St. Michael (Saarbrücken)

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St. Michael, west facade with Rotenberg stairs from Schumannstrasse
Historical map with a representation of the Rotenbergfriedhof in the center of the picture (location of today's Michaelskirche) in St. Johann at the beginning of the 20th century
St. Michael (Saarbrücken), design by Wilhelm Hector in neo-Romanesque forms (Hector estate)
St. Michael (Saarbrücken), design by Wilhelm Hector, facade variant (Hector estate)
St. Michael; Saarbrücken; In 1918, the facade sketch of the original design from 1913 was revised with baroque tower domes (Archive Institute for Contemporary Art in Saarland)
Neo-Baroque tower front of Schweiklberg abbey church with similarities to Herkommer's original design for St. Michael
Saarbrücken-St. Johann, Michaelskirche, north side from Echelmeyerpark
Reception building of Stuttgart main station : stone cladding, arched niches, tracery bars and tower design show clear architectural relationships with St. John's Church.

St. Michael is a Roman Catholic church in the Saarbrücken district of St. Johann , which was built between 1923 and 1924 according to plans by the architect Hans Herkommer . Since then it has been the largest church building in the Saarland capital in front of the Protestant Ludwig Church (district of Alt-Saarbrücken) in terms of the interior space . In addition to the so-called Saardom (Holy Sacrament) in Dillingen / Saar , the St. Ingberter Josefskirche and the Malstatter Josefskirche, the Michaelskirche is one of the largest churches in Saarland . The church is assigned to the diocese of Trier . The Church's patronage day is the feast of St. Michael the Archangel on September 29th .

history

prehistory

middle Ages

According to local tradition , a chapel dedicated to St. John the Baptist is said to have been built as early as the Merovingian period in the 7th century on the site of today's Basilica of St. John . It was not an independent parish church, but was cared for by the Augustinian canons in St. Arnual until its abolition. The Johanneskapelle was first mentioned in a document in 1325, but the St. Johann place name mentioned in a document in 1265, derived from the Johannes patronage of the chapel, indicates an earlier date of construction of the chapel.

At the mediation of Count Johann I , Pope Johannes XXII. to the dean of St. Arnualer Stift in 1325 the installation of a baptismal font and the appointment of his own priest in the St. Johann chapel. The pen does not seem to have complied with the papal order. The St. Arnual canon responsible for St. Johann continued to reside in St. Arnual and had the pastoral duties associated with the benefice carried out by vicarious chaplains.

This meant that the citizens of St. Johann and also those of Saarbrücken had to walk to St. Arnual to receive the sacraments and other casualia . Overall, both Saarbrücken and St. Johann lacked a central function in the church and cultic area throughout the Middle Ages, which also had negative economic effects.

reformation

Since the local count house in 1575 by decision of Count Philip III. Nassau Reformation introduced by Nassau-Saarbrücken was only allowed the Protestant-Lutheran denomination. The chapel dedicated to John the Baptist near St. Johanner Markt was rebuilt between 1608 and 1615 and then consisted of a simple hall 60  feet clear length and 29 feet clear width, the choir tower was 20 feet long and 27 feet wide . This building was demolished in 1754 and replaced by a new church.

Recatholization

The Metz bishop Georges d'Aubusson de La Feuillade , who is responsible for Saarbrücken and St. Johann, was only able to celebrate a first Catholic mass in 1680 in a barn in Türkenstrasse opposite the St. Johann church, after King Louis XIV of France that year had occupied the county of Saarbrücken and claimed it as an old fiefdom of the diocese of Metz - this had been part of France since 1552. At first the French garrison pastor took over the civil chaplaincy for the approx. 200 Catholics of the county. He was followed by a Jesuit from the nearest Jesuit -Ordensniederlassung Bockenheim ( Saarwerden ) in Alsace . In 1683, King Ludwig XIV came to St. Johann with his family and a large entourage to take part in a solemn service in the St. Johann emergency church the following day and thus to confirm his claim to power.

In the following year, 1684, the previously Lutheran Johanneskapelle was withdrawn from Protestant worship under pressure from Louis XIV and returned to the Catholic Church. By offering exemption from taxes, the French king tried to convince the Lutheran residents of St. John to convert to Catholicism. As a result, the number of Catholic residents of St. Johann rose sharply within a few years compared to the Protestant Saarbrücken, where the tax exemption was not offered. When the Protestant Counts of Saarbrücken again had their unrestricted right to rule in St. Johann in 1697, the number of Catholics there was drastically reduced again. The financial support of the St. Johann parish by the French crown to finance the pastors, vicars and school teachers was also retained when the county of Saarbrücken had to be ceded again to the Holy Roman Empire . It was not until the French Revolution that the royal family stopped paying.

Instead of the dissolved Augustinian canons of St. Arnual , the Wadgassen Premonstratensian Monastery took over pastoral care after the Peace of Rijswijk , when France had to return the reunified areas on the Saar in 1697 (with the exception of the Saarlouis fortress) . Against the demands of England , Holland , Sweden and the Protestant imperial princes, it was decided under pressure from Emperor Leopold I and the Catholic imperial estates that all religious-political measures of France should continue to apply at the time of the reunions. So the chapel in St. Johann remained Catholic.

An attempt by the young Saarbrücken Count Ludwig Kraft to turn the St. Johann Chapel into a denominational Simultaneum failed due to the protest of the Catholics, who were massively supported by the Metz bishop.

Planning

Population increase

After the merger of the three independent Saar cities Saarbrücken, St. Johann and Malstatt-Burbach to form the new city of Saarbrücken in 1909, the St. Johann district increasingly developed into the economic center of the Saar metropolis. The increasing population led to the construction of new residential areas in the district. As early as the 19th century, the proportion of Catholics had risen sharply compared to the Protestant majority and the only Catholic church in St. Johann turned out to be too small.

Parish of St. Jakob

Soon after the completion of the Church of St. Jakob in Alt-Saarbrücken on the left bank of the Saar in 1888, there was a considerable relief for the parishioners and the clergy of the double parish Saarbrücken-St. Johann, but plans have now also been made in St. Johann to divide the parish area on the right side of the Saar.

Church building association

Pastor Leonhard Keil, who looked after St. Johann from 1899 to 1912, initiated the corresponding planning. Immediately after taking office, a church building association was founded in 1899 . In 1912, thanks to a generous donation from Pastor Keil, the immediate planning phase could begin. The site of the St. Johann cemetery on the Rotenberg was planned as the building site. The cemetery (today Echelmeyerpark , named after Alois Echelmeyer) was abandoned in the 1880s.

competition

After Keil was appointed to the Trier Cathedral Chapter in 1912 , his successor Alois Echelmeyer (term of office 1912–1929) wrote an architectural competition in the same year to obtain designs for the new building of a second Catholic church in St. Johann. 120 German architects took part in the competition.

After the competition ended in mid-1913, seven designs were selected for the award. The St. Johann parish member Wilhelm Hector, who was one of the most productive church architects of his time on the Saar, had also submitted a design - in neo-Romanesque forms. However, his design was rejected by the jury. Both designs by architects Arthur Mäkelt from Berlin and Franz Baumann from Munich were also awarded first place. They were followed in the jury's ranking by the design by Friedrich Pützer from Darmstadt . Four other designs were recommended for purchase. A closer competition was announced among the seven selected designs. At the end of 1913 , Hans Herkommer, who was only 26 years old and worked in Stuttgart , emerged as the winner of this competition. Herkommer had studied at the Technical University of Stuttgart from 1906 to 1910 as a student of Theodor Fischer , Paul Bonatz and Martin Elsaesser . Interestingly, Herkommer's church, which was later realized in St. Johann, has clear architectural references to the reception building of the Stuttgart main station , which was built from 1914–1928 according to designs by Paul Bonatz.

