Wendalinus basilica

The Wendalinusbasilika , also called Wendelsdom, is in the upper town of St. Wendel location late Gothic hall church from the 14th century with the tomb of St. Wendelin . The basilica with its vault paintings is one of the outstanding sacred buildings in the Saarland and an important pilgrimage church. The last great pilgrimage with the display of the bones of St. Wendelin took place in October 2017 on the 1400th year of the death of St. Wendelin (d. 617 AD).

As a predecessor church, a church was built in the 9th or early 10th century on the site of today's basilica, to which the relics of St. Wendelin were brought during the 11th century. In 1338 a parsonage was first mentioned next to the church.

In general, the Wendalinus basilica is - not quite aptly - referred to as the cathedral . For example, there is the car park at the cathedral or the cathedral gallery in the immediate vicinity.

Building history

It is assumed that the construction of the church was initiated by the Trier Elector Baldwin of Luxembourg (he was the secular ruler of the city of St. Wendel from 1328), there is no evidence for this. According to Brower, his successor, Bishop Boemund, is said to have built the church with the citizens of St. Wendel, which was then consecrated in 1360 (Brower does not differentiate between choir and church, the date “ Pentecost ” is a modern addition). According to dendrochronological tests, the roof of the choir was not erected before 1408.

After the choir, the central nave was built in a late Gothic style. It was given slender pillars, and at a great height a reticulated vault spanned the nave . In 1462 the construction was finished with the completion of the ship; The most recent (2011) dendrochronological samples show that the wood used was felled in 1460.

It is unknown to what extent the westwork was changed during the more than one hundred years of renovation and new building measures. The tower substructure is square and sturdy and has three towers: on the right and left the Gothic side towers, in between the central tower (usually called the onion tower ) crowned with a baroque Welschen dome in 1753 . There it reaches a height of 69 m. The three-part structure of the Gothic tower front of the Wendelskirche shows architectural parallels to the now destroyed tower front of the St. Nicholas Church in Zerbst / Anhalt and the Severikirche in Erfurt .

The Wendalinus basilica is 52 m long, the central nave 17 m high.

Equipment and importance

The pulpit was probably donated in 1462 by Nikolaus von Kues , whose benefice St. Wendel belonged. It bears his coat of arms and is considered the second oldest stone pulpit in Germany. The most important work of art in the church is the Holy Sepulcher in the northeast corner of the choir, a group of eight clay figures that were created around 1480. From an art-historical point of view, the burial group exhibits late Gothic elements, but also Renaissance stylistic devices .

Wendalinus basilica, high altar with reliquary niche above the tabernacle

The high grave , which contains the ark with the bones of St. Wendelin, was created around 1500 and is located behind the reredos of the high altar. This was commissioned in 1896 from the art joinery Brodmüller from Aachen and executed by the Aachen sculptor Lambert Piedboeuf . There is a barred opening above the tabernacle through which the reliquary box can be pushed into the high grave behind the altar. The unusual arrangement enables the pilgrims to cross under the grave during processions and thus to be able to call down the blessing of St. Wendelin. The two reliefs to the left of the exposition niche show Wendelin as a shepherd and a hermit. The two reliefs to the right of the niche address Wendelin's legendary election and ordination as Abbot of Tholey as well as his death. Four angel sculptures, which are set up to the side of the relief panels, hold up the instruments of Jesus' suffering (from left to right: lance with sponge, sweat cloth, crown of thorns and crucifixion nails, cross). Above the relief panels with the life of St. Wendelin are sculptures of St. Nicholas of Myra (right) and St. Sebastian (left). The carver has arranged a youth in a salt barrel at the feet of St. Nicholas. Sebastian is shown as a Roman officer.

