St. Remigius (Cologne)

St. Remigius in Cologne-Sürth

St. Remigius is a Catholic parish church in the Sürth district of Cologne . The church, built in the classicism style, was consecrated in 1830. The community has around 4600 members.

history

Memorial sheet to the church donor and his wife

A three-bay Romanesque chapel stood in Alte Kirchgasse until construction began on the parish church of St. Remigius . Between the 18th and 19th centuries the population rose from 250 to around 1200. The Cologne law professor Peter Andreas Breuer and his wife donated the building of a new parish church. The large cast iron inscription plaque above the main portal as well as a memorial sheet in the entrance hall remind of the donor couple. Johann Josef Baudewin received the order and built the church between 1825 and 1830. On July 25, 1830 the church was consecrated. At that time it was dedicated to Saints Peter and Andreas , the namesake of Breuer.

In 1901 the church was completely renovated and refurbished, as was the addition of the sacristy; on July 5, 1904 the new inauguration took place. Since then, the church has had the patronage of St. Remigius . In 1971, the Cologne architect Hannsjosef Schäfer carried out a renovation that resulted in another redesign. In 1998 the church was renovated again, with new color accents and a change in some of the furnishings. The nave columns have been in a light pink since then, the Madonna on the crescent moon was hung from a free-standing column on the right column of the altar area, the statue of Saint Remigius moved from the wall of the north aisle to the column of the nave at the same height. The altar canopy got three sculptures and the lecture cross , which has served as an altar cross since then, was replaced by a forked cross with a crucifixion group .

architecture

Exterior construction

West facade with sculptures of St. Petrus and Andreas (from left)

The church with its 31 meter high bell tower, located on Sürther Hauptstrasse and at the same time in its own park (former cemetery), draws attention to the basilica space through the west facade . In general, the facade design follows the example of early Christian basilicas in Italy. A contrast is created between the brickwork and the white window bars, panels and eaves. The mix of different architectural styles that are typical for the architect Baudewin is striking: Gothic elements can be found in the upper clad windows of the nave and in the sound openings of the bell tower and the tower lantern.

The portal with a large aedicula and segmented gable, which rests on the Tuscan columns, was based on the Baroque model. Above this is a group of three arches; the two blind niches on the sides of the central window are decorated with statues of Saints Peter and Andrew. The gable above it has ancient forms. The "Welsche" tower dome on the bell tower forms the eastern counterpart to the likewise baroque main portal in the west facade.

inner space

The diverse mix of styles is continued inside the church. Through a short hall with porch leads into the nave of the basilica. The light falls through the gothic-style windows in the upper storeys and the round windows in the side aisles. The main nave and side aisles are separated from each other by seven strong Tuscan columns; the gaze is drawn to the altar. The columns have flat segmental arches instead of the stylish horizontal architrave . The church interior is not covered flat, but rather vaulted, with the central nave spanned by seven cross-ribbed vaults that are pressed in the shape of a segment . The chancel is highlighted by a seven-pointed star vault. The vaults are based on short, wooden services that do not have a load-bearing function. From an architectural point of view, antiquity and the Middle Ages are linked.

Furnishing

Main altar with altar canopy

The baroque furnishings of St. Remigius are part of the dissolved inventory of the former Cologne baroque church of St. Johann Evangelist , which had to be demolished in 1829 due to the uncovering of the Cologne cathedral choir . These include the voluminous pulpit , the vestibule, the sculptures of Our Lady on the crescent moon and Saint Remigius, as well as the two confessionals . The crucifixion group, which is let into the north wall below the gallery , formed the former high altar. The Cologne sculptor Ferdinand Hachenberg created the altar canopy with Corinthian columns made of red Lahn marble in 1901 . The marble mosaic floor based on a design by Heinrich Renard also dates from this year . In 1935, HD Simons created the two colored wooden sculptures of Saints Elisabeth and Joseph in the south aisle.

In 1954 H. Mettmann added the colored, ornamental windows. Theo Heiermann from Sürth added the black marble baptismal font in the entrance area in 1961. The attachment for the holy water font depicts Noah's ark and is integrated into the baptismal font.

In the course of the renovation, new marble work by Theo Heiermann was added to the church in 1971/72. These include the main altar made of light gray marble (with relics of Saint Albertus Magnus ), the sacramental altar made of red marble with bronze tabernacle and the ambo made of black marble.

organ

The organ contains parts from the old work of Franz Wilhelm Sonreck from 1855. In the 20th century the organ was rebuilt by Romanus Seifert (Kevelaer). It has 34 registers , a pocket drawer and electro-pneumatic action . The organ case with its baroque carving was created by the Cologne sculptor Christoph Stephan.

I main work C–
Pommer	16 ′
Principal	8th'
Down major	8th'
Dumped	8th'
Quintatön	8th'
octave	4 ′
flute	4 ′
Fifth	2 ² ⁄ ₃  ′
Octave	2 ′
Cornet IV
Mixture IV
Trumpet	8th'
Dulcian	16 ′
Zimbel III

II breastwork C–
Hollow flute	8th'
Salicional	8th'
Principal	4 ′
flute	4 ′
Pointed flute	2 ′
Fifth	1 ¹ ⁄ ₃  ′
Scharff III-IV
third	1 ³ ⁄ ₅  ′
Sif flute	1'
Krummhorn	8th'
Schalmey	4 ′
Tremulant

Pedal C–
double bass	16 ′
Sub bass	16 ′
Octavbass	8th'
Dacked bass	8th'
Choral bass	4 ′
Night horn	2 ′
trombone	16 ′
bassoon	8th'
Backset V

Coupling : II / I (also as sub-octave coupling), I / P, II / P (also as super-octave coupling)
Playing aids : Two free combinations, one free pedal combination, crescendo roller

Bells

Marienglocke - bell 2

Four bells hang in the tower , which were cast in Gescher by the bell foundry Petit & Gebr. Edelbrock in 1954 . They replace the three bells from the interwar period. The clock strikes every half and full hour via the big bell. That sounds to the prayer times at 7, 12 and 19 o'clock Angelus , wherein first the large bell 3 × 3 times is struck and then the Marie bell (2 bell) nachläutet for few minutes. Two bells ring during the weekday masses, three on Sundays (bells 3 + 2 + 1) and only on high feasts do all four bells ring together for mass. The big bell rings for exequies, the second smallest (bell 3) for baptisms and two bells for weddings. During the change in the mass, a double signal of 3 strikes is given over the striking mechanism of the big bell.

No.	Surname	Ø (mm)	Mass (kg)	Nominal ( HT -¹ /₁₆ )	inscription
1	Remigius	1160	1000	f ¹ -2	"St. My name is Remigius, I protect the congregation, on holidays I ring the bell. "
2	Maria	1020	680	g ¹ -1	"St. I priss [sic!] Mary, I remind of Fatima, in the anniversary year I was born. "
3	Michael	835	400	b ¹ +2	"St. I am Michael, I escort the dead, I call to daily sacrifice. "
4th	Maria Goretti	750	270	c ² +2	"Call me Maria Goretti, I help youth to strive for purity."

literature

Holger Brülls: St. Remigius Cologne-Sürth . (Art Guide 1873). Schnell & Steiner, Munich a. a. 1990, OCLC 165548318 .
Hiltrud Kier: Churches in Cologne . Bachem, Cologne 2000, ISBN 3-7616-1395-4 .