Plan modifications

Herkommer's original designs for the church in St. Johann were still clearly based on the Baroque era and showed similarities to the tower front of the Schweiklberg abbey designed by Michael Kurz between 1909 and 1911 . Construction of the new church in St. Johann was scheduled to begin in autumn 1914. With the outbreak of the First World War , that was no longer possible. The construction of St. Michael's Church was delayed by ten years. After the war, Herkommer had to modify his design several times due to the circumstances of the time. In the end, there was a significant rescheduling of the late - historical competition design in favor of a church building in the style of Expressionism .

Naming

The church council decided to put the new church building under the patronage of the Archangel Michael . This was done expressly in memory of the Trier Bishop Michael Felix Korum, who died on December 4, 1921 .

construction

The groundbreaking ceremony took place in February 1923. The foundation stone was laid on June 3, 1923 on the occasion of the first Saarland Catholic Day in the presence of Trier Bishop Franz Rudolf Bornewasser , the two government commissioners of the Saarland League of Nations administration Julius Land and Count von Moltke-Huitfeld (as a representative of the Government of Denmark), the Ministerial Director and Higher Government Councilor Matthias Notton , the Saarbrücken Mayor Hans Neikes , the Saarlouis Dechant and Trier Dome of Honor Alexander Subtil as well as numerous other guests of honor. When the foundation stone was laid, a time capsule was built into which a document in Latin , money and daily newspapers had been inserted. The German translation of the Latin document reads:

“May the angel of peace, Michael, come from heaven into our temple and, as the author of serene peace, banish the tearful wars into the underworld (Hymnus ad Laudes). In the year of the Lord one thousand nine hundred and twenty-three, the second year of the reign of Pope Pius XI., On June 3rd, the bishop of Trier, Franz Rudolf Bornewasser laid the foundation stone for this church, which is consecrated to St. Michael the Archangel, in front of the pastor of St. Johann and the co-signed witness. The church is being built on the solid rock of the so-called Rotenberg on the old cemetery, which is sacred to us due to the ashes of warriors, by the architect Hans Herkommer from Gmünd-Stuttgart.

It honors the memory of the illustrious Bishop Michael Felix Korum, who ardently promoted this work and in his zeal for the glory of God and for the preservation of the holy faith in this city already in 1914 for the construction of the new church Gave consent. With his prayer he may now promote our work, since it was not granted to him to help us with the start of the building with his blessing.

A favorable omen for this work of piety is the first Saarland Catholic Day, which is being held in our city on this very day in the blessed presence of the illustrious Shepherds of the Saarland, the Bishop of Trier, Doctor Franz Rudolf Bornewasser and his Auxiliary Bishop Doctor Antonius Münch and of the Bishop of Speyer Doctor Ludwig Sebastian. Today they greet with loud applause innumerable crowds from all regions, even from the most remote villages, to solemnly confess their enthusiastic faith and their filial devotion in spite of the hatred of enemies of God and the church.

So may the good God graciously promote this work, so that it may be a memorial and a promotion of faith for the coming generations, a testimony to the zeal for faith of the parish of St. Johann, which in these troubled times is hard pressed by hardship and worry, but joyful how the people of Israel once sacrificed everything. "

The sayings at the laying of the foundation stone made clear reference to the situation in the Saarland in the time of need after the First World War and expressed the longing for peace of the time:

  • "St. My name is Michael, I protect the Saarland. Born in need and suffering, I lead and call to unity. "(Keynote speaker Pater Kethers, Trier)
  • "We consecrate the house to the angel of peace, this building serves the spirit of peace, peace of the soul, peace between God and man, peace between the classes and the peoples." (Dean Prelate Echelmeyer)
  • "Ad gloriam Dei et pacem populi. (For the glory of God and for the peace of the people.) ”(Count von Moltke-Huitfeld, representative of Denmark in the League of Nations administration)

inauguration

On Saturday, September 27, 1924, the church, which was designed for around 1000 seats and was popularly known as the “Saarbrücker Dom” and “City of God on the Mountain” because of its monumental appearance and its hillside location, was opened after a mass in the parish church of St. Johann consecrated by Bishop Franz Rudolf Bornewasser and the first mass sacrifice was celebrated. The first pontifical mass took place on Sunday, September 28, 1924, the day before the St. Michaelis Feast.

Establishment of the independent parish of St. Michael

The newly established parish of St. Michael, which was spun off from the parish of St. Johann on October 1, 1926 , had around 18,000 Catholics at the time, who by now had just outnumbered the Protestants in St. Johann. From the 1920s to the 1970s, up to seven masses were celebrated in St. Michael on Sundays and public holidays, and two to three masses every weekday. At present there is still one regular Eucharistic celebration each week (on Sunday mornings) in the church .

World War II and post-war period

During the large-scale bombing of Saarbrücken by British associations on October 5, 1944, the church only narrowly escaped destruction when an incendiary bomb hit the roof but did not explode. The war damage to the choir wall , windows and roof could be repaired by 1948. During the period of the Saar state , which lasted from 1947 to 1956 , the church of St. Michael , which belongs to the diocese of Trier , was under discussion as the future bishop's church of a Saarland diocese that was planned but not realized after the rejection of the Saar Statute in 1955 . On New Year's morning 1957 , the solemn pontifical office celebrated by Trier Bishop Matthias Wehr on the occasion of the accession of the Saarland to the Federal Republic of Germany took place in St. Michael in the presence of Federal Chancellor Konrad Adenauer .

Division of the parish area

  • Parish of St. Michael

  • Maria Queen, Saarbrücken-Rotenbühl

  • St. Thomas More, Saarbrücken-Am Homburg

With the establishment of further parishes in the St. Johann district - Maria Königin (1959), St. Elisabeth (1960), St. Thomas More (1968) - the parish of St. Michael was gradually reduced in size.

Remodeling

The redesign measures carried out in the interior in the last three decades of the 20th century took into account the requirements of the liturgical reform , the decreasing number of worshipers and the changed demands on church life. The area for celebrations and proclamations was relocated from the east choir to the main nave , the number of seats was reduced from 1000 to less than half, the pews were set up in an east-west direction and the space under the gallery was designed as a separate foyer . Currently, the western half of the nave is intentionally unfurnished. In the 1980s, experiments were carried out with a movable curtain for the division of the room at weekday services with few visitors.

Incorporation into the large parish of St. Johann

With effect from January 1, 2005, the previous parishes of St. Johann (Basilica), St. Michael, St. Elisabeth and St. Thomas More were dissolved and a new large parish called “St. Johann “united. As the largest of the four churches, St. Michael was designated as the official residence of the pastor of the new parish of St. Johann under the official name “former parish church of St. Michael”. In the document on the establishment of the parish and parish Saarbrücken St. Johann of December 13, 2004, St. Michael was designated the parish church of the greater parish. The parish of St. Johann and the parish of Maria Königin-St. Augustine the "parish community St. Johann".

architecture

Floor plan and dimensions

St. Michael, tower dome in the style of crystalline expressionism
Chrysler Building ( New York City ), built 1928–1930, revisiting the motif of crystalline recesses with acute-angled, ray-like window openings in an elevated form

The total length of the church is 60 m. Of this length, 6.60 m is accounted for by the entrance between the two towers, 37.80 m for the main nave and 15.60 m for the antechamber and the choir area. The largest width is 34.60 m. The clear width of the main nave is 18.80 m. The transept extends outwards by 6 m on both sides.

The two side aisles are 5 m wide and 25 m long. The pillars that separate the side aisles from the main nave and support the vault are 0.80 m by 2.25 m. These pillars are connected to the templates of the enclosing walls by belt arches , so that the support of the vaulting is guaranteed without a buttress system having to be constructed. The main nave is spanned by a vault with a span of almost 20 m. Its vertex rises around 20 m above the floor. The wings of the transept and the choir area are spanned by smaller vaults.

The two towers are 47 m high from the floor. Their free bullets protrude 22 m from the church building. The towers are 4.80 m wide and 6.50 m long in cross section. At the height of the belfry , they are broken through on all four sides by sound openings of 5.50 m high. The thickness of the tower walls is 1.10 m at ground level and decreases continuously with increasing height to a minimum thickness of 0.60 m. The tower walls are summarized in the foundation by a reinforced concrete slab 1 m thick.