Eight relief medallions by the carver have been placed under the relief panels for the Wendelin vita. On the left you can see the symbols of the four evangelists (from left to right: the people for Matthew, the lion for Mark, the bull for Luke, the eagle for John). The four evangelists Matthew , Mark , Luke and John can be seen here as witnesses to the Incarnation as well as to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. On the right, the medallions show symbols of the Incarnation of Jesus and his resurrection from the dead. From left to right you can see a phoenix that burns itself and rises again from the flames, a male lion who brings its stillborn cubs to life by licking on the third day after birth, a dove that hovers over an indicated surface of water and into the light flies, as well as a unicorn as a symbol of the Incarnation of God in the womb of the Virgin Mary. Above the exposure niche, angels with white cloths flank a pelican that sticks its beak in the chest to feed its young in the nest. According to the Physiologus , an early Christian animal compendium, the pelican opens its own breast with its beak, lets its blood drip onto its dead young and brings them back to life. This was allegorically related to the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ, making the pelican a common motif in Christian iconography . A crucifixion group rises above the Pelikanskulpur . To the left of the cross stands Mary , the mother of Jesus. On the right is the apostle John .

The inscription on the neo-high Gothic altar reads "Sapientia aedificavit sibi domum miscuit vinum et posuit mensam". The Latin inscription is a shortened quote from the Old Testament book of proverbs ( Spr 9,1-2 EU ) and means in German translation: "Wisdom has built her house, mixed her wine and already set her table".

In the center of the choir is a tumba from around 1400 , which on special occasions serves as a display table for the installation of the ark with the bones of Wendelin (the tumba stood in the Magdalenenkapelle until 1803 and was only brought into the basilica as a school building after its profanation) . It has a bronze cover plate that was created in 1924 by the sculptor Georg Busch . Wendelin is depicted, around whose head his sheep are grouped. On the two side parts of the tumba there are beautifully carved figures of the apostles.

The church received a new organ in 1612, built by the masters Niklas and Florence Houque from Trier. In 1672 three bells were consecrated, this ringing remained until 1794. In 1782 a new organ was built by Friedrich Carl Stumm , and in 1934 the new Klais organ was inaugurated . Today's bell peal dates from 1951. The four bells were consecrated in 1954 by Dean Johannes Barth. The Wendelinus bell weighs 2,880 kg, the Sebastianus bell 1,650 kg, the Marien bell 1,150 kg and the Josef bell 850 kg.

In the left aisle there is a baroque side altar with motifs from the life of St. Sebastian . In the right aisle you can find its counterpart , a side altar from the same period, which is dedicated to the mother of Jesus. Next to the Marien Altar is a very beautifully carved Pietà in neo-Gothic style .

In 1960 the church was opened by Pope John XXIII. raised to the minor basilica . From 1979 to 1981 the basilica was renovated.

The basilica is the starting point for a 15 km long, laid out pilgrimage route to Tholey Abbey , where Wendelin is said to have been abbot. The organ music series takes place in the church every year in August and September .

Photo gallery
Wendalinus basilica (south view)
Klais organ
Coat of arms procession
Grave tumba with cover plate by Georg Busch
Apostle row (Tumba, left side)
Apostle row (Tumba, right side)
inside view
View of the choir with a neo-Gothic altar
Pulpit (1462)
Entombment group (around 1480)

Organs

Klais organ of the basilica (Central Stumm Prospect)

The organ of the Wendalinus basilica was reconstructed from 1933 to 1934 by the organ building company Klais (Bonn) behind the historic prospectus of the organ by Friedrich Carl Stumm (Sulzbach) from 1782. The instrument has 57 registers , including 9 extended registers and a wind reduction in the pedal . The actions are electric. The tubular bell chimes, which can be controlled from the fourth manual, are located in the positive on the left.

I Hauptwerk C – g ³
1.	Principal	16 ′
2.	Principal	08th'
3.	Wooden flute	08th'
4th	Salicional	08th'
5.	Praestant	04 ′
6th	Reed flute	04 ′
7th	Fifth	02 ² ⁄ ₃  ′
8th.	Super octave	02 ′
9.	Mixture IV-VI	01 ¹ ⁄ ₃  ′
10.	Bombard	16 ′
11.	Trumpet	08th'
12.	Head trumpet	04 ′

