The Deutsche Evangelische Christuskirche is a church on Montpelier Place in

Knightsbridge Knightsbridge is a residential and retail district in central London, south of Hyde Park, London, Hyde Park. It is identified in the London Plan as one of two international retail centres in London, alongside the West End of London, West End. ...

, London.'Montpelier Square Area: Deutsche Evangelische Christuskirche, Montpelier Place', in Survey of London: Volume 45, Knightsbridge, ed. John Greenacombe (London, 2000), pp. 124–127 http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol45/pp124-127 ccessed 7 June 2015 German Christian theologian Julius Rieger has described it as the most significant German church in London.

History

The church is an offshoot of a congregation, known as the German Chapel Royal, which met at the

Savoy Chapel The King's Chapel of St John the Baptist in the Precinct of the Savoy, also known as the King's Chapel of the Savoy, is a church in the City of Westminster, London. Facing it are 111 Strand, the Savoy Hotel, the Institution of Engineering and Te ...

and

St James's Palace St James's Palace is the most senior royal palace in London, the capital of the United Kingdom. The palace gives its name to the Court of St James's, which is the monarch's royal court, and is located in the City of Westminster in London. Altho ...

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

. An earlier German Lutheran congregation had met on the site of

Holy Trinity the Less Holy Trinity the Less was a parish church in Knightrider Street in the City of London, destroyed in the Great Fire of London. Following the fire the site was used for a Lutheran church, which was eventually demolished in 1871 to make way for Mans ...

until the 1860s, and latterly at the Hamburg Lutheran Church, alongside the German Hospital in

Dalston Dalston () is an area of East London, in the London Borough of Hackney. It is northeast of Charing Cross. Dalston began as a hamlet on either side of Dalston Lane, and as the area urbanised the term also came to apply to surrounding areas includ ...

. From 1901, the Lord Chamberlain's department no longer supported German services at the Chapel Royal, and the congregation relocated to the Eccleston Hall in Victoria. A dedicated church was funded by

Sir John Schroder, 1st Baronet Sir John Henry William Schroder, 1st Baronet and Baron von Schröder (13 February 1825 – 20 April 1910) was an Anglo-German merchant banker, his firm being Schroders PLC. He was known as ''Baron Sir John Henry Schroder.'' Schroder was born ''B ...

in honour of his late wife, Evelina.Dr Inge Weber-Newth, Johannes-Dieter Steinert, ''German Migrants in Post-War Britain: An Enemy Embrace'', New York City: Routledge, 2006, p. 10

/ref> In parallel a Deed of Trust was established on 20 December 1904 to ensure the maintenance and the uphold of the building . The building was designed by the architects

Edward Boehmer Edward Boehmer (1861–1940) was an American-born, London-based architect. Early life Edward Boehmer was born in 1861 in Pennsylvania, United States. He was educated in Stuttgart, Germany. Career Boehmer co-founded an architectural firm with ...

and Charles G. F. Rees. It was built by Dove Brothers from 1904 to 1905. The

stained glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

was designed by

Franz Xaver Zettler Franz Xaver Zettler (1841-1916) was a German stained glass artist. Early life Zettler was born in 1841. Career Signature of the company ''F.X. Zettler''. He started his own stained glass design company in 1870.Jean M. Farnsworth, Carmen R. Croc ...

, Ostermann & Hartwein, and

Schneiders & Schmolz Maple Leaf Foods Inc. is a Canadian consumer packaged meats company. Its head office is in Mississauga, Ontario. History Maple Leaf Foods is the result of the 1991 merger between Canada Packers and Maple Leaf Mills. Canada Packers was ...

. Its dedication on 27 November 1904 was attended by Count

Johann Heinrich von Bernstorff Johann Heinrich Graf von Bernstorff (14 November 1862 – 6 October 1939) was a German politician and ambassador to the United States from 1908 to 1917. Early life Born in 1862 in London, he was the son of one of the most powerful politicians ...

Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein (Frederick Christian Charles Augustus; 22 January 1831 – 28 October 1917) was a minor Danish-born German prince who became a member of the British royal family through his marriage to Princess Helena ...

Princess Marie Louise of Schleswig-Holstein Princess Marie Louise of Schleswig-Holstein (Franziska Josepha Louise Augusta Marie Christina Helena; 12 August 1872 – 8 December 1956) was a granddaughter of Queen Victoria. Early life Princess Marie Louise was born at Cumberland Lodge in ...

Prince Louis of Battenberg Admiral of the Fleet Louis Alexander Mountbatten, 1st Marquess of Milford Haven, (24 May 185411 September 1921), formerly Prince Louis Alexander of Battenberg, was a British naval officer and German prince related by marriage to the British ...

, and

Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine (Victoria Alberta Elizabeth Mathilde Marie; 5 April 1863 – 24 September 1950), later Victoria Mountbatten, Marchioness of Milford Haven, was the eldest daughter of Louis IV, Grand Duke of Hesse and by R ...

. In May 1946, the German Christian theologian Julius Rieger wrote in a report that this was the most significant German church in London. He added that its congregants were refugees from Nazi Germany for the most part.

The church today

In 2012 the overall structure of the Trust has been changed to separate the responsibility for the building and the running of the affairs of the congregations. As a result of this restructuring process two charities do now take responsibility for the congregation as well as for the building. * THE CONGREGATION AT GERMAN CHRIST CHURCH LONDON Registered as a charity in England and Wales No. 1149991 * THE GERMAN CHRIST CHURCH LONDON CHARITY Registered as a charity in England and Wales No. 251120 The congregation is part of a network called "Synod of German-Speaking Lutheran, Reformed and United Congregations in Great-Britain": as well as Christuskirche, it includes congregations in

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, Petersham, Farnborough and

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Deutsche Evangelische Christuskirche Knightsbridge Churches in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Churches completed in 1905 1905 establishments in England