All walls are based on the rock of the Rotenberg in order to avoid different masonry settlements. All concrete foundations were made from Saar gravel, slag chippings and Portland cement . The foundations reach the rock at an average depth of 2 m, the tower foundations at a depth of 5 m. All walls are made of stamped concrete . Reinforced concrete was used for the vaults . All stone cladding is made from local Fechinger sandstone .

Exterior

  • Saarbrücken-St. Johann, facade sculpture "Michael, angelus et auctor pacis" ("Michael, messenger and originator of peace")

  • Saarbrücken-St. Johann, Michael figure from the side

  • Munich, St. Michaels Church, facade sculpture "The Archangel Michael, plunging Satan into hell"

  • St. Michael, Berg am Laim, tower facade

  • St. Michael, Berg am Laim, archangel sculpture

The Church of St. Michael, which as a single monument under monument protection is integrated in the manner of "abstraction historicism" individual style elements of the Staufer Romanesque of the Middle Ages , the Renaissance and the Baroque in a total modern overall composition with expressionist idiom. With regard to the major revision of the planned neo-baroque design from 1913, which was not implemented due to the war, architect Herkommer wrote in 1924:

“The basic ideas of the design from 1913 were retained, namely: double towers on the west wall, large, wide-span hall as a central nave, niche-shaped, low side aisles as confessional and devotional chapels, and transepts subordinate to the main vault.

The change (sic!) In the economic and intellectual conditions in this eventful period of 10 years, as well as the personal development of the author since he was 26 years old, naturally caused a number of deviations that may be taken into account when evaluating the building.

The main difficulty for the architect was to create a unity out of his space and form world from then and that of today.

The originally richly structured exterior architecture was replaced by simple, calm, large areas that are enlivened by simple old wall technology. Flatness paired with deep indentation and protruding tension discharges bring calm, rhythm (sic!) And dynamism.

If an apse-like chancel was planned at the time, a 2 m higher, deep, rectangular chancel with a floor plan was used, under which a crypt is located.

On the outside (sic!) The idea was carried out: in the lower part - because the floor plan (sic!) And room cross-section were almost retained - the spirit of the past should remain as possible, and the upper part should end in the spirit of today. In the upper part of the towers, the expression of our time appears in its purest and most powerful way.

If it will always be difficult for the creative forces to reflect their time in an abstract form, this is all the more the case today because confusion and disunity prevails in all areas (sic!). Initially, extremes had the lead: on the one hand, smashing everything that had been, on the other hand, rigidly clinging to the old and previously familiar. This was followed by uncertainty on both sides: a search among everything, from the most primitive to the most refined, a rapid fashionable change of expressions of all peoples and of all times; on the other hand, a reflection on the causes of fermentation. As a result of this, as well as the inequalities of relationships and views, a somewhat clarifying division into two opposing poles: on the one hand, abstraction to the extreme (sic!), Back to the first, causal, coolness of reason, cold sobriety; on the other hand, joy in the play of shapes and colors, exuberance in mood and opulence, daydreams.

These two opposing phenomena are likely to be the main phenomena of our time and therefore have a certain inner justification. It is not a question of which of the conceptions is better or more correct, but rather to trace the core of both phenomena, to do justice to both, to give both barriers, to assign a field of activity to both and thus a unity of the original opposition form.

In the basic thought, ie in the basic form as the essential, the following may prevail: clarity, simplicity, urgency, elasticity and conviction (sic!); and in the filling, decorative development, as the inessential: elastic freedom, fantastic, rhythmic (sic!) play of color and form. Or perhaps: a pairing of clarity and mysticism. (...)

Expressed in sensual form and comparing art-historical for the sake of an approximate idea, one can therefore say that (sic!) Our time exhibits early Christian Byzantine and Gothic features: of the former, the forceful persuasiveness, the combination of organic firmness and soft individualistic elegance; and from the latter (sic!) the unearthly longing, intimacy and piety. "

The floor plan shows a cruciform three-aisled wall pillar basilica with a main nave that is noticeably large in relation to the side and transepts.

The St. Johanner Michaelskirche is built in sandstone with stone-transparent outer walls that convey a defiant, castle-like character. The outer choir flank arcades of St. Michael could be inspired by the similarly designed arcades on the outer walls of the Gotthard Chapel of Mainz Cathedral . This chapel was built until 1137 under Archbishop Adalbert I of Saarbrücken .

The west facade (width: 18 m, height: 23 m) consists of a monumental three-storey block and rectangular twin towers rising above it, which only detach from the west block above the third floor. A round arched niche (height: 13 m) extends over the two lower floors, in which three portals are embedded, which should be richly decorated according to the original plans. The windscreen -Vorhalle is 8 m wide.

The third floor is dominated by a four meter high bronze statue of the church patron, the Archangel Michael. The design comes from the Munich artist Franz Lorch (* 1899 Sigmaringen , † 1979 Munich ). Lorch also designed the statue of the Virgin Mary, the figures of the wise and foolish virgins in the vestibule of St. Michael's Church and the Way of the Cross .

The sculpture on the facade is a bronze cast by the Munich company Brandstetter. The title of the sculpture is "Michael, angelus et auctor pacis". The title refers to the hymn on Michael’s Day in the Breviarium Romanum : “Angelus pacis Michael in aedes coelitus nostras veniat serenae auctor ut pacis lacrimosa in orcum bella releget.” (German translation: “The angel of peace, Michael, may from heaven come into our houses and banish the tearful wars to the underworld as the originators of serene peace. ")

The archangel is positioned in the façade structure similar to that of the Michael Church in Munich or the Church of St. Michael in Berg am Laim . In St. Johann, however, he deviates iconographically from the usual depictions of Michael. While the archangel usually kills all evil in this world in the form of Satan with the cross-lance in the struggle for true faith, in Saarbrücken St. Michael is depicted without armor as an energetic angel of peace who admonishes non-violence and protects his hand over the city of Saarbrücken and the land on the Saar holds.

The decision to design the archangel sculpture was made by the then Apostolic Delegate of the Pope in the Saar area, Gustavo Testa , in June 1924. Testa were a classic draft of the planned Michael statue in a warlike and a modern one in a peace-making manner without the well-known attributes such as sword, lance, armor and the dragon of Satan. Testa then decided to execute the design, which breathes a pacifist spirit. The artist Franz Lorch depicts the archangel as having just descended from heaven. Aloys Echelmeyer wrote in 1926 about the conception of the statue:

“A difficult job not only to proclaim peace, but also to create it. And St. Michael is to appear as the maker of peace, auctor pacis. Hence the massive, strong, taut posture, the pithy, masculine seriousness of the features that betray a strong will. 'Come down from heavenly heights'. The artist expresses the thought by the fact that (sic!) The right wing is not yet lowered towards the earth. He still points heavenwards, to where the blessed spirits dwell in eternal peace. He wants to bring this heavenly peace, which breathes the whole picture, to humanity torn in hatred (sic!). He raises his right hand, it seems to command: 'Stop hating the people'. The left hand expresses with a powerful gesture: 'Down with strife, war and murder', as the hymn prays: War woes ban 'to hell. (...) And finally: How much enmity and hatred (sic!) There is among human children, among relatives, neighbors and acquaintances. St. Michael also calls out his 'hold' to these enemies. 'To hell' with enmity and hatred! (sic!) Give peace and you have a heaven on earth! May St. Michael proclaim it far into the country: Where peace dwells, there is happiness "

Strikingly small windows and notch-like openings in the masonry underline the principle of large, closed wall surfaces.

Clearly expressionistic angular tower domes with triangular openings serve as attachments above the bellhouses. The unusual sarcophagus-like attachments on the tower dome are interpreted in art-historical literature as a reminiscence of the fact that the church is built on a former cemetery. It is interesting that the motif of the crystalline recesses with acute-angled, ray-like window openings on the tower domes of St. Michael a few years later at the top of the Chrysler Building (built between 1928 and 1930) in New York City was used to a much greater extent.