II positive IC-g ³
13.	diapason	8th'
14th	Night horn covered 0	8th'
15th	Principal	4 ′
16.	Singing cloaked	4 ′
17th	Flageolet	2 ′
18th	Terzian II	1 ³ ⁄ ₅  ′
19th	Scharff IV	1 ¹ ⁄ ₃  ′
20th	Dulcian	8th'

III Swell C – g ³
21st	Darling Dumped	16 ′
22nd	Violin principal	08th'
23.	Quintatön	08th'
24.	Soft flute	08th'
25th	Beat	08th'
26th	Octave	04 ′
27.	Flute	04 ′
28.	Forest flute	02 ′
29	Mixture IV-V	01 ¹ ⁄ ₃  ′
30th	Trumpet harm.	08th'
31.	oboe	08th'
	Tremulant

IV positive IIC-g ³
32.	Reed flute	08th'
33.	Gemshorn	08th'
34.	Principal	04 ′
35.	recorder	04 ′
36.	Schwegel	02 ′
37.	Nasard	01 ¹ ⁄ ₃  ′
38.	Night horn	01'
39.	Nasard	02 ² ⁄ ₃  ′
40.	third	01 ³ ⁄ ₅  ′
41.	Cymbel III	0 ¹ ⁄ ₃ ′
42.	Rankett	16 ′
43.	Krummhorn	08th'
	Tremulant
	Carillon

Pedals C – f ¹
44.	Stand (Ext. No. 46)	32 ′
45.	Principal bass	16 ′
46.	Sub bass	16 ′
47.	Subtle bass	16 ′
48.	Fifth (ext. No.46)	10 ² ⁄ ₃  ′
59.	Octave bass (Ext. No. 45)	08th'
50.	Bass flute (ext. No.46 )	08th'
51.	Choral bass (Ext. No. 45)	04 ′
52.	Gedackt bass (ext. No.46 )	04 ′
53.	Flat flute ( ext.no.46 )	02 ′
54.	Mixture IV-V
55.	trombone	16 ′
56.	Bass Trumpet (Ext. No. 55)	08th'
57.	Schalmey (Ext. No. 55)	04 ′

Coupling : II / I, III / I, IV / I, IV / III, I / P, II / P, III / P, sub- and super-octave coupling
Playing aids : 4000-fold setting system , fixed combinations (pleno, tutti), storage, crescendo roller
Remarks:

↑ Left sidebar.
↑ Right pages.
^ Tubular bell chimes.
↑ Wind weakening from No. 46.

A chest organ from the Mühleisen company ( Leonberg ) has been in the choir of the basilica since 1994 . The instrument has four stops on a manual (Bourdon 8 ', Rohrflöte 4', Principal 2 ', fifth 1 ¹ ⁄ ₃  ′).

Bells

A six-part bronze bell from the Mabilon bell foundry in Saarburg has been hanging in the tower of the Wendalinus basilica since 1951. The bells hang in a steel bell cage.

No.	Surname	Ø (cm)	Mass (kg)	Nominal	inscription
1	Wendelinus	164	2,800	h ⁰
2	Sebastianus	143	1,650	d ¹
3	Maria	126	1,150	e ¹
4th	Joseph	111	850	f sharp ¹
5	'	93	500	a ¹
6th	'	83	340	h ¹

Chronological overview

617 year of death of Wendelin (tradition)
950 Start of construction on the “Basonevillare” (St. Wendel) farm with the saint's grave chapel. It developed into the economic center of a Verdun manor. The German King Otto I met here with the West Franconian King Ludwig IV.
1180 First documented mention of "Zweyer presbyteri des Wendelino"
1291 Documentary confirmation of a parish and chapter church St. Wendalinus
1328 Archbishop Baldwin of Luxembourg of Trier becomes sovereign of St. Wendel
1332 St. Wendel receives town charter from Emperor Ludwig of Bavaria . Construction begins on the new pilgrimage church (today's basilica) in place of a small Romanesque predecessor church
1360 consecration of the high Gothic east choir by Archbishop Boemund of Saarbrücken
1400 The west tower and the Wendelinus tumba in the east choir were built
1442/43 Nikolaus von Kues becomes pastor of St. Wendelin after the death of Auxiliary Bishop de Monte
1446 Nikolaus von Kues is confirmed by a papal delegation to the Reichstag as pastor of St. Wendel and receives special powers of attorney.
1460 Completion of the three-aisled Gothic nave with reticulated vaults
1461 The parish changes from the spiritual responsibility of the Bishop of Metz to that of the Archbishop of Trier
1462 Nikolaus von Kues donates the pulpit to his former parish church

