Fulda Cathedral

Last updated
Fulda Cathedral
The Cathedral of Christ the Saviour
Fuldaer Dom
Fuldaer Dom 028a.jpg
Fulda Cathedral
Germany adm location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Fulda Cathedral
Location in Germany
50°33′14″N9°40′18″E / 50.5540°N 9.6718°E / 50.5540; 9.6718
Location Fulda
Country Germany
Denomination Catholic
History
Former name(s) The Abbey Church of Fulda
Status Cathedral
Founded23 April 1704
Founder(s)Adalbert von Schleifras
Dedication Saint Boniface
Dedicated15 August 1712
Past bishop(s) Sturmius , Johannes Dyba , Heinz Josef Algermissen
Architecture
Functional statusActive
Architect(s) Johann Dientzenhofer
Architectural typeChurch
Style Baroque
Completed1712
Specifications
Length99 m (324 ft 10 in)
Height39 m (127 ft 11 in)
Number of spires 2
Spire height65 m (213 ft 3 in)
Bells10
Administration
Province Paderborn
Diocese Fulda
Clergy
Bishop(s) Michael Gerber

Fulda Cathedral (German : Fuldaer Dom, also Sankt Salvator) [1] is the former abbey church of Fulda Abbey and the burial place of Saint Boniface. Since 1752 it has also been the cathedral of the Diocese of Fulda, of which the Prince-Abbots of Fulda were created bishops. The abbey was dissolved in 1802 but the diocese and its cathedral have continued. The dedication is to Christ the Saviour (Latin : Salvator). The cathedral constitutes the high point of the Baroque district of Fulda, and is a symbol of the town.

Contents

History

View of the abbey, showing in the centre the Ratgar Basilica, predecessor of the present cathedral (copper engraving 1655) Kupferstich fulda dom 1655.jpg
View of the abbey, showing in the centre the Ratgar Basilica, predecessor of the present cathedral (copper engraving 1655)

The present cathedral stands on the site of the Ratgar Basilica (once the largest basilica north of the Alps), which was the burial site of Saint Boniface and the church of Fulda Abbey, functions which the new building was intended to continue.

The plans of the new church were drawn up in 1700 by one of the greatest German Baroque architects, Johann Dientzenhofer, [2] who was commissioned by the Prince-Abbot Adalbert von Schleifras for the new building on the recommendation of the Pope after Dientzenhofer's study trip to Rome in 1699. The deliberate similarity of the church's internal arrangement to that of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome is testimony to Dientzenhofer's visit.

The Ratgar Basilica was demolished to make way for the new Baroque structure, on which construction began on 23 April 1704 [3] using in part the foundations of the earlier basilica. In 1707 the shell was completed. The roof was finished in 1708 and the interior in 1712. The new abbey church was dedicated on 15 August 1712. The dedication tablet placed on the facade by von Schleifras gives the dedication as Christus Salvator. [4]

The new Baroque building, like its predecessor, served as the abbey church and the burial shrine of Saint Boniface. [2] In 1752 it was elevated to a cathedral on the creation of the Diocese of Fulda. In 1802 Fulda Abbey was dissolved and the cathedral's function as the abbey church ceased, but it continued in operation as the seat of the Bishops of Fulda.

On 4 June 1905 during celebrations of the 1150th anniversary of the death of Saint Boniface a stray firework lodged in the righthand tower and started a fire (it is presumed to have set light to old jackdaws' nests). The tower was burnt out, and the bells Osanna and Bonifatius were destroyed. Other parts of the cathedral were not damaged.

After damage caused by air raids during World War II the cathedral was closed for restoration until 1954.

Pope John Paul II visited Fulda on 17 and 18 November 1980. More than 100,000 people were present on the cathedral square on 18 November to attend the open-air mass celebrated by the Pope. [5]

Architecture

Orientation

Like the Ratgar Basilica before it, and St. Peter's in Rome, but unlike the great majority of European churches, Fulda Cathedral is oriented to the west. The main facade onto the cathedral square is the east front, and the choir is located at the west end of the nave. (The Ratgar Basilica had a second choir to the east, which Dientzenhofer did not replicate in his new building).

Dimensions

The cathedral is 99 meters long and 39 meters high into the top of the dome. The main frontage is flanked by two towers 65 meters high.