Interior

  • Saarbrücken-St. Johann, Michaelskirche, interior

  • Munich, Michaelskirche, interior

  • Interior of the St. Joseph Church, Munich, Maxvorstadt

  • New Parish Church of St. Margaret (Munich), Sendling, interior

With regard to the basic architectural structure of the interior, architect Herkommer leaned heavily on the Michael Church in Munich, which was built between 1583 and 1597 . The Munich sacred buildings of St. Joseph in Maxvorstadt and the new St. Margaret Church in Sendling could also have served as further sources of inspiration for the interior .

The interior of the St. Johanner Michaelskirche is dominated by the 19 m wide and 19 m high central nave of the five-bay nave . The small side bays, divided by strong wall pillars, look less like side aisles in the real sense, but more like chapels. The central nave is covered by a mighty barrel vault (clear height 19 meters, width 18.7 meters), which is divided into rectangular fields with cassettes based on baroque models . Since the transepts, which are also arched round, only open up to the approach of the main nave vault , there is no crossing . As in the presumed model of St. Michael in Munich, the interior has three chapels on both sides of the nave. The span of the nave is also based on that of the St. Michaels Church in Munich (20 m) with almost 19 m.

The fore-choir yoke and the choir room (width: 12 m, depth: 15 m) are each vaulted by tapering, recessed round arches. While the choir was originally supposed to close apsidal, as in the Munich model, St. Michael, after the war Herkommer decided to close the altar area in a straight line. The floor of the chancel, which is significantly higher than the nave (2.2 m above the level of the nave), under which there is a walk-in crypt , can be reached by two symmetrical stairs on the left and right. The column position of the choir narrowed the altar area to 7 m in order to achieve a more intimate space. A few years later, Herkommer used the motif of the set choir pillars - this time in Gothic form - when building the Augustinus Church in Heilbronn . Herkommer also used the crystalline star decorations of the capitals in the extension of the Holy Cross Church in Hüttlingen on the edge of the eastern Swabian Alb, which was carried out at the same time as St. Michael in Saarbrücken . Here, too, the altar area was painted with crystalline zigzag patterns.

St. Augustine in Heilbronn, 1926

The dominant architectural element of St. Michael is the Palladi motif . Not only the upper clad windows are designed according to this motif, the choir, the overall shape of the nave and the transepts clearly show the motif.

Furnishing

Sanctuary

Michaelskirche, altar area, high altar in the background, celebration altar in the foreground
Holy Cross Church in Hüttlingen, view from the old building into the extension building, pillars with star capitals as in St. Michael

The concentric repetition of the barrel vaults in the nave directs the viewer's gaze to the altar. The ascent to the vestibule was via two staircases, each with 10 marble steps , between which the gilded communion bench made of wrought iron lay in a semicircle in front of a wall that gave access to the crypt. Left and right of the crypt entrance were hand-woven tapestries by the Stuttgart textile artist Beißwenger, which depicted the Annunciation to Mary and the adoration of the Baby Jesus by the three wise men . After another five steps you reached the height of the actual choir. Altar, window and angel columns were coordinated.

Angel columns

The expressionist angel columns were designed by the Hanau artist Reinhold Ewald . The first pair of angels in front should visually lead the believers to the altar event. The second pair of angels carried the eternal light as a light bearer. The third pair of angels in the axis of the altar were supposed to symbolize the sacrifice as sacrificial angels. The fourth pair of angels should call to praise God as music-making angels. The fifth pair of angels represented cherubim and seraphim as knowing and loving assistants to the throne of God. The pairs of angels stand far apart at the front and are positioned on low pillars, while the pairs of angels at the back approach the altar and stand on steadily rising pillars. They are connected to the central altar window. Today only six of the ten angels are left.

The arrangement of the angel columns by Ewald is reminiscent of baroque altar compositions. Possibly, however, they could also be inspired by the angelic columns by the Cologne sculptor Friedrich Wilhelm Mengelberg on the neo-Romanesque high altar in St. Severin in Cologne, which were set up around the shrine with the relics of St. Severin of Cologne (design 1888, completion 1893).

Altar window

The 7 m high and 3 m wide altar window, also designed by Reinhold Ewald, addressed the church patron St. Michael in glowing colors, how he carried the concerns of the people who culminated in the sacrifice to the throne of God. The window also showed the archangel as the conqueror of evil in the form of the dragon of Satan and as a judge of the soul with scales at the Last Judgment. The window was made by the renowned Berlin company Vereinigte Werkstätten für Mosaik und Glasmalerei Puhl & Wagner - Gottfried Heinersdorff .

High altar

High altar
Holy Cross Church in Hüttlingen (built between 1921 and 1923), view of the apse of the extension with the high altar by Hans Herkommer

The blue and white majolica altarpiece, which was not yet completed at the time of the inauguration of the church, was designed as a three-level crystalline round building with niches, bow- like projections, high, cross-crowned folding dome and flanking angel columns according to the design of the architect Herkommer. The sculptural elaboration was designed by the Karlsruhe sculptor Emil Sutor . The movement was manufactured by the Saarland company Villeroy & Boch in its plant in Dänischburg .

Color choice

The color of the glazed altar, which changes from bright blue to pale green, refers to the original color scheme of the choir area and the apse window in various shades of blue.

Tent symbolism

Overall, the structure of the tabernacle altar should be reminiscent of the Old Testament Mishkan , the tabernacle (Latin 'tabernaculum'), which, according to the testimony of the Tanach , the Jewish Bible, was carried by the people of Israel on their wandering after their exodus from Egypt , before the established a permanent central shrine in Jerusalem . Old Testament tent apartment and optical table have merged into one unit in St. Michael. The altar surrounds the tabernacle structure on all sides like a wreath. The central conception of the high altar, accessible from all sides, makes spatial reference to the large choir area of ​​St. Michael's Church, with the choir window and altar belonging together in theological and iconographical terms. The rows of angels around and behind the altar are designed to mediate spatially and optically between the altar and the window.

Base

The base of the altar is made up of foliage from which four heads peek out. The heads symbolize in God's vision of the Prophet Ezekiel described four worshipers before the throne of God ( Ezek 1.4 to 28  EU ), which is also the author of the New Testament apocalypse were taken ( Rev 4,6-8  EU ). From left to right these are: a lion , a winged person, an eagle and a bull . According to the testimony of the Bible, the heavenly beings depicted proclaim the holiness of God. In Christian theology they are associated with the four evangelists John , Luke , Mark and Matthew . The human-faced being stands for the incarnation of Jesus, the bull-faced being for his sacrificial death, the lion-faced being for the resurrection and the eagle-faced being for Jesus' return to the Father.

Stipes

The stipes of the cafeteria deal with the sacrifice of Isaac by Abraham, prevented by God . Thorns and thistles sprout from the dusty, stony ground in the depicted scene. You are referring to the curse of Adam - and with him, according to the Catholic understanding, of all humanity - after the fall of man ( Gen 3 : 17–19  EU ):

“He (God) said to people: Because you (...) ate from the tree from which I commanded you not to eat, the ground is cursed because of you. You will eat of him with hardship all the days of your life. He will grow thorns and thistles for you and you will eat the plants of the field. In the sweat of your brow you will eat your bread until you return to the ground; for you have been taken from him, you are dust and you return to dust. "

This sinfulness of mankind through original sin - according to the conception of the altar - is to be washed away by the priest's sacrifice and transformed into holiness. The thistle motif determines the entire prickly, jagged, crystalline design of the altar and culminates in the folding dome, which is modeled on a closed thistle blossom, whose sprouting petals are symbolized by the cross of Christ at the top. The theological statement is that Jesus Christ on the cross banished the curse of paradise guilt, conquered the death of mankind by his own death.

