Church of Peace
Encyclopedia
The Churches of Peace in Jawor
(German: Jauer) and Świdnica
(German: Schweidnitz) in Silesia
were named after the Peace of Westphalia
of 1648 which permitted the Lutherans in the Roman Catholic parts of Silesia
to build three Evangelical
churches from wood, loam and straw outside the city walls, without steeples and church bells. The construction time was limited to one year. Since 2001, the two remaining churches are listed as UNESCO
World Heritage Site
s.
due to pioneering constructional and architectural solutions.
The church in Jawor
, under the invocation of the Holy Ghost is 43.5 metres (142.7 ft) long, 14 metres (45.9 ft) wide and 15.7 metres (51.5 ft) high and has capacity of 5,500. It was constructed by architect Albrecht von Saebisch (1610–1688) from Wroclaw (then German Breslau) and was finished a year later in 1655. The 200 paintings inside by were done by Georg Flegel in 1671–1681. The Altar, by Martin Schneider, dates to 1672, the original organ of J. Hoferichter from Legnica
(then German Liegnitz) of 1664 was replaced in 1855–1856 by Adolf Alexander Lummert.
By that time, the town had been part of the Lutheran Kingdom of Prussia
for about a century. Another 100 years later, in 1945, the town became part of Poland
, as a result of the Potsdam Agreement
.
The similar church, erected in Głogów (then German Glogau) burned down in 1758, but the one in Świdnica
, under the invocation of the Holy Trinity, survived like the one in Jawor
. Both were restored by a Polish–German cooperation, and recognized by UNESCO in 2001.
Jawor
Jawor is a town in south-western Poland with 24,347 inhabitants . It is situated in Lower Silesian Voivodeship . It is the seat of Jawor County, and lies approximately west of the regional capital Wrocław.In the town can be found a Protestant Church of Peace...
(German: Jauer) and Świdnica
Swidnica
Świdnica is a city in south-western Poland in the region of Silesia. It has a population of 60,317 according to 2006 figures. It lies in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, being the seventh largest town in that voivodeship. From 1975–98 it was in the former Wałbrzych Voivodeship...
(German: Schweidnitz) in Silesia
Silesia
Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...
were named after the Peace of Westphalia
Peace of Westphalia
The Peace of Westphalia was a series of peace treaties signed between May and October of 1648 in Osnabrück and Münster. These treaties ended the Thirty Years' War in the Holy Roman Empire, and the Eighty Years' War between Spain and the Dutch Republic, with Spain formally recognizing the...
of 1648 which permitted the Lutherans in the Roman Catholic parts of Silesia
Silesia
Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...
to build three Evangelical
Evangelism
Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
churches from wood, loam and straw outside the city walls, without steeples and church bells. The construction time was limited to one year. Since 2001, the two remaining churches are listed as UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
s.
History
Despite the physical and political constraints, three of the churches became the biggest timber-framed religious buildings in EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
due to pioneering constructional and architectural solutions.
The church in Jawor
Jawor
Jawor is a town in south-western Poland with 24,347 inhabitants . It is situated in Lower Silesian Voivodeship . It is the seat of Jawor County, and lies approximately west of the regional capital Wrocław.In the town can be found a Protestant Church of Peace...
, under the invocation of the Holy Ghost is 43.5 metres (142.7 ft) long, 14 metres (45.9 ft) wide and 15.7 metres (51.5 ft) high and has capacity of 5,500. It was constructed by architect Albrecht von Saebisch (1610–1688) from Wroclaw (then German Breslau) and was finished a year later in 1655. The 200 paintings inside by were done by Georg Flegel in 1671–1681. The Altar, by Martin Schneider, dates to 1672, the original organ of J. Hoferichter from Legnica
Legnica
Legnica is a town in south-western Poland, in Silesia, in the central part of Lower Silesia, on the plain of Legnica, riverside: Kaczawa and Czarna Woda. Between 1 June 1975 and 31 December 1998 Legnica was the capital of the Legnica Voivodeship. It is currently the seat of the county...
(then German Liegnitz) of 1664 was replaced in 1855–1856 by Adolf Alexander Lummert.
By that time, the town had been part of the Lutheran Kingdom of Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
for about a century. Another 100 years later, in 1945, the town became part of Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, as a result of the Potsdam Agreement
Potsdam Agreement
The Potsdam Agreement was the Allied plan of tripartite military occupation and reconstruction of Germany—referring to the German Reich with its pre-war 1937 borders including the former eastern territories—and the entire European Theatre of War territory...
.
The similar church, erected in Głogów (then German Glogau) burned down in 1758, but the one in Świdnica
Swidnica
Świdnica is a city in south-western Poland in the region of Silesia. It has a population of 60,317 according to 2006 figures. It lies in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, being the seventh largest town in that voivodeship. From 1975–98 it was in the former Wałbrzych Voivodeship...
, under the invocation of the Holy Trinity, survived like the one in Jawor
Jawor
Jawor is a town in south-western Poland with 24,347 inhabitants . It is situated in Lower Silesian Voivodeship . It is the seat of Jawor County, and lies approximately west of the regional capital Wrocław.In the town can be found a Protestant Church of Peace...
. Both were restored by a Polish–German cooperation, and recognized by UNESCO in 2001.