Zuger Brother Klausen portraits. In: Zuger Neujahrsblatt , Zug 1950, pp. 45–52.
- ↑ Doris Strahm: A Trinity of a slightly different kind. In: Der Sonntag , No. 35/2018, p. 12.
- ↑ The extravagant baroque layout was mentioned in a brochure The Organ and the Megalomania ; see. Göttert, Isenberg: Organ Guide Europe , p. 204.
- ↑ Information on the main organ of the Hofkirche ; see. also the comprehensive organ portrait on the website of Orgelbau Kuhn AG, accessed on January 2, 2016.
- ↑ Disposition on the page about the court organ
- ↑ The installation of the Echowerk can be seen visually in the work gallery .
- ^ Association of Friends of the Court Organs
- ↑ Disposition of the Echowerk on the website of Orgelbau Kuhn. See also the information on the court organ page
- ↑ Walpen organ (PDF; 109 kB) on hoforgel-luzern.ch; see. also the information sheet on the side of the court organ
- ↑ Loris Mainardi: From the history of the Lucerne court church bell. In: Campanæ Helveticæ No. 22 (2018), pp. 3–17.
- ↑ Glocken der Heimat - Luzern, Stiftskirche St. Leodegar im Hof , information page and sound recording on the SRF website , accessed on August 8, 2019
- ↑ Lucerne, St. Leodegar and Mauritius in the courtyard, called Hofkirche, Sunday bells on youtube.com
- ↑ Herrgottskannoniere A special custom in Lucerne.
- ↑ Information on the Hofsamichlaus.ch website
Coordinates: 47 ° 3 '20.4 " N , 8 ° 18' 50.6" E ; CH1903: six hundred sixty-six thousand five hundred eleven / 211996