Nikolauskapelle (Geich)

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Nikolauskapelle

The Roman Catholic St. Nicholas Chapel in Geich , one of the oldest historical and ecclesiastical monuments in the Düren district , dates from the 11th / 12th centuries. Century. It is entered under number 25 in the list of architectural monuments in Langerwehe .

Although it is on Langerweh parish, the chapel belongs to the parish of St. Michael , Echtz .

General

St. Nicholas from the southeast before the last renovation (2010). The Hercules relief can be seen in the upper area.

The building stands in the midst of fields and meadows northeast of the village of Geich, immediately after leaving the village in the direction of Echtz . It is surrounded by a quarry stone wall that encloses a plot of land with old trees and a few individual graves. The old Geich memorial , which had to give way to road construction in the village , has also been located here since the 1970s .

The small hall with a retracted round apse was built in rubble stone in the 11th and 12th centuries. The walls are divided by arched windows. The entrance on the north side is equipped with bluestone walls , the lintel is straight, the door is a replica of the previous one from the late Gothic period. During this time, which was buttresses purposed on the south side, the roof increases and today verschieferte roof skylights built on the west gable. The building is equipped with a gable roof covered. In the south-eastern corner of the outer wall there is a Roman spoil with a Hercules relief. During renovation work in 1763, a sacristy was added and a gallery with a rococo staircase built in.

In the Middle Ages there was a hospital next to the chapel , in the language of the time an inn. This was directly on the passing military and trade route from Frankfurt to Aachen and on to Antwerp . This route was also known as the coronation route of the German kings in the Middle Ages, because it led from the election site Frankfurt to the coronation site Aachen. The inn and hospital offered travelers overnight accommodation and meals. The chapel is mentioned in a document in connection with the Schwarzenbroich monastery , which was founded in 1340 by Werner von Merode. The monks took care of the sick travelers in the hospital.

Renovations

Nikolauskapelle, inside

The building was damaged in World War II and renovated in 1958. Two Romanesque windows to the right and left of the apse were uncovered again and a seating niche for the pastor was found to the right of the altar and made usable again. Another restoration took place in 1978. The St. Nicholas window in the apse, which was broken during a break-in, was replaced in 1986 by a new window from the Oidtmann company . The roof turret was completely renovated in 1988.

Renovation work was carried out in the first half of 2014. The unprofessionally created stucco ceiling was dismantled and replaced by a Rabitz ceiling based on the old existing structure. Extensive renovation measures were carried out in the area of ​​the roof structure . The supporting beams of the ceiling construction were renewed. Truss base points were added. The masonry was renovated both outside and inside. The quarry stone wall crowns were completely renewed in the area of ​​the ceiling beams. A complete interior painting completed the renovation. According to a dendrological study, the wood of the roof structure was felled in the winter of 1177/78.

Until the last renovation, there was a small intermediate floor in the Gothic roof structure. In earlier centuries this was used to store supplies for times of need.

On December 5, 2014, a statue of Nicholas was consecrated, donated by the Gaspers from Echtz , because the statue of the namesake at the time was stolen in a burglary a few years ago.

Bells

No.
 		 Surname
 		 Diameter
(mm)		 Mass
(kg, approx.)		 Percussive
( HT - 1 / 16 )		 Caster
 		 Casting year
 		 metal
 
1 - 550 120 fis ″ - 1433 bronze
2 - 500 58 H" - 15th century bronze

Bell 1 from 1433 bears the inscription " AVE MARIA , GRACIA PLENA, DOMINUS TECUM." (Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you.) It was stolen in the 1960s, but was later secured through anonymous information from a Cologne scrap metal dealer.

history

The Nikolauskapelle was first mentioned on September 7, 1337. In 1410 an inn and a hospital for pilgrims and the sick were created from the foundation of Wilhelm von Merode and Ritter Wilhelm von Troyen . The occasion was the will of the brother-in-law Wilhelm von Troyens, who died on the pilgrimage to Jerusalem . The administration of the complex was entrusted to the mayor of Echtz and the spiritual care to the knight order of the Schwarzenbroich monastery, represented by their priors and the pastor of Echtz. At the beginning of the 19th century, a monastery of the Fathers of the Holy Spirit was set up in Geich itself, which took care of the inn chapel and the hospital. After the destruction in the war, only parts of the monastery cellar remained, on which new houses were built (today Echtzer Straße 6–8).

Web links

Commons : Nikolauskapelle (Geich)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ War cemeteries and memorials in the Düren district. Martin Fröhlich, accessed April 10, 2020 .
  2. ↑ renovations
  3. ↑ Church window of the Nikolauskapelle. Research Center for Glass Painting of the 20th Century, accessed on April 9, 2020 .
  4. ↑ Dürener Zeitung from December 5, 2014
  5. ↑ Norbert Jachtmann: Bell music in the Düren region ( online )
  6. ↑ Information board inside the chapel
  7. ^ Heimat- und Vereinsblatt Echtz-Konzendorf, Edition 2048, December 2011.

Coordinates: 50 ° 49 ′ 6.7 ″  N , 6 ° 24 ′ 11.9 ″  E