Frankfurt Cathedral (german: link=no, Frankfurter Dom), officially Imperial Cathedral of Saint Bartholomew (german: link=no, Kaiserdom Sankt Bartholomäus) is a
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
church located in the heart of
Frankfurt am Main
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
, Germany. It is dedicated to
Saint Bartholomew
Bartholomew (Aramaic: ; grc, Βαρθολομαῖος, translit=Bartholomaîos; la, Bartholomaeus; arm, Բարթողիմէոս; cop, ⲃⲁⲣⲑⲟⲗⲟⲙⲉⲟⲥ; he, בר-תולמי, translit=bar-Tôlmay; ar, بَرثُولَماو ...
.
It is the largest religious building in the city and a former collegiate church. Despite its common English name, it has never been a true cathedral (
episcopal see
An episcopal see is, in a practical use of the phrase, the area of a bishop's ecclesiastical jurisdiction.
Phrases concerning actions occurring within or outside an episcopal see are indicative of the geographical significance of the term, mak ...
), but is called the ''Kaiserdom'' (an "imperial