Form and ground plan

The building is a basilica, with a central aisle and two side aisles, and two transepts separated by the crossing, over which is the dome. The ground plan is thus a cross with double arms. The nave is extended to the east by the addition of an entrance hall, the two facade towers and two domed chapels (St. Andrew's Chapel and St. John's Chapel). Beyond the crossing and the northern transept the chancel continues, with the high altar and beyond it the choir, with the crypt of Saint Boniface beneath. The side aisles run parallel to the main aisle up to the sacristy and the Lady Chapel, which is directly adjacent to the former monastic buildings.

Exterior

Exterior Catedral de Fulda.jpg
Exterior

Bell towers

The facade is flanked by two towers 65 metres high, the four storeys of which are clearly delineated by ledges. Sandstone statues, greater than life size, by Andreas Balthasar Weber, represent to the right Saint Sturm as abbot, with a mitre, abbot's staff and book, and to the left Saint Boniface as bishop with a crook and a Bible pierced by a dagger. On the third storey are copper and gilt numerals and hands belonging to a mechanical clock and a sundial.

Main portal

Main portal Fulda dom maineast.jpg
Main portal

Four massive three-quarter columns accompanied by half-pilasters stand to either side of the main portal and support the architrave, the frieze with its triglyphs and the heavy cornices. On the architrave over segments of a round arch sit two large angels, supporting the arms of the Prince-Abbot Adalbert von Schleifras, sculpted by Balthasar Esterbauer, consisting of the arms of Fulda Abbey quartering those of von Schleifras.

The portal door is ornamented with Corinthian pilasters and wrought iron door fittings.

The upper storey of the facade is divided by massive pillars. A large round-topped window is decorated with columns, inflexed arches and urns. The window is surrounded by sandstone sculptures representing the patron saints of Fulda, the twin brothers Simplicius and Faustinus, as knights. Their shields bear their symbol - three lilies - and the cross, the device of the abbey, both of which appear in the arms of the town of Fulda.

The central part of the facade is terminated by a triangular gable filled with urns and a round window. On the point of the gable stands a figure of Christ giving a blessing.

Obelisks

Next to the two domed chapels stand a pair of sandstone obelisks about 11 metres high, the function of which, besides being decorative, is to make the facade appear broader. On the Abschlussplatte is a pedestal with four rampant lions, and above them the arms of von Schleifras with various inscriptions.

Interior

View towards the high altar Fulda-Dom-innen.jpg
View towards the high altar

The white interior combines elements of St. Peter's Basilica and St. John Lateran in Rome. The magnificent decoration shows the influence of Roman Baroque. The overall effect is dominated by the contrast between the white of the walls and of the stucco on the one hand and the black and gold of the architectonic elements and of the fittings on the other. Giovanni Battista Artari, a stuccoist, decorative artist and sculptor, created the stucco work of the interior as well as the larger than life-size stucco figures of the Apostles, who are represented in accordance with their description by the Apostle Paul in Galatians 2.9 as "pillars" of the church.

The Golden Wheel

A great curiosity in both the old Ratgar Basilica and the later Baroque church and cathedral was the so-called "Golden Wheel" (German : das Goldene Rad), a medieval musical apparatus, which was made in 1415 during the rule of the Abbot Johann I von Merlau and for over 370 years delighted the faithful with its evocation of the "music of the spheres". It was in the form of a great star, consisting of 14 rays about 2.5 metres long mounted on a round metal plate; from the rays hung 350 bells. It was set and kept in motion by two ropes or cables running round an axle, by which the star could be kept turning and the bells ringing. It was lavishly decorated with glittering golden Gothic floral finials and vesica-shaped decorations. [6]

By the time it was reinstalled in the new Baroque church in 1712 there were only 127 bells remaining.

It was hung in the nave to the east of the dome. In 1781 a cable broke during the Whitsun service and the heavy wheel crashed to the ground causing deaths and injuries. It was left in a barn for two years, and before a decision could be reached about whether it should be re-hung, all the bells had disappeared. The bishop's smith then broke it up and reused the metal.

