St. Markus (Chemnitz)

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St. Mark's Church, landmark of the Sonnenberg

The Protestant St. Mark's Church on the Sonnenberg , Körnerplatz , was built from 1893 to 1895 according to designs by the Berlin architects Abesser and Kröger in the style of north German brick Gothic . The double-helm tower, visible from afar, is striking. The colored glazing is still in the original. The organ at that time came from the organ builder Jehmlich from Dresden. The original painting on the walls is only partially preserved. The church has 1350 seats.

history

The strong population growth of the city of Chemnitz made a further division of the Johannis parish necessary, from which two new parishes had already been parish off. In this context, the Johannisgemeinde acquired a building plot on Körnerplatz in 1885 for 70,000 marks . On April 1, 1891, the new parish, which at that time had 20,000 members, was officially founded. Since a separate church and a parish hall were desired for the community, a building program was applied for, which was approved by the state consistory on October 22, 1892 without any conditions. It comprised the following key points:

  • the axis of the church should coincide with that of the Körnerplatz (east-west)
  • The tower and portal should face the Körnerplatz
  • the church building should accommodate around 1200 seats with a clear view of the pulpit and altar as well as a baptistery and a sacristy
  • there should be space for 100 singers in the organ choir
  • the church will be equipped with gas lighting and central heating
  • the tower is to carry three bells with a total weight of 6 tons and a clock with four dials
  • the brickwork is to be faced with bricks
  • the construction should cost a maximum of 300,000 marks (about 1,899,000 euros) excluding the interior

Already on October 24, 1892, an architectural competition was announced , in which a total of 79 designs were submitted and evaluated on time. The jury decided on February 13th and 14th, 1893 in favor of the design with the motto "Ecclesia" by the Berlin architects G. Abesser and Jürgen Kröger . The building committee then decided a construction cost totaling 375,000 marks (approximately 2,373,000 euros). After criticism of the project in the population, a second design by the same architects with the distinctive double-helmet tower was discussed, which ultimately prevailed. The organ was planned with around 45 voices, 3 manuals , pedals and an electric drive. The bells were also to be operated electrically and not made of bronze, but cast steel . They were intended to be a replica of the bells of the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church in Berlin. The building project was approved at the beginning of July 1893. The Chemnitz building contractor Hugo Duderstaedt was in charge of the earthworks and masonry work. The granite work was awarded to the Dresden company Kunath and was to be carried out in Lusatian granite. The Bochum Association for Mining and Cast Steel Manufacture (BVG) was entrusted with the bells . The Jehmlich Orgelbau Dresden workshop was awarded the contract for the organ . Excavation work began that same month, and the foundation stone was laid on October 26, 1893 . Even during the construction work it became apparent that the construction costs were being exceeded. Therefore, in mid-May 1894, it was decided to shorten the tower by 4 m and to remove the portal figure of the Evangelist Mark. An additional shortening of the tower by a further 4.50 m was determined at the beginning of June. The topping-out ceremony was finally held on August 3, 1894 . On September 28, 1894, the tower buttons (with contemporary documents) were set at a height of 84 meters, and on November 13, 1895 the church was consecrated .

One consequence of the short construction time of the church with the associated insufficient care in the construction was water damage, which showed up soon after completion of the construction, and which was removed with a moisture protection with a tar paint. The original roof covering with tiles proved unsuitable due to falling tiles and was replaced by sheet copper. In 1934, the roof turrets and side turrets were removed, and during the Second World War the copper sheet of the roof was removed for armament purposes and replaced in a makeshift manner. The original condition was not restored until 1956. Because the necessary repairs were not carried out and damage to the roof and masonry were not repaired, the church fell into disrepair in the 1970s.

Since the municipality could not raise the funds for a renovation , at the end of the 1970s thought was given to transferring the building to the state. In 1984, however, the regional church office decided to keep the Markuskirche as a community center. Although the church was added to the list of historical monuments in 1985 , it fell into disrepair and was finally given to the city in 1989.

In 1992, under Cantor Nagel, the Friends' Association for the preservation of the Markus Church was formed . Subsidies and funding could be obtained so that renovation measures could begin in 1992. So the original bell was overhauled and reinstalled. In 2000 the church floor was renewed.

Bells and organ

On March 27, 1895, the three cast steel bells manufactured by the Bochumer Verein were put into service:

  • big bell ( strike : ais 0 , diameter: 1,888 mm, weight: 2,850 kg)
  • middle bell (strike: c sharp 1 , diameter: 1,570 mm, weight: 1,555 kg)
  • small bell (strike: e 1 , diameter: 1,385 mm, weight: from 1,086 kg)

The bells hang on historical wooden yokes in the steel bell cage (from 1895).

While the bells survived the wars unscathed, the tin pipes of the organ of the Jehmlich brothers from Dresden were removed as war-worthy material and melted down. Today's organ, a computer-controlled instrument, was built by the Ahlborn company.

literature

  • Dehio-Handbuch der Deutschen Kunstdenkmäler, Saxony II: administrative districts of Leipzig and Chemnitz. Deutscher Kunstverlag, Munich / Berlin 1998, ISBN 3-422-03048-4 .

Web links

Commons : St. Markus (Chemnitz)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 50 ° 50 ′ 5.6 "  N , 12 ° 56 ′ 14.5"  E