German Church, Stockholm
Encyclopedia
Tyska kyrkan sometimes called St. Gertrude's Church , is a church in Gamla stan
Gamla stan
Gamla stan , until 1980 officially Staden mellan broarna , is the old town of Stockholm, Sweden. Gamla stan consists primarily of the island Stadsholmen. The surrounding islets Riddarholmen, Helgeandsholmen, and Strömsborg are officially part of, but not colloquially included in, Gamla stan...
, the old town in central Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
.
Located between the streets Tyska Brinken
Tyska Brinken
Tyska Brinken is a street in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden. Extending Kindstugatan passed the German Church down to the square Mälartorget, it is crossed by Skomakargatan, Prästgatan, Västerlånggatan, Stora Nygatan, Lilla Nygatan, and Munkbrogatan, while forming a parallel...
, Kindstugatan
Kindstugatan
Kindstugatan is a street in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden. Stretching west from Brända Tomten to become Tyska Brinken in its western end, it is crossed by Svartmangatan and Skomakargatan.-Origin of the name:...
, Svartmangatan, and Prästgatan
Prästgatan
Prästgatan is a street in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden, stretching from a cul-de-sac west of the Royal Palace to the street Österlånggatan in the southern corner of the old town. Prästgatan forms a parallel street to Västerlånggatan, Trångsund, Skomakargatan, and...
, it is named for standing in the centre of a neighbourhood that in the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
was dominated by Germans. Officially named Sankta Gertrud, the church is dedicated to Saint Gertrude
Gertrude of Nivelles
Saint Gertrude of Nivelles was abbess of the Benedictine monastery of Nivelles, in present-day Belgium.She was a daughter of Pepin I of Landen and Saint Itta, and a younger sister of Saint Begga, Abbess of Andenne, Saint Bavo and Grimoald I.One day, when she was about ten years of age, her father...
(626-659), abbess
Abbess
An abbess is the female superior, or mother superior, of a community of nuns, often an abbey....
of the Benedictine
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
monastery of Nivelles
Nivelles
Nivelles is a Walloon city and municipality located in the Belgian province of Walloon Brabant. The Nivelles municipality includes the old communes of Baulers, Bornival, Thines, and Monstreux....
, in present-day Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, and patron saint
Patron saint
A patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person...
of travellers.
History
The German guild of St. Gertrude was founded on the location for the present church in the 14th century. While the guild was created by German merchants, their Swedish counterparts were often invited to take part in its activities. For example, King Charles VIIICharles VIII of Sweden
Charles VIII of Sweden , Charles I of Norway, also Carl, , was king of Sweden and king of Norway ....
was elected in the guild's building in 1448. The headquarters of the guild was gradually rebuilt into a church starting in the 1580s. Among the architects involved were Wilhelm Boy, the Flemish
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
architect of King Eric III, the Dutch Hubert de Besche
Hubert de Bèsche
Hubert de Bèsche was a Swedish Olympic fencer. He competed in three events at the 1936 Summer Olympics.-References:...
and also Hans Jacob Kristler, the architect from Strasbourg
Strasbourg
Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...
who designed the Makalös
Makalös
Makalös was the colloquial name for the grand mansion, or palace, of the Swedish noble family de la Gardie...
Palace in present day Kungsträdgården
Kungsträdgården
Kungsträdgården is a park in central Stockholm, Sweden. It is colloquially known as Kungsan.The park's central location and its outdoor cafés makes it one of the most popular hangouts and meeting places in Stockholm. It also hosts open-air concerts and events in summer, while offering an ice...
for Jacob de la Gardie
Jacob De la Gardie
Field Marshal and Count Jacob Pontusson De la Gardie was a statesman and a soldier of the Swedish Empire....
.
Though there was an abundant number of German merchants and craftsmen in Stockholm during the Middle Ages, they didn't possess a separate site for their religious sermons until 1558 when King Gustav Vasa
Gustav I of Sweden
Gustav I of Sweden, born Gustav Eriksson of the Vasa noble family and later known simply as Gustav Vasa , was King of Sweden from 1523 until his death....
permitted them to hold separate sermons.
In 1571, King John III
John III of Sweden
-Family:John married his first wife, Catherine Jagellonica of Poland , house of Jagiello, in Vilnius on 4 October 1562. In Sweden, she is known as Katarina Jagellonica. She was the sister of king Sigismund II Augustus of Poland...
authorized the German expatriates in the city to form a separate parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
, including summoning priests from Germany, and it thus became the first German ecclesiastical parish outside Germany, It first held its sermons in the Greyfriars monastery on Riddarholmen
Riddarholmen
Riddarholmen is a small islet in central Stockholm, Sweden. The island forms part of Gamla Stan, the old town, and houses a number of private palaces dating from the 17th century...