Dome

View of the dome Fulda Dom Kuppel.JPG
View of the dome

Dientzenhofer was inspired in the design of the dome by that of the Church of Il Gesù in Rome, the mother church of the Jesuit Order, and like that of Il Gesù, the dome of Fulda Cathedral is intended to be the visual focal point of the building. In the spandrels above the pillars of the dome are well-preserved frescoes by Luca Antonio Columba, depicting the four Evangelists. In the niches are stucco figures greater than life-size by Giovanni Battista Artari: directly in front of the high altar stands the Archangel Michael holding scales and a sword, with the devil at his feet; to the left, the Archangel Gabriel holding a lily; to the right the Archangel Raphael holding a censer; and at the back a guardian angel, showing a child the way to heaven. Finally in the dome itself is a stucco figure of the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove in a burst of radiance.

Fittings and furnishings

Pulpit Fulda Dom Pulpit.jpg
Pulpit

Bells

The cathedral has ten bells hung in the two towers: bells 1–3 in the north tower, and bells 4–10 in the south tower.

The Salvator is the only bell now surviving of the set cast in 1897 by Carl & Rudolf Edelbrock. In 1908 Carl Edelbrock added an Osanna.

The Osanna which now hangs in the top storey of the north tower is a different bell, cast by Friedrich Wilhelm Schilling. It is supposed to be one of the best bells he ever cast: the story is that it did not need to be tuned after casting. The present Sturmius and Lioba bells were recast from bells of 1897 which were not in tune with the 1908 Osanna. In 1994 the Karlsruher Glocken- und Kunstgießerei cast five bells to replace another five smaller bells from the set of 1897.

High altar

The sculptor Johann Neudecker and the stuccoist Giovanni Battista Artari worked together to make the high altar, which on 15 August 1712 Prince-Abbot Adalbert von Schleifras dedicated in honour of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, [7] as she is received by the Holy Trinity.

Organ

Organ Fuldaer Domorgel.jpg
Organ

Between 1708 and 1713 an organ was built in the new church by the Franciscan Adam Öhninger, with 41 registers on three keyboards and pedals. [8] Andreas Balthasar Weber and the artist-woodworker Georg Blank undertook the carvings on the organ case. In a comprehensive restoration of the cathedral between 1992 and 1996 the case was restored and the old colours that were discovered were replaced as close as possible in the original. The Rieger Orgelbau company completed in 1996 the new organ works, using some of the pipes from the old Sauer organ. The present organ comprises 5 divisions on 4 manuals and the pedals with 72 registers.

Crypt

The tomb of Saint Boniface Fulda-Dom-Gruf-Bonifatius.jpg
The tomb of Saint Boniface

The Boniface Chapel in the crypt is a survival from the Ratgar Basilica and houses the remains of Saint Boniface, the "Apostle of the Germans", in a sarcophagus, which also has a relief carving and an antependium by Johann Neudecker. During his visit to Fulda in 1980, Pope John Paul II prayed at the tomb of Saint Boniface and in his sermon emphasized Boniface's importance as the beginning of the gospel in Germany. [9]

Surroundings of the cathedral

To the north of the cathedral is the former St. Michael's Priory, since 1831 the bishop's residence, and the Carolingian St. Michael's Church. Directly attached to the cathedral to the west are the Baroque former conventual buildings of the abbey, constructed between 1771 and 1778, now the Theological Department of the University of Fulda. Nearby is the modern chapel of the Catholic seminary, which was built 1966-1968 by the architect Sep Ruf. South of the monastery is the deanery and the dean's garden, where a lapidarium is now located. In part of the deanery buildings is the cathedral museum.

Cathedral museum

The adjoining cathedral museum contains numerous liturgical vestments and vessels, including the "Silver Altar", dating from the 18th century, which includes a reliquary for the head of Saint Boniface and the dagger with which he was murdered, besides others of his relics.

Cathedral square

On the cathedral square directly in front of the main entrance large open-air concerts regularly take place, sometimes featuring international stars (e.g., José Carreras, Chris de Burgh).

