St. Mauritius (Berlin)
The Catholic parish church of St. Mauritius is located in the new building area Frankfurter Allee Süd, built between 1969 and 1976, in the Berlin district of Lichtenberg and was inaugurated in 1892. It belongs to the dean's office Lichtenberg-Kreuzberg, Archdiocese of Berlin .
Location and brief history
The church ensemble (church and parsonage) is located on an almost triangular area of 2112 m² in the district of Berlin, delimited by the streets Mauritiuskirchstrasse (at the time of construction: Sandweg ), Wilhelm-Guddorf-Strasse and John-Sieg-Strasse (at the time of construction: Wartenbergstrasse ) Lichtenberg . It is located in the former Friedrichsberg colony and is a listed building . The branch church Holy Trinity (Boxhagen) in Friedrichshain also belongs to the same deanery .
For the construction of the church in the Friedrichsberg colony, the prince-bishop's chair in Breslau bought the above-mentioned property on March 8, 1890 from the manor Herrmann in Lichtenberg for 29,800 marks .
The architect Max Hasak designed a brick church building in the neo-Gothic style for the St. Markus parish , which was based on the design and dimensions of the Heilig-Geist-Kapelle in Spandauer Straße in Berlin-Mitte , because it was planned for demolition.
The foundation stone for the church in the Friedrichsberg colony was laid on August 24, 1891 (a copy of the foundation and foundation stone certificate hangs in the church interior). Under the direction of the government master builder Starkloff, it was completed (but still without a tower). On September 22, 1892 the church was consecrated by the prince-bishop's delegate, Provost Joseph Jahnel, in the name of Saint Mauritius and handed over to his first pastor Nicolaus Kuborn (born February 7, 1854 in Mertert ; † August 17, 1922 in Wilhelminenhof). The construction costs of 112,949.44 marks (adjusted for purchasing power in today's currency: around 756,000 euros) were raised entirely through donations , for which Kuborn had sent countless letters of appeal to Catholics all over Germany.
The two-story adjacent rectory, which also goes back to Hasak's plans, was built by the architect Karl Bleckmann ; the construction took only seven months and was inaugurated in September 1897.
In 1900 a sacristy was added, which was designed with four colored arched windows and later used as a baptistery.
As early as 1905–1906, the church had to be expanded due to the short-term tripling of the number of inhabitants in this area, which was planned by the architects Sodermann and P. Pohl and implemented under the direction of Max Hasak. This extension was also made possible by numerous donations.
Church interior
The nave is built in five bays and ends in a three-sided choir, the interior is vaulted by cross ribs . In the extension building, the original apse with the gallery was redesigned into a new main entrance, the former entrance area with a transept-like extension that is polygonal on both sides has now become the new, spacious choir room . The bell tower was then erected over the resulting crossing . A small round window above the main entrance with the representation of the “ Lamb (es) of God ” indicates the first location of the altar in front of the extension (to be seen in the photo behind the organ).
Overall, the main nave is 40 meters long and around 11 meters wide, the extension measures 20 m in length and 16 m in width.
The interior of the church was designed by the government architect August Menken , who also used the neo-Gothic style for this.
Wood sculptor Gustav Kuntzsch from Wernigerode created the altar and the pulpit . In the course of the expansion of the church, the altar was replaced by a new, larger one in 1908; its whereabouts are unknown. The pulpit stood in the church until it was redesigned after Vatican II and was probably destroyed in 1965.
The windows above the main portal were decorated with depictions of St. Mauritius, the side portals were decorated with figures of angels.
The windows behind the chancel showed figural stained glass from the creation story , created by the artist Victor Johann von der Forst. These historic windows were destroyed by the hostilities at the end of World War II. As early as May 1945, on orders and with the help of the Russian commander for Lichtenberg, the restoration of the church could begin. The first thing she received was new altar windows, which were made according to designs by the artist Helena Starck from Wilmersdorf and depict “ Annunciation ”, “Birth”, “ Crucifixion ” and “ Resurrection ”.
The new wooden high altar of the Mauritius Church was consecrated on September 27, 1908, after the extension had been completed.
In 1910, the church received an organ master organ builder Bruno Goebel from Konigsberg , from 1917, the tin - front pipes (and in the 1940s some of the largest organ pipes) were melted down for war purposes. After the war the missing pipes were replaced.
In 1934 the interior of the church underwent a first renovation and after the end of the Second World War it was repaired until 1953. Further, very far-reaching changes to the church interior took place in 1965/1966. The changes were based on the new Vatican recommendations: heating was installed, the floor renewed, clinker brick removed from the walls, which were then plastered and painted with light colors. In addition, the wooden high altar was removed and new brass chandeliers were hung. Finally, the community had the graphic artist Alfons Bittner make new church insignia such as an altar cross and a tabernacle made of copper .
As early as 1947, a newly created Pietà by the sculptor Josef Weber from Berlin-Wilmersdorf was installed in the baptistery . In 1946 Charles Crodel also planned a window with a Madonna in a protective cloak .
After 1990 the interior was improved again, a sound system and new electric lights were installed.
Outer shape
On the transept and above the choir there are slated roof turrets that are reminiscent of the architectural styles of earlier Cistercian monasteries . The entrance area of the building is dominated by a richly decorated Wimperg pillar gable , the 50 meter high tower is crowned by an octagonal pointed helmet with a gilded cross. The tower of the original structure was more compact and was supported from the outside by iron pillars at its eight corners. In 1932 it had to be repaired for the first time and the roof was re-covered. At the end of the Second World War, the church tower was destroyed by bombs dropped by German low-flying aircraft and then rebuilt in a simplified form, as it can still be seen today. All exterior repairs to the church were completed in 1952.