1464 ceiling painting of the central nave vault (symbolic representation of the cooperation of clerical and secular ministers)

1465 Extension of the southern vestibule as a meeting room for the episcopal sending court and construction of the main portal

1480 Foundation of the “Holy Sepulcher” on the left wall of the choir

1506 Construction of the high grave in the apse choir as a gift from Archbishop Jacob II of Baden
1512 Emperor Maximilian I (called The Last Knight ) visits St. Wendelin's Church of the Holy Sepulcher
1753 Renewal of the central tower as a baroque onion attachment
1781 Construction of the organ stage and the baroque organ . The St. Wendel guilds put figures from their cartridges on the walls of the aisles
1894–1899 Installation of the choir windows
1934 Installation of a new Klais organ (56 sounding registers)
1960 Elevation of the church to the papal " basilica minor " by Pope Johannes XXIII.

literature

Anton Dörrer: St. Wendel in cult, art, names and business from the Saar to South Tyrol . A contribution to the Cusanus Memorial Year (1464–1964), in: Deutsche Akademie der Wissenschaft. Research and Progress [Berlin] 39 (1965), pp. 11-15; also in: Tiroler Heimatblätter 39 (1964), pp. 18–24.
Anton Franziskus: The St. Wendelinus Basilica in St. Wendel (DKV Art Guide No. 647), Munich and Berlin 2007.
Walter Hannig: The ceiling painting of the Wendelinus basilica , in: Heimatbuch des Landkreis St. Wendel. A folk book for local history, nature conservation and monument preservation 16 (1975–76), pp. 41–44.
Werner Martin: Cusanus and his relationship with St. Wendel. Part I: The career of Nikolaus von Kues up to the receipt of the parish church St. Wendel. St. Wendel 2010.
Werner Martin: Cusanus - a Pythagorean and forerunner of Galileo. Part II of his relationship with St. Wendel. From attaining the parish church of St. Wendel to his elevation to cardinal. St. Wendel 2011.
Werner Martin: Cusanic aftermath. Part III of his relationship with St. Wendel. The transformation of St. Wendelin as a model for the pastor. Contemplation on the visit of Emperor Maximilian in St. Wendel in 1512. St. Wendel 2012.
Max Müller: Cardinal (Nicolaus) Cusanus and the parish church of St. Wendel . Revised excerpt from the estate, in: Heimatbuch des Landkreis St. Wendel. A folk book for local history, nature conservation and monument preservation 17 (1977–78), pp. 52–54.
Gerd Schmitt: The Cusanus coat of arms in the ceiling paintings of the St. Wendalinus Basilica in St. Wendel , in: Communications and research contributions of the Cusanus Society 15 (1982), pp. 86–91.
Gerd Schmitt: The coat of arms paintings of the St. Wendelin basilica , in: Heimatbuch des Landkreis St. Wendel. A folk book for local history, nature conservation and monument preservation 19 (1981–82), pp. 109–120.
Gerd Schmitt: The pilgrimage church of St. Wendelin - a living history, 650th anniversary of the choir consecration, 50th anniversary of the elevation to the basilica, Dillingen / Saar 2010.
Alois Selzer: Cardinal Nicolaus Cusanus and St. Wendelin . Thoughts on a Wendelinus panel around 1520, in: Heimatbuch des Landkreis St. Wendel. A folk book for local history, nature conservation and monument preservation 10 (1963–64), pp. 9–14.
Alois Wein: Nikolaus Cusanus parochus commendatarius at the parish church of St. Wendel . in: Vereinigung St. Wendelin (ed.): 600 years of the grave and pilgrimage church of St. Wendalin in St. Wendel, St. Wendel 1960, pp. 12-18.