Burials

In the cathedral are buried:

Images

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saint Boniface</span> 8th-century Anglo-Saxon missionary and saint

Boniface, OSB was an English Benedictine monk and leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the Germanic parts of Francia during the eighth century. He organised significant foundations of the church in Germany and was made bishop of Mainz by Pope Gregory III. He was martyred in Frisia in 754, along with 52 others, and his remains were returned to Fulda, where they rest in a sarcophagus which remains a site of Christian pilgrimage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fulda</span> City in Hesse, Germany

Fulda is a city in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the river Fulda and is the administrative seat of the Fulda district (Kreis). In 1990, the city hosted the 30th Hessentag state festival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Peter's Basilica</span> Church in Vatican City

The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican, or simply Saint Peter's Basilica, is a church of the Italian High Renaissance located in Vatican City, an independent microstate enclaved within the city of Rome, Italy. It was initially planned in the 15th century by Pope Nicholas V and then Pope Julius II to replace the ageing Old St. Peter's Basilica, which was built in the fourth century by Roman emperor Constantine the Great. Construction of the present basilica began on 18 April 1506 and was completed on 18 November 1626.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Architecture of cathedrals and great churches</span>

Cathedrals, collegiate churches, and monastic churches like those of abbeys and priories, often have certain complex structural forms that are found less often in parish churches. They also tend to display a higher level of contemporary architectural style and the work of accomplished craftsmen, and occupy a status both ecclesiastical and social that an ordinary parish church rarely has. Such churches are generally among the finest buildings locally and a source of regional pride. Many are among the world's most renowned works of architecture. These include St Peter's Basilica, Notre-Dame de Paris, Cologne Cathedral, Salisbury Cathedral, Antwerp Cathedral, Prague Cathedral, Lincoln Cathedral, the Basilica of Saint-Denis, Santa Maria Maggiore, the Basilica of San Vitale, St Mark's Basilica, Westminster Abbey, Saint Basil's Cathedral, Antoni Gaudí's incomplete Sagrada Família and the ancient cathedral of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, now a mosque.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aachen Cathedral</span> Catholic cathedral in Aachen, Germany

Aachen Cathedral is a Catholic church in Aachen, Germany and the cathedral of the Diocese of Aachen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baroque architecture</span> 16th–18th-century European architectural style

Baroque architecture is a highly decorative and theatrical style which appeared in Italy in the early 17th century and gradually spread across Europe. It was originally introduced by the Catholic Church, particularly by the Jesuits, as a means to combat the Reformation and the Protestant church with a new architecture that inspired surprise and awe. It reached its peak in the High Baroque (1625–1675), when it was used in churches and palaces in Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Bavaria and Austria. In the Late Baroque period (1675–1750), it reached as far as Russia, the Ottoman Empire and the Spanish and Portuguese colonies in Latin America. In about 1730, an even more elaborately decorative variant called Rococo appeared and flourished in Central Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salzburg Cathedral</span> Church in Austria

Salzburg Cathedral is the seventeenth-century Baroque cathedral of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Salzburg in the city of Salzburg, Austria, dedicated to Saint Rupert and Saint Vergilius. Saint Rupert founded the church in 774 on the remnants of a Roman town, and the cathedral was rebuilt in 1181 after a fire. In the seventeenth century, the cathedral was completely rebuilt in the Baroque style under Prince-Bishop Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau to its present appearance. Salzburg Cathedral still contains the baptismal font in which composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was baptized.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wrocław Cathedral</span> Cathedral in Wrocław, Poland

The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Wrocław is the seat of the Archdiocese of Wrocław and a landmark of the city of Wrocław in Poland. The cathedral, located in the Cathedral Island, is a Gothic church with Neo-Gothic additions. The current standing cathedral is the fourth church to have been built on the site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ebrach Abbey</span> Prison, formerly a Cistercian monastery, in Bavaria

Ebrach Abbey is a former Cistercian monastery in Ebrach in Oberfranken, Bavaria, Germany, now used as a young offenders' institution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carolingian architecture</span> Architectural period of the Carolingian Empire

Carolingian architecture is the style of north European Pre-Romanesque architecture belonging to the period of the Carolingian Renaissance of the late 8th and 9th centuries, when the Carolingian dynasty dominated west European politics. It was a conscious attempt to emulate Roman architecture and to that end it borrowed heavily from Early Christian and Byzantine architecture, though there are nonetheless innovations of its own, resulting in a unique character.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Limburg Cathedral</span> Church in Limburg, Germany

Limburg Cathedral (German: Limburger Dom, also known as Georgsdom after its dedication to Saint George, is located above the old town of Limburg in Hesse, Germany. It is the cathedral of the Catholic Diocese of Limburg. Its high location on a rock above the river Lahn provides its visibility from far away. It is the result of an Early Gothic modernization of an originally Early Romanesque building and therefore shows a Romanesque-Gothic transitional style.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mantua Cathedral</span> Church in Italy