While Abraham is pushing back the head of his only (legitimate) son with his left hand in order to cut his throat with the knife on his right hand, an angel flying towards him prevents him. God the Father appears to the right of the sacrificial scene in a cloud and also seems to want to intervene to prevent what is happening with his raised right hand. On the far right is the ram that will be sacrificed instead of Isaac. The Old Testament scene is intended to refer to the sacrifice of the Mass and Jesus' death on the cross. The depiction of the Abrahamic sacrifice refers as an Old Testament prefiguration to both the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross and the transformation of the bloody animal sacrifice in the Jerusalem temple through Jesus' last supper into a bloodless, vegetarian communal meal . The son of Abraham Isaac is interpreted here both as a forerunner of the son of God Jesus and as a symbol of saved humanity. Just as the ram dies on behalf of Isaac, Jesus sacrifices himself on the cross for sin-laden humanity. According to the teaching of the Catholic Church, his crucifixion takes place with each sacrifice of the Mass in a bloodless manner on the altar during the Eucharist . What is shown as a veiled model on the scribble picture is actually fulfilled as a constant renewal in the cafeteria during the change from bread and wine to the body and blood of Christ, according to the artist's idea.

Altarpiece

The seven pillar-like protrusions of the altar and the high structure are references to the invitation of divine wisdom to the heavenly feast in the book of Proverbs ( Prov 9 : 1-5  EU ):

“Wisdom built her house and hewn her seven pillars. She has slaughtered her cattle, mixed her wine and prepared her table, and sent her maids to shout up on the heights of the city: 'Whoever is still incomprehensible, come here!', And to the fool she says: 'Come, eat of my bread and drink the wine that I mixed! '"

Between the seven pillars there are six acute-angled altar niches, closed by white glazed ceramic latticework, as well as the tabernacle door with the expositorium niche above. The niches are flanked by two apostles as guardian figures and models of the Christian priesthood and were lined with crimson silk on the inside. Artificial lighting should create the impression of a red-hot interior.

The cafeteria top is decorated with flowers, birds flying around and little angels. They are symbolic of the restoration of the original paradisiacal state destroyed by man through Jesus Christ. Noah's dove with the olive branch ( Gen 8.11  EU ) symbolizes the newly acquired peace between God and humanity, which was made possible by Jesus Christ, who brings peace. The depiction of the numerous birds and the house-like design of the altar structure refer to the Eucharistic Psalm ( Ps 84 : 2-5  EU ):

“How adorable is your apartment, you lord of hosts! My soul is consumed with longing for the courts of the Lord. My heart and my flesh, they rejoice towards the living God. The sparrow also found a house and the swallow a nest, where it has laid its young - your altars, Lord of hosts, my God and my King. Blessed are those who live in your house who praise you always. "

tabernacle

The tabernacle and exposition niche are closed by high-gloss polished metal doors made of drifting work . The interior of the exposure niche is lined with majolica gold plates. The high-gloss glaze and the metal create a mystical sparkle through artificial lighting. The representation on the tabernacle door deals with the proclamation of the birth of Jesus to Mary by the Archangel Gabriel . The heavenly messenger is depicted on the left and the Virgin Mary on the right. The announcement of the birth of Jesus refers to the announcement of the birth of Isaac, which can be seen at the bottom of the stipes, by an angel. The pointing of the Archangel Gabriel on the tabernacle door points to the crowned crucified Christ at the top of the altar structure and thus visualizes the determination of the Messiah Jesus formulated in the Gospel of Luke ( Lk 1.32–33  EU ):

“He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David. He will rule over the house of Jacob forever and his rule will never end. "

The incarnation of Jesus through Mary, the descent of God into the womb of the virgin, corresponds to the descent of God on the altar in the sacrificial mass, the formation of Jesus Christ in the Eucharistic event, according to the iconographic-theological conception.

dome

The cross of Christ rises above the high folding dome. Here Jesus is not depicted as a suffering servant of God, but as the victor over sin, suffering and death. His head is not wrapped in a traditional crown of thorns, but adorned with a royal crown. Likewise, Jesus' arms are raised in the position of a triumphant victor after a successful battle. This makes a direct reference to the then newly created ecclesiastical solemnity of Christ the King ( Latin Sollemnitas Domini Nostri Iesu Christi Universorum Regis , Solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ, the King of the Universe ), which Pope Pius XI. with his encyclical Quas primas of December 11, 1925 on the occasion of the Holy Year 1925 for the 1600th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea in 325.

Parallels

The individual forms of the altar of St. Michael show a certain resemblance to the altar designed by Herkommer for the Catholic Church of the Holy Cross in Hüttlingen. In Hüttlingen, however, the angel columns are missing, and the altar has a more traditional layout than the one in Saarbrücken. The unconventional polygonal , tower-like structure of the altar and its blue coloring show parallels to the neo-Gothic high altar of the Bonlanden monastery church , which the renowned sculptor workshop Johann Nepomuk Meintel in Horb am Neckar had made in 1866.

Lady Chapel

The sculptor Franz Lorch designed a Madonna picture for the Marienkapelle. The baptismal window (baptism of Jesus in the Jordan) was created by the Stuttgart painter Rudolf Kuhn. The Stuttgart workshop Saile took care of the execution.

Way of the Cross

The stations of the cross, which are attached to the side aisle walls of St. Michael's Church, were created by Franz Lorch in 1929.

Therese von Lisieux Altarpiece

The altar of the chapel in the right aisle is dedicated to Therese von Lisieux . In 1931, the artist Berthold Müller-Oerlinghausen thematized the life of the saints in 16 square metal works. The middle large plate shows Therese and Jesus Christ in a mystical union. Two groups of pictures each flank the large square central picture in a rectangular arrangement. Among other things, the artist depicts:

  • Therese as a little girl with her family
  • Therese is cured of a spiritual ailment by the smile of a statue of the Virgin Mary.
  • Therese convinces her father Louis Martin to allow her to join the Carmelite order.
  • Therese in the boat on the lake with the sleeping Jesus (cf. Mk 4,35–41  EU )
  • Fifteen-year-old Therese please Pope Leo XIII. for admission to the Carmelite Order.
  • Therese in adoration of the tombs of the holy virgins Catherine of Siena , Agnes of Rome and Cäcilia of Rome
  • Therese chooses Jesus Christ as her mystical bridegroom.
  • Therese says goodbye to her sister Celine.
  • Therese enters the Carmel of Lisieux .
  • On the day of her profession , on September 8, 1890, Therese mystically wed Jesus Christ.
  • Therese paints pictures in the monastery while she is mystically supported in her talent by Jesus.
  • The Prioress of Carmel asks Therese to pray for candidates for the priesthood .
  • Therese teaches three novices .
  • Therese reads the Old Testament and decides to take the “little way” according to the motto “My way to God is love, devotion and trust”.
  • Jesus Christ calls Therese , who is seriously ill with tuberculosis, to him.
  • Jesus Christ plucks Therese as a "little flower", as Therese had described herself in a poem.

Painting

The painting was carried out under the direction of the Karlsruhe church painter Franz Schilling, who had convinced the Saarbrücken client with his work in St. Wendel . Due to a lack of financial means, only a simple, colorful, decorative room atmosphere came into question. At a later date it was to be replaced by a richer painting. For the barrel vault, the design of a carpet was used to support the architectural structure. The chapels were given a simple basic tone of their future richly imagined painting in blue, green, red and purple.

Ironwork

The Apostles' candlesticks were formed from the initials and symbols of the respective Apostles in a combination of vegetable tendrils. The large entrance gate was composed of a large cross shape, in the angular fields of which a web of circles, crosses and triangles appeared to be woven into it.

