Fortified church Ichstedt

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Drawing of the fortified church Ichstedt, around 1920

The fortified church Ichstedt , also known as the "old tower", is a fortified church in Ichstedt that was built in the second half of the 12th century and is one of the oldest fortified churches in Thuringia . It was built to replace a dilapidated wooden church that was in the same place. The parish function of the church ended in the 15th century and the fortified church was replaced by the predecessor church of St. Wigberti church in the center of Ichstedt, which was first mentioned in 1436. In 1717 the St. Wigberti Church was built in its present form. From the 15th century the fortified church or the old tower was used as a poor house and partly as a mortuary.

Specialty

The Romanesque fortified church is rather untypical for the central German area and its architecture resembles fortified churches in the central Rhine area and in today's Romania . When it was built, the church had three openings on the ground floor and is therefore unique as a former church that has largely been preserved in its original form. The former function as a fortified church is therefore rather improbable and it could also have been a pilgrimage church due to its character .

architecture

The church was built from red sandstone from the quarries of the Kyffhäuser Mountains. With the fortress-like structure, it served not only as a place of worship but also as a place of refuge for the population in the event of warlike threats. The nave is massive and spanned by a barrel vault. In the upper part of the church, a fortress room served as a refuge and defense area, but also to store valuable church goods.

Geographical location

The fortified church is located on the eastern foothills of the Kyffhäuser Mountains in the municipality of Ichstedt . The monument stands on the hill of what is now the upper village of Ichstedt. It was once built on the terraced hill towards the edge of the village.

Decay and Reconstruction

State 2019

After the Second World War , the monument was exposed to weathering and decay due to the dismantling of the half-timbered gable with the wooden roof.

Since 2012 the traditional rural association Ichstedt e. V. for the protection of the monument from further deterioration and the reconstruction of the fortified church. Since December 23, 2013 the choir has been protected by a new roof.

Others

The fortified church can be visited by arrangement with the traditional rural association Ichstedt.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d Wehrkirche Ichstedt ( Memento of the original from April 5, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. H. Stolze's website, accessed June 20, 2017. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.kyffnet.de
  2. ^ Parish area Bad Frankenhausen, Ichstedt website of the Evangelical Church District Bad Frankenhausen-Sondershausen, accessed on June 20, 2017.
  3. ↑ a b c The "Old Tower" in Ichstedt - oldest fortified church in Thuringia Website of the traditional rural association Ichstedt eV, accessed on June 20, 2017.
  4. ↑ a b St. Magnus (Bonifatius) church ruin zu Ichstedt Website "Karstwanderweg Südharz" ", accessed on June 20, 2017.

Coordinates: 51 ° 23 ′ 11.2 "  N , 11 ° 12 ′ 18.8"  E