Mantua Cathedral in Mantua, Lombardy, northern Italy, is a Roman Catholic cathedral dedicated to Saint Peter. It is the seat of the Bishop of Mantua.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trier Cathedral</span> Church in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany

The High Cathedral of Saint Peter in Trier, or Trier Cathedral, is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Trier, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the oldest church in Germany and the largest religious structure in Trier, notable for its long life span and grand design. The central part of the nave was built of Roman brick in the early fourth century, resulting in a cathedral that was added onto gradually in different eras. The imposing Romanesque westwork, with four towers and an additional apse, has been copied repeatedly. The Trier Cathedral Treasury contains an important collection of Christian art. In 1986 the church was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, as part of the Roman Monuments, Cathedral of St. Peter and Church of Our Lady in Trier.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johann Dientzenhofer</span>

Johann Dientzenhofer was a builder and architect during the Baroque period in Germany.

Eigil was the fourth abbot of Fulda. He was the nephew and biographer of the abbey's founder and first abbot Saint Sturm. We know about Eigil primarily from the Latin Life that the monk and teacher of Fulda, Candidus Bruun composed about him after his death.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ljubljana Cathedral</span>

Ljubljana Cathedral, officially named Saint Nicholas's Church, also named Saint Nicholas's Cathedral, the Cathedral of Saint Nicholas, or simply the Cathedral, is a cathedral in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. Originally, Ljubljana Cathedral was a Gothic church. In the early 18th century, it was replaced by a Baroque building. It is an easily recognizable landmark of the city with its green dome and twin towers and stands at Cyril and Methodius Square by the nearby Ljubljana Central Market and Town Hall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Würzburg Cathedral</span> Church in Würzburg, Germany

Würzburg Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Würzburg in Bavaria, Germany, dedicated to Saint Kilian. It is the seat of the Bishop of Würzburg and has served as the burial place for the Prince-Bishops of Würzburg for hundreds of years. With an overall length of 103 metres, it is the fourth largest Romanesque church building in Germany, and a masterpiece of German architecture from the Salian period. Notable later additions include work by Tilman Riemenschneider and Balthasar Neumann. The cathedral was heavily damaged by British bombs in March 1945 but rebuilt post-World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michaelsberg Abbey, Bamberg</span> Former Benedictine monastery in Bamberg, Bavaria, Germany

Michaelsberg Abbey or Michelsberg Abbey, also St. Michael's Abbey, Bamberg is a former Benedictine monastery in Bamberg in Bavaria, Germany. After its dissolution in 1803 the buildings were used for the almshouse Vereinigtes Katharinen- und Elisabethen-Spital, which is still there as a retirement home. The former abbey church remains in use as the Michaelskirche.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Innsbruck Cathedral</span> Baroque cathedral in Innsbruck, Austria

Innsbruck Cathedral, also known as the Cathedral of St. James, is an eighteenth-century Baroque cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Innsbruck in the city of Innsbruck, Austria, dedicated to the apostle Saint James, son of Zebedee. Based on designs by the architect Johann Jakob Herkomer, the cathedral was built between 1717 and 1724 on the site of a twelfth-century Romanesque church. The interior is enclosed by three domed vaults spanning the nave, and a dome with lantern above the chancel. With its lavish Baroque interior, executed in part by the Asam brothers, St. James is considered among the most important Baroque buildings in the Tyrol.

References

  1. also known popularly as the Hoher Dom zu Fulda
  2. 1 2 "The Cathedral", Turismus Fulda
  3. L. Pfaff: Der Dom zu Fulda., publ. J. L. Ath, 1855, p.19
  4. Freunde Mainfränkischer Kunst und Geschichte: Mainfränkisches Jahrbuch für Geschichte und Kunst. Unterfranken 1949, Seite 280
  5. hr-online: Glockengeläut – Beten für das Kirchenoberhaupt Archived 2008-09-28 at archive.today – Stand: 2. April 2005
  6. German : Kreuzblumen and Fischblasenornamente
  7. Diözese Fulda – St. Salvator in Fulda [ permanent dead link ]
  8. Bistum Fulda © – Die große Orgel
  9. Bildungsserver Hessen: Jahres- und Gedenktage im November, Stand: 20. Mai 2005

Further reading