(today Riddarholmskyrkan
Riddarholmskyrkan
The Riddarholmen Church is the burial church of the Swedish monarchs. It is located on the island of Riddarholmen, close to the Royal Palace in Stockholm, Sweden. The congregation was dissolved in 1807 and today the church is used only for burial and commemorative purposes. Swedish monarchs from...
) but within five years relocated to the building of the German guild where the king earlier had a chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
built for the Finnish parish. The two parishes shared the space, with the Germans managing the maintenance of the chapel and also inaugurating a German school in 1580, soon relocated to Tyska Skolgränd
Tyska Skolgränd
Tyska Skolgränd is an alley in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden, stretching from Svartmangatan to Baggensgatan, and crossed by Själagårdsgatan....
and still in existence until 1888.
In 1607, however, King Charles IX
Charles IX of Sweden
Charles IX of Sweden also Carl, was King of Sweden from 1604 until his death. He was the youngest son of King Gustav I of Sweden and his second wife, Margaret Leijonhufvud, brother of Eric XIV and John III of Sweden, and uncle of Sigismund III Vasa king of both Sweden and Poland...
transferred the premises exclusively to the Germans. Hans Jakob Kristler enlarged the chapel in 1638-1642 to the present two-nave church. During the 17th century, while the choir of the school participated at the royal concerts, the church became an important centre for church music
Church music
Church music may be defined as music written for performance in church, or any musical setting of ecclestiacal liturgy, or music set to words expressing propositions of a sacred nature, such as a hymn. This article covers music in the Judaeo-Christian tradition. For sacred music outside this...
in Sweden. A crypt
Crypt
In architecture, a crypt is a stone chamber or vault beneath the floor of a burial vault possibly containing sarcophagi, coffins or relics....
, construction on which was started in 1716 but was interrupted 1860-1992, is still in use by the parish. By 1800, the German congregation had dwindled to a mere 113 people, and in 1878 a fire destroyed the tower. Today the German parish sorts under the Church of Sweden
Church of Sweden
The Church of Sweden is the largest Christian church in Sweden. The church professes the Lutheran faith and is a member of the Porvoo Communion. With 6,589,769 baptized members, it is the largest Lutheran church in the world, although combined, there are more Lutherans in the member churches of...
but as a so called non-territorial parish, the approximately 2,000 members of which are found all around Stockholm. Sermons in German are still held every Sunday at 11 am, and the church is open daily during summers and at weekends during winter.
Exterior
The brick steepleSteeple (architecture)
A steeple, in architecture, is a tall tower on a building, often topped by a spire. Steeples are very common on Christian churches and cathedrals and the use of the term generally connotes a religious structure...
and the copper covered spire
Spire
A spire is a tapering conical or pyramidal structure on the top of a building, particularly a church tower. Etymologically, the word is derived from the Old English word spir, meaning a sprout, shoot, or stalk of grass....
, together 86 metres tall, where completed in 1878 to the design of Julius Carl Raschdorff (1823-1914), an architect based in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. For the commission he chose Neogothic gargoyle
Gargoyle
In architecture, a gargoyle is a carved stone grotesque, usually made of granite, with a spout designed to convey water from a roof and away from the side of a building thereby preventing rainwater from running down masonry walls and eroding the mortar between...
s featuring grotesque animals, indeed unusual in Swedish architectural history but today recognized as 'natural features' of the old town. The elaborate carillon
Carillon
A carillon is a musical instrument that is typically housed in a free-standing bell tower, or the belfry of a church or other municipal building. The instrument consists of at least 23 cast bronze, cup-shaped bells, which are played serially to play a melody, or sounded together to play a chord...
is heard over the old city four times daily: 8 am and 4 pm psalm Nun danket alle Gott
Now Thank We All Our God
"Now thank we all our God" is a popular Christian hymn. It is a translation from the German "Nun danket alle Gott", written circa 1636 by Martin Rinkart , which in turn was inspired by Sirach, chapter 50 verses 22–24, from the praises of Simon the high priest...
is played, and at noon and 8 pm the psalm Praise the Lord
Praise to the Lord, the Almighty
"Praise to the Lord, the Almighty" is a hymn based on Joachim Neander German chorale Lobe den Herren, den mächtigen König der Ehren, published in 1680...
