Wenkbach fortified church
The fortified church in Wenkbach in Marburg-Biedenkopf is a built in the 12th century and then repeatedly remodeled church that since the Reformation the Protestant serves denomination.
Location and building
The fortified church is located on Dorfstrasse in the historic center of Wenkbach, not far from the town house. It offers space for around 230 people. There are over 90 seats on the benches in the gallery.
history
By far the oldest part of the fortified church in Wenkbach is the stone defense tower. According to studies, this probably dates from the 12th century, so it is significantly older than the oldest known mention of Wenkbach in 1302. The defense tower is still largely preserved in its original form. Only the roof of the tower had to be fundamentally renewed several times, most recently in 1949 due to damage in the Second World War .
Initially a wooden nave was attached to the tower , in which around 80 people could find a seat. This was renovated and renewed several times over the centuries to the beginning of the 20th century. In 1905 it was finally demolished after showing major damage as early as 1850, which could only be repaired poorly. This year, a new stone nave with a pulpit and organ was built within six months for around 17,000 marks . During this work there was an accident: a carter who was supposed to deliver the stones for the church had an accident and eventually died of his injuries. A few months earlier, at the end of May, the foundation stone for the new building had been laid. On September 1st, the Oberhessische Zeitung reported :
- "The work to renovate [the] 12th century [Wenkbach] church is proceeding vigorously and [it] is to be hoped that the church can soon be used again."
The new nave was completed in December 1905. The pulpit, which had been in use in the wooden church since 1666, was reused.
In the decades since the founding of the Federal Republic of Germany , further work was carried out on the church. In 1959 the damaged white exterior plaster was removed and not replaced. Instead, the sandstones underneath were cleaned and the joints made professionally. The church thus changed its external appearance. Some changes were also made inside this year. The wall paintings from 1905 had already been largely destroyed by moisture and the remains were painted over. Also in 1959 an automatic ringing system was purchased for the bells. In 1963 the Wenkbach church received a circulating air heating system and a small boiler room. An interior renovation of the church was necessary in 1993. The last big change was the purchase of a new organ. In 1997 the new musical instrument, which cost more than 130,000 marks, was inaugurated.
Bells
The largest bell is the so-called "Saint Katherine". The bell, which weighs 280 kilograms, dates back to 1465. It remained in the church tower until 1942, when it had to be removed and handed over at the instigation of the National Socialists . After the end of the Second World War, it was discovered in Hamburg and brought back to Wenkbach in 1947. After the damaged roof was replaced, it was put back in its original place. The second bell, which also dates from the 15th century and is significantly lighter and smaller at 160 kilograms, remained in the church during the war.
altar
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The altar of the church is already several hundred years old. It has been preserved in its original form to this day. In 1891 it served the Impressionist painter Carl Bantzer as a template for his picture Last Supper in a Hessian village church. He later wrote about his picture:
- “A completion of the newly started picture was not conceivable either in the school hall or in a church itself, and so in the spring of 1891 I came to the decision to build a wooden church myself, based on the model of the church in the village of Wenkbach near Marburg. [...] The Wenkbach church gave me what I was looking for: a simple, whitewashed room with colored benches and a twilight chancel. "
The picture represented Bantzer's first great success. It was sold to the National Gallery in Berlin in 1899, loaned to Marburg in 1934 and has been in the possession of the University Museum of Philipps University since 1968 .
Web links
Coordinates: 50 ° 44 ′ 43.4 " N , 8 ° 42 ′ 59" E