Building craftsmen working on the construction of St. Michael's Church

The following companies were involved in the construction and design of the church:

  • Hubert Rauwald GmbH (Saarbrücken): excavation, concrete, masonry and reinforced concrete work
  • T. Kleineher Sons (Saarbrücken): Carpentry
  • Josef Nolte (Saarbrücken): Roofing work
  • Ludwig Wagner (Saarbrücken): Plumbing work
  • United stonemason and sculpture workshops Saarbrücken: Stone carving
  • United stonemason and sculpture workshops Saarbrücken, Johann Wolf, Josef Lerch (all Saarbrücken): plastering
  • Saar workshops for the wood industry Fritz Bohle (Dudweiler): Carpentry work
  • Julius Nisch Sons, P. Braun, Albert Philippi (all Saarbrücken): Painting
  • August Jaeckel, Johann Kempf (both Saarbrücken): Electrical installation work
  • Heinrich Wehlen (Saarbrücken): Locksmith work
  • Gebrüder Bergem, Heinrich Wehlem (both Saarbrücken): ironwork
  • Franz Brockhoff (Saarbrücken): wooden windows
  • Angel & Cie. (Saarbrücken): lead glazing
  • Josef Köhl-Rosch (Saarbrücken), Saarbrücker Asbestfußbodenwerke GmbH (Saarbrücken), Hermann Stettiner & Co. (Stuttgart), engineer Biehling (Saarbrücken): Floor covering
  • Theodor Mahr Söhne (Aachen): Air heating system
  • V. Saile, Atelier for Glass Design (Stuttgart): Johannisfenster
  • United workshops for mosaic and glass painting Puhl & Wagner - Gottfried Heinersdorff (Berlin-Treptow): Choir window
  • Villeroy & Boch (Dänischburg near Lübeck): Altar ceramics
  • United stonemason and sculpture workshops Saarbrücken: figure casts
  • State higher technical school for precious metal industry (Schwäbisch Gmünd): Altar devices
  • Craft workshop Holbein (Schwäbisch Gmünd): metalwork of the lighting fixtures
  • Gebr. Späth Orgelbau (Ennetach): Organ
  • Woodworking works Schneider & Kaulen AG (Saarbrücken): confessionals
  • Bell foundry Otto (Hemelingen): Bells
  • B. Seibert (Saarbrücken): Bell installation

organ

  • View to the organ gallery

  • Organ prospectus

  • Roof structure of the church with corridor to the Fernwerk chamber

  • Remains of the destroyed remote control in the remote control chamber

The first organ was built in 1925 by Gebr. Späth Orgelbau on the gallery supported by slender pillars (Opus 312). The gallery could accommodate up to 150 choirs. There is another room above the gallery or organ, which opens onto the nave with a row of arched windows. This was intended to enable a boys' choir to take part in festive masses and concerts from on high. The romantically arranged instrument had 58 sounding stops and was at that time the largest church organ in the diocese of Trier, even bigger than the Trier cathedral organ (55 stops); it was not until 1960 that the organ was surpassed by a new instrument in the Saarbrücken Christ-König-Kirche with 72 registers.

Most of the pipework was housed in two stone organ chambers planned by the architect on the west side of the nave. From 1925 until today, a nine-meter-high rectangular wooden box with sound openings has served as the prospectus ; the pipes are hardly visible from the outside. Above the vault there was a remote mechanism , the sound of which could be heard through an opening in the vault. The free-standing console on the gallery had a pedal and four manuals for main work, positive (swellable), swell and remote work. Fernwerk could also be played with its own small gaming table in the attic.

During the repairs to the roof damage caused by the war in 1946/1947, construction workers stole some of the pipes in the remote plant and turned them into firewood (in the case of the wooden pipes) or sold them (in the case of the metal pipes); this made the remote control unusable.

In the first post-war decades, which were shaped by the ideals of the organ movement , the romantic St. Michael organ was considered out of date and was only subject to limited maintenance with regard to demolition or renovation. After the technical malfunctions had increased considerably since 1981, the organ building workshop Hugo Mayer ( Heusweiler ) was commissioned with renovation work in 1983 . According to a report by the Trier cathedral organist Wolfgang Oehms , the remnants of the remote mechanism were dismantled, the tube-pneumatic action was replaced by an electromagnetic one, playing aids such as fixed combinations and sub-octave couplings , which were no longer considered to be contemporary, were removed and a new console with three instead of four manuals was built. In keeping with the taste of the time, several "bowing" eight-foot registers (Dulciana, Dolce, Aeoline, Echogamba, night horn) that were bound by the romantic sound ideal were removed and replaced by "bright" registers with sharp intonation (Octave 2 ′, Principal 2 ′, Octävlein 1 ′, third 1 3 ⁄ 5  ′, chorale flute 4 ′). Initially contemplated further concessions to the organ movement as a switch to purely mechanical slider chest , the establishment of a baroque on the work principle were not realized for financial reasons based new prospectus and incorporation of other obertönigen registers as Scharfzymbel, Rohrschalmei and Sifflöte. In 1984 the renovated and partially changed organ, which now had 53 sounding stops, was opened to the public.

Efforts have been made since the late 1990s to reverse the “Neo-Baroqueizations” of 1984, which has meanwhile come under criticism, and to restore the instrument as a typical example of a romantic large organ in a more stylish way. Today the instrument has 55 stops on three manual works and a pedal.

I main work C – a 3
1. Bourdon 16 ′
2. Principal 08th'
3. Fugara 08th'
4th Gemshorn 08th'
5. Coarse 08th'
6th Flute major 08th'
7th Flute dolce 08th'
8th. Octave 04 ′
9. Reed flute 04 ′
10. Fifth 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′ N
11. Octave 02 ′ N
12. Mixture V-VI 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′ N
13. Trumpet 08th'
II positive C – a 3 (swellable)
14th Quintatön 16 ′
15th Wooden principal 08th'
16. Gamba 08th'
17th Salicional 08th'
18th Unda maris 08th'
19th Lovely covered 08th'
20th Concert flute 08th'
21st Prestant 04 ′
22nd Distance flute 04 ′
23. Fifth 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′
24. Piccolo 02 ′
25th third 01 3 ⁄ 5  ′
26th Cornett III (= No. 27, 28, 29) 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′
27. Sifflet 01 1 ⁄ 3  ′ N
28. bassoon 16 ′
29 horn 08th'
30th Clairon 04 ′
Tremulant
III Swell C – a 3
31. Lovely covered 16 ′
32. Flute Principal 08th'
33. Quintatön 08th'
34. Vox coelestis 08th'
35. Flute octave 08th'
36. Violin principal 04 ′
37. Soft flute 04 ′
38. Harmonia etheria II 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′
39. Principal 02 ′ N
40. third 01 3 ⁄ 5  ′ N
41. Octavlein 01' N
42. Trumpet 08th'
43. oboe 08th'
Tremulant
Pedal C – g 1
44. Principal 16 ′
45. Violonbass 16 ′
46. Harmonizing bass 16 ′
47. Sub-bass 16 ′
48. Gedacktbass (= No. 31) 16 ′
49. Fifth bass 10 2 ⁄ 3  ′
50. Octave bass 08th'
51. Cello bass 08th'
52. Chorale flute 04 ′ N
53. Back set IV 02 2 ⁄ 3  ′ N
54. trombone 16 ′
55. Tromba 08th'
  • Pairing :
    • Normal coupling: II / I, III / I, III / II, I / P, II / P, III / P; Removed 1984: IV / I, IV / II, IV / III, IV / P, Melodiekoppel II / I.
    • Super octave coupling: I, II / I, III / I, I / P; 1984 additionally inserted: II, III, III / II, II / P, III / P.
    • Sub-octave coupling (all removed in 1984): II, III, IV, II / I, III / II, IV / III.
  • Playing aids : two free combinations, pleno, tutti, crescendo , crescendo starting.
  • Remarks
N = New register added in 1984
  1. ↑ register Dulciana 8 'in 1984 removed
  2. ↑ to 1984: Rauschquinte II 8 '; Today's fifth taken from a rush fifth
  3. ↑ to 1984: Mixture II – III 2 2 ⁄ 3  ′
  4. ^ Register Dolce 8 'removed in 1984
  5. ↑ Register Echogamba 8 ', Äoline 8' and Nachthorn 8 'removed in 1984
  6. ↑ New in 1984, since the original register from 1925 was stolen
  7. ↑ From the night horn 8 ′ removed in the swell
  8. ↑ 1984 weakened
  9. ↑ Removed 1984: Fixed combinations (pp, p, mf, f, ff), flute choir, string choir, trumpet choir, pipe works plus principals, pipe works plus strings, reeds off, hand registers off, sills off, piano pedal II, piano pedal III , General coupling.