.
Over the northern gate facing Tyska Brinken is a gilded images of the patron saint and the exhortation Fürchtet Gott! Ehret den König! — "Fear God! Honour the King!". Flanking the eastern gate facing Svartmangatan are two tables carrying gilded inscriptions. The southern sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
portal is flanked by statues of Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
and Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
, in the context symbolizing the New
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
and the Old Testament
Old Testament
The Old Testament, of which Christians hold different views, is a Christian term for the religious writings of ancient Israel held sacred and inspired by Christians which overlaps with the 24-book canon of the Masoretic Text of Judaism...
s, accompanied by Love, Hope, and Faith. The statues were cut by Jost Henne from Westphalia
Westphalia
Westphalia is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Arnsberg, Bielefeld, Dortmund, Minden and Münster.Westphalia is roughly the region between the rivers Rhine and Weser, located north and south of the Ruhr River. No exact definition of borders can be given, because the name "Westphalia"...
in the 1640s; he later became the alderman
Alderman
An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members themselves rather than by popular vote, or a council...
of the city's masons guild.
Interior
The interior is BaroqueBaroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
in style, the large windows of which make it overflowed by light, highlighting the white vaults and their many angels heads. The wine cellars of the original guild building are still found under the current marble floor. In the atrium
Atrium (architecture)
In modern architecture, an atrium is a large open space, often several stories high and having a glazed roof and/or large windows, often situated within a larger multistory building and often located immediately beyond the main entrance doors...
is a window featuring St. Gertrude herself holding a chalice in one hand and a model of the church in the other. The ten metres tall altar
Altar
An altar is any structure upon which offerings such as sacrifices are made for religious purposes. Altars are usually found at shrines, and they can be located in temples, churches and other places of worship...
was created by Markus Hebel, a Baroque master from Neumünster
Neumünster
Neumünster is an independent town in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, which has a total of four independent towns.-Current Situation:Neumünster station is major railway junction with lines running in six directions, including the important Hamburg-Altona–Kiel and Neumünster–Flensburg lines.Near...
, Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein is the northernmost of the sixteen states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Schleswig...
.
The so called "king's gallery" crowned by the monogram
Monogram
A monogram is a motif made by overlapping or combining two or more letters or other graphemes to form one symbol. Monograms are often made by combining the initials of an individual or a company, used as recognizable symbols or logos. A series of uncombined initials is properly referred to as a...
of King Charles XI
Charles XI of Sweden
Charles XI also Carl, was King of Sweden from 1660 until his death, in a period in Swedish history known as the Swedish empire ....
was designed by Nicodemus Tessin the Elder
Nicodemus Tessin the Elder
Nicodemus Tessin the Elder was an important Swedish architect.-Biography:Nicodemus Tessin was born in Stralsund in Pomerania and came to Sweden as a young man. There he met and worked with the architect Simon de la Vallée...
. The green and golden structure, at the time resting on pillars seemingly suspended over the floor, was reached by a magnificently carved flight of stairs used by generations of royal families, often of German descent, attending the sermons. The ceiling displays a painting by David Klöcker Ehrenstrahl
David Klöcker Ehrenstrahl
David Klöcker Ehrenstrahl was a Swedish nobleman and portrait painter.Ehrenstrahl was born in Hamburg. In 1652, at twenty-four years of age, at the request of Carl Gustaf Wrangel, he moved to Skokloster Castle, from his art studies in the Netherlands...
, born in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
and a member of the German parish. The lower part of the gallery was later glazed and today contains the sacristy
Sacristy
A sacristy is a room for keeping vestments and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records.The sacristy is usually located inside the church, but in some cases it is an annex or separate building...
. The painted windows are all from the turn of the century 1900. The southern windows, arguably, retell the benefits of living a devoted life. By the entrance is a commemorative plate reminding of the restaurateur Peter Hinrich Fuhrman (-1773), one of the church's most important donors.
See also
- List of streets and squares in Gamla stan
- StorkyrkanStorkyrkanSankt Nikolai kyrka , most commonly known as Storkyrkan and Stockholms domkyrka , is the oldest church in Gamla Stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden. It is an important example of Swedish Brick Gothic...
- RiddarholmskyrkanRiddarholmskyrkanThe Riddarholmen Church is the burial church of the Swedish monarchs. It is located on the island of Riddarholmen, close to the Royal Palace in Stockholm, Sweden. The congregation was dissolved in 1807 and today the church is used only for burial and commemorative purposes. Swedish monarchs from...