The structural changes caused by the first extension as well as by walling up windows and entrances (made necessary by political unrest and crime after the First World War) can be seen from the outside.
Bells
The church originally had three bronze bells that were made by the Franz Schilling bell foundry in Apolda , the following small table gives some data:
| Name of the bell | Weight (kg) | Chime | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| St. Joseph | 1800 | c | melted down in World War I. |
| St. Mary | 1100 | it | melted down in World War I. |
| St. Mauritius | 750 | f | Melted down in World War II in 1942; a community initiative has started to raise funds for the replacement of the third bell (2007) |
| St. Nicolaus | about 1500 | c | |
| St. Carolus | about 1000 | it |
The two largest bells had to be delivered during the First World War and were melted down. In 1924 the Mauritius Church received two new bells, this time steel, which were again cast in Apolda. After all, the last remaining bronze bell had to be delivered for war purposes during the Second World War.
Activities of the St. Mauritius community
Since 1902 the church has housed the convent of the Sisters of Saint Elizabeth (also known as the Gray Sisters because of their gray clothes ), who were active in childcare and care for the elderly.
Nicolaus (also spelled 'Nikolaus') Kuborn and his chaplain Bernhard Lichtenberg campaigned for the establishment of Catholic schools in Lichtenberg and Rummelsburg. On October 9, 1911, a kindergarten for the Catholic girls' school in Friedrichsberg near Berlin (in Bürgerheimstrasse , later: Atzpodienstraße 45/46) was inaugurated. During the Nazi era , the school was closed and not allowed again after the Second World War.
In the 1990s the Catholic Parents' Association was founded. V. , who fought for the (re-) establishment of a Catholic elementary school in Lichtenberg for years. This was crowned with success in August 1995: lessons finally began with two classes as guests in the St. Franziskus School in Schöneberg, while the new school was set up in a former daycare center, but was not yet ready when school started. The Mauritius School is one of 13 primary schools run by the Archdiocese of Berlin.
Events in the environment and commemoration
In 1902 Nicolaus Kuborn acquired a plot of land on Kurzen Strasse in Friedrichsfelde to build the branch church (parish church) of the Good Shepherd .
During the November Revolution of 1918, military battles took place in the Friedrichsberg residential area up to the large Frankfurter Allee, in the church tower the workers and sailors had positioned a machine gun. As a result, the tower came under fire from the volunteer corps and was damaged.
On the outer wall of the choir apse there is a relief depicting Saint Anthony . It was cast in artificial stone , solemnly inaugurated on June 19, 1943 and commemorates the widespread worship of Antonius in the community.
At this church, too, a plaque commemorates the work and importance of Bernhard Lichtenberg .
A shopping center, 1992 a typical DDR - Services cubes soft had received - despite protests of the Archdiocese - upon its completion in 1996, the name Mauritiuskirchplatz Center , as it forms a small open space with the old brick church.
literature
- Institute for Monument Preservation of the GDR (Ed.): The architectural and art monuments in the GDR. Capital Berlin II. Henschelverlag , Berlin 1987, ISBN 978-3-406-30425-5 .
- Parish office of St. Mauritius (ed.): 100 years of St. Mauritius 1892–1992 (Festschrift).
- Jan-Michael Feustel : Walks in Lichtenberg . Haude and Spener, Berlin 1996, ISBN 3-7759-0409-3 , pp. 83-85.
- Architects and Engineers Association of Berlin (ed.): Berlin and its buildings , part VI, sacred buildings . Verlag Ernst & Sohn, Berlin 1997, ISBN 3-433-01016-1 , p. 123, 373 .
- Rolf Martinek: Oldest building in the neighborhood . In: Kiezblatt des Kiezspinne FAS e. V. - ORANGERY No. 1/2007, p. 8.
- Andreas Huth, Konstantin Manthey, Catholic Parish of St. Mauritius, Berlin-Lichtenberg (ed.): The Lichtenberger Parish Church of St. Mauritius - Festschrift for the 125th anniversary of the parish, vol. 1: 1892–1940. Lukas Verlag, Berlin 2018, ISBN 978-3-86732-286-7 .
Web links
- Official website of the St. Mauritius Church
- State monument list Berlin: Church of St. Mauritius
- Easter vigil 2020 in St. Mauritius, during the corona pandemic with interior views of the building
- Collection of videos from masses in St. Mauritius Church
Individual evidence
- ^ Emil Unger: History of Lichtenberg up to the acquisition of city rights , Verlag W. Weber, Berlin 1910, p. 140 f.
- ↑ a b Andreas Huth: The equipment of the St. Mauritius Church in Lichtenberg. In: Festschrift for the 125th anniversary of the consecration , Berlin 2018, p. 224 ff.
- ^ Homepage of the St. Mauritius Primary School
- ↑ Kubornstrasse. In: Street name lexicon of the Luisenstädtischer Bildungsverein (near Kaupert )
- ^ Controversy over the name . In: Berliner Zeitung , February 15, 1996.
Coordinates: 52 ° 30 ′ 43 ″ N , 13 ° 28 ′ 41 ″ E