Bells

On September 7, 1924, five bronze bells from the Otto bell foundry ( Hemelingen ) were consecrated for St. Michael in Saarbrücken with a total weight of 9,300 kg:

No.
 		 Surname
 		 Mass
(kg)		 Nominal
 		 inscription
 
1 Regina angelorum 3750 b 0 Regina angelorum virgo dux pacis, nobis semper assistat
(Queen of Angels, Virgin and Guide to Peace, stand by us at all times.)
2 St. Michael 2200 of the 1st Sanctus Michael angelus pacis defendat nos in proelio
(St. Michael, angel of peace, defend us in battle.)
3 St. Gabriel 1600 it 1 Sanctus Gabriel angelus fortis templum coelo amicum revisat
(May St. Gabriel, the strong angel, come and go in this godly house)
4th St. Raphael 1100 f 1 Sanctus Raphael angelus comitetur nobiscum in via
(St. Raphael, be our companion on the path of life.)
5 Sanctus angelus custos 600 as 1 Sanctus angelus custos introducat nos in locum quem Deus paravit
(Holy Guardian Angel, lead us to the place that God has prepared)

Except for the smallest bell that was allowed to remain in the church, these bells had to be delivered for armament purposes in 1942 and were melted down. In 1943 a steel bell was also purchased.

St. Michael, bell room of the south tower with the bell "Regina angelorum"

On November 8, 1953, the consecration of six new bronze bells took place, which were cast by the Saarlouis bell foundry in Saarlouis -Fraulautern, founded by Karl (III) Otto and Aloys Riewer

No.
 		 Surname
 		 Mass
(kg)		 Diameter
(cm)		 Nominal
 
1 Regina angelorum 3850 184 a 0
2 St. Michael 2300 156 c 1
3 St. Gabriel 1650 138 d 1
4th St. Raphael 1200 124 e 1
5 Sanctus angelus custos 700 109 g 1
6th St. Joseph 500 92 a 1

The largest bell is in the south tower, the other five are in the north tower. With a total weight of 10,200 kg, St. Michael had the heaviest bell in the Saarland for a short time, until a bell weighing 12,150 kg was purchased in the church Maria Himmelfahrt in Saarlouis-Roden in 1954 . The Saarlouiser Bell Foundry cast more than half of the new church bells in Saarland from 1953 to 1950.

literature

  • Johann Josef Böker : The Michaelskirche on the Rotenberg in Saarbrücken. A church building between historicism and new objectivity. In: 27th report of the State Preservation of Monuments in Saarland 1980–1990. ISBN 3-927856-06-1 , pp. 123-154.
  • Bernhard H. Bonkhoff: The bells of the Saarland. Saarbrücken 1997, ISBN 3-930843-23-4 , p. 137.
  • Josef Baulig, Hans Mildenberger, Gabriele Scherer: Saarbrücken architecture guide. Historical association for the Saar region, Saarbrücken 1998, ISBN 3-921870-05-4 , p. 184.
  • L. Sudbrack, A. Jakob (Ed.): The Catholic Saarland, home and church. Volume 1, Saarbrücken 1954, p. 20.
  • Marlen Dittmann: The building culture in Saarland 1904–1945. (= Saarland-Hefte , No. 3.) Institute for Regional Studies in Saarland, Saarbrücken 2004.
  • Marlen Dittmann: The Catholic parish church of St. Michael in Saarbrücken, built according to plans by Hans Herkommer. (= Art Lexicon Saar, Architecture and Space. ) Verlag St. Johann, Saarbrücken 2013, ISBN 978-3-938070-76-5 .
  • Aloys Echelmeyer: Portal picture and high altar of St. Michaelskirche in Saarbrücken, Saarbrücken 1926.
  • Festschrift for the inauguration of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27th and 28th 1924. (published by the festival committee) Saarbrücken 1924.
  • Willy P. Fuchs-Röll: The new St. Michaelskirche in Saarbrücken-St. Johann. In: Zentralblatt der Bauverwaltung , Volume 45, 1925, No. 13 (from April 1, 1925), pp. 149–153. ( urn : nbn: de: kobv: 109-opus-57747 )
  • Hans Herkommer: Explanations of the building St. Michael Saarbrücken. In: The new Michaelskirche in Saarbrücken-St. Johann, Zentralblatt der Bauverwaltung, No. 13, 1925, p. 150.
  • Marina Lahmann: The work of the architect Hans Herkommer (1887–1956) and his relationship to the trends in German architecture in the first half of the 20th century. (2 volumes) Dissertation, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz 1990.
  • Kristine Marschall: Sacred buildings of classicism and historicism in Saarland. Institute for Regional Studies in Saarland, Saarbrücken 2002, ISBN 3-923877-40-4 , p. 325 f.
  • Günther Meiser: 50 years of St. Michael. Saarbrücken 1974.
  • Wolfgang Peters: The parish church of St. Michael in Saarbrücken. City crown and angel church. A church leader. Geistkirch Verlag, Saarbrücken 2014, ISBN 978-3-938889-05-3 , p. 106.
  • Matthias Schirren (ed.): Modern architecture exemplary. Hans Herkommer (1887-1956). Architectural Gallery Kaiserslautern, Kaiserslautern 2010.
  • Bernhard Schmidt: Organ romance on the Saar. The organ of the Catholic parish church St. Michael, Saarbrücken. In: Orgel international, magazine for organ building and organ music , year 2001, No. 2, pp. 94–97.
  • Elke Sohn: Avant-garde and traditionalist. To the Saarland buildings by the architect Hans Herkommer. In: Saargeschichten, magazine on regional culture and history , year 2013, issue 1, pp. 12-17.
  • Elke Sohn: Herkommer, Hans . In: General Artist Lexicon . The visual artists of all times and peoples (AKL). Volume 72, de Gruyter, Berlin 2011, ISBN 978-3-11-023177-9 , p. 174 f.
  • F. Rudolf Vogel : St. Michaelis Church in Saarbrücken. In: Deutsche Bauhütte , year 1925, no. 29, pp. 128–130.

Web links

Commons : St. Michael  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Hans-Walter Herrmann: Saarbrücken and St. Johann from the beginnings of urban life to its decline in the Thirty Years War , in: Rolf Wittenbrock (ed.): History of the city of Saarbrücken, From the beginnings to industrial awakening (1850) , vol. 1 , Saarbrücken 1999, p. 275.
  2. ↑ Hans-Walter Herrmann: Saarbrücken and St. Johann from the beginnings of urban life to its decline in the 30 Years War , in: Rolf Wittenbrock (Ed.): History of the City of Saarbrücken, From the Beginnings to Industrial Awakening (1850) , Vol. 1 , Saarbrücken 1999, pp. 199-298, here pp. 266-267, p. 271, pp. 273-274, p. 277.
  3. ↑ Johann Peter Muth: Parish historical pictures of the Catholic parishes St. Johann and Saarbrücken for the 150th anniversary of the consecration of the current parish church of St. Johann , St. Johann an der Saar 1908, p. 18.
  4. ↑ Hans-Walter Herrmann: Saarbrücken and St. Johann from the beginnings of urban life to its decline in the 30 Years War , in: Rolf Wittenbrock (Ed.): History of the City of Saarbrücken, From the Beginnings to Industrial Awakening (1850) , Vol. 1 , Saarbrücken 1999, pp. 199-298, here p. 271.
  5. ^ Johann Peter Muth: Parish historical pictures of the Catholic parishes of St. Johann and Saarbrücken for the 150th anniversary of the consecration of the current parish church of St. Johann , St. Johann an der Saar 1908, p. 28.
  6. ^ Karl August Schleiden: Illustrated History of the City of Saarbrücken , Dillingen / Saar 2009, pp. 71–72.
  7. ^ Karl August Schleiden: Illustrated History of the City of Saarbrücken, Dillingen / Saar 2009, p. 72.
  8. ↑ Johann Peter Muth: Parish historical pictures of the Catholic parishes of St. Johann and Saarbrücken for the 150th anniversary of the consecration of the current parish church of St. Johann, St. Johann an der Saar 1908, pp. I – V and pp. 28–31.
  9. ^ Karl August Schleiden: Illustrated History of the City of Saarbrücken , Dillingen / Saar 2009, p. 72.
  10. ^ Johann Peter Muth: Parish historical pictures of the Catholic parishes of St. Johann and Saarbrücken on the 150th anniversary of the consecration of the current parish church of St. Johann , St. Johann an der Saar 1908, pp. 28–31.
  11. ↑ Echelmeyer Alois, born December 6, 1867 in Riesenbeck / Westphalia, † April 1, 1929 in Saarbrücken, buried in the parish church of St. Michael in St. Johann, ordained a priest on April 2, 1892 in Trier, in 1912 appointed pastor in St. Johann , 1914–1929 Dean of Saarbrücken, 1922 appointment as papal secret chamberlain, April 15, 1929 retirement (Journal for the history of the Saar region, 46, 1998, p. 117.)
  12. ↑ Hans-Berthold Busse: The architect Wilhelm Hector, church building around 1900, Regensburg 2018, pp. 264–266.
  13. ↑ Hans Josef Böker: The Michaelskirche on the Rotenberg in Saarbrücken. A church building between historicism and new objectivity. In: 27th report of the State Preservation of Monuments in Saarland 1980–1990. Pp. 123-154.
  14. ↑ Festschrift for the inauguration of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, p. 60.
  15. ↑ Festschrift for the inauguration of the St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, pp. 56–59.
  16. ↑ Festschrift for the inauguration of the St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, pp. 59–60.
  17. ↑ Festschrift for the inauguration of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, p. 85.
  18. ↑ Adenauer welcomes the Saarlanders. In: Frankfurter Zeitung of January 2, 1957, p. 1.
  19. ↑ Bischöfliches Generalvikariat Trier (ed.): Personal scheme and address directory of the Diocese of Trier for the year 2010. Paulinus-Verlag, Trier 2010, p. 226.
  20. ^ Document on the establishment of the parish and parish Saarbrücken St. Johann
  21. ↑ Document on the establishment of the parish community Saarbrücken St. Johann in the deanery Saarbrücken
  22. ↑ Festschrift for the dedication of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, pp. 61–63.
  23. ^ Saarland, Ministry for the Environment, Energy and Transport (ed.): List of monuments of the Saarland. Sub-monument list state capital Saarbrücken.  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.saarland.de   (PDF), p. 85.
  24. ↑ Kristine Marschall: Sacred buildings of classicism and historicism in Saarland. Institute for Regional Studies in Saarland, Saarbrücken 2002, ISBN 3-923877-40-4 , p. 326.
  25. ^ Josef Baulig, Hans Mildenberger, Gabriele Scherer: Architectural Guide Saarbrücken. Historical association for the Saar region, Saarbrücker Druckerei und Verlag, Saarbrücken 1998, ISBN 3-921870-05-4 , p. 184.
  26. ↑ Festschrift for the inauguration of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. (Ed. By the festival committee) Saarbrücken 1924, pp. 41–42.
  27. ↑ Festschrift for the inauguration of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, p. 42.
  28. ↑ Festschrift for the inauguration of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, p. 46, p. 53.
  29. ↑ Aloys Echelmeyer: Portal picture and high altar of St. Michaelskirche in Saarbrücken, Saarbrücken 1926.
  30. ↑ Kristine Marschall: Sacred buildings of classicism and historicism in Saarland. Institute for Regional Studies in Saarland, Saarbrücken 2002, ISBN 3-923877-40-4 , p. 325.
  31. ^ Festschrift for the inauguration of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, p. 41.
  32. ^ Julius Fekete : Art and cultural monuments in the city and district of Heilbronn. Stuttgart 2002.
  33. ^ Albert Schenk: 950 years of Hüttlingen. Chronology of the church up to the present. Aalen 1974, pp. 102-106.
  34. ^ Festschrift for the inauguration of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, pp. 44–45.
  35. ↑ Festschrift for the inauguration of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, p. 46.
  36. ↑ Sybille Fraquelli: A colorful dream. Cologne's Romanesque churches in historicism. (Accompanying volume to the exhibition in the Cologne City Museum, 7 July to 16 September 2012) (= Revolution! Decoration ... Cologne in the 19th Century , Volume 2.) Cologne 2012, p. 75.
  37. ↑ Festschrift for the inauguration of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, p. 47.
  38. ↑ Aloys Echelmeyer: Portal picture and high altar of St. Michaelskirche in Saarbrücken, Saarbrücken 1926.
  39. ↑ Festschrift for the dedication of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, pp. 47–48.
  40. ↑ Géza Jászai: Evangelist or God's symbols ?, On the iconology of the Maiestas Domini representation of the Carolingian Vivian Bible, in: Das Münster, Zeitschrift für Christian Kunst und Kunstwissenschaft, 1, 2019, 72nd year, Regensburg 2019, p 25-29.
  41. ^ Albert Schenk: 950 years of Hüttlingen. Chronology of the church up to the present. Aalen 1974, pp. 102-106.
  42. ^ Adolf Schahl: Bonlanden Monastery Church. (= Schnell Kunstführer , No. 1449.) Munich / Zurich 1983, p. 10.
  43. ↑ Festschrift for the inauguration of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, p. 48.
  44. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=59&v=usqLqmqHv2Q&feature=emb_logo , accessed on March 25, 2020.
  45. ↑ Marlen Dittmann: The Catholic parish church of St. Michael in Saarbrücken, built according to plans by Hans Herkommer (= Saar Art Lexicon, Architecture and Space), Saarbrücken 2013, p. 25.
  46. ↑ Festschrift for the dedication of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, pp. 49–51.
  47. ↑ Festschrift for the inauguration of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, p. 52.
  48. ↑ Festschrift for the dedication of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, pp. 77–78.
  49. ↑ Festschrift for the dedication of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, p. 44.
  50. ^ Matthias Thömmes: Organs in Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland. Paulinus-Verlag, Trier 1981, ISBN 3-7902-0137-5 . P. 202 f.
  51. ^ Bernhard Schmidt: Organ romance on the Saar. The organ of the Catholic parish church St. Michael, Saarbrücken. In: Organ international. Journal for Organ Building and Organ Music ( ISSN  1433-6464 ), Volume 2001, No. 2, p. 94.
  52. ^ Bernhard Schmidt: Organ romance on the Saar. The organ of the Catholic parish church St. Michael, Saarbrücken. In: Orgel international, magazine for organ building and organ music ( ISSN  1433-6464 ), year 2001, No. 2, p. 96.
  53. ^ Gerhard Reinhold: Otto Glocken - family and company history of the bell foundry dynasty Otto . Self-published, Essen 2019, ISBN 978-3-00-063109-2 , p. 588 .
  54. ↑ Gerhard Reinhold: Church bells - Christian world cultural heritage, illustrated using the example of the bell founder Otto, Hemelingen / Bremen . Nijmegen / NL 2019, p. 556 , urn : nbn: nl: ui: 22-2066 / 204770 (dissertation at Radboud Universiteit Nijmegen).
  55. ^ Gerhard Reinhold: Otto bells . 2019, p. 308 and 309 .
  56. ^ Festschrift for the dedication of St. Michaelskirche am Rotenberg Saarbrücken / St. Johann on September 27 and 28, 1924. Saarbrücken 1924, pp. 79–82.
  57. ^ Gerhard Reinhold: Otto bells . 2019, p. 87 to 95, 173, 564, 570 .
  58. ↑ Bernhard H. Bonkhoff: The bells of the Saarland. Saarbrücker Druckerei und Verlag, Saarbrücken 1997, ISBN 3-930843-23-4 , p. 142.

Coordinates: 49 ° 14 '18 "  N , 7 ° 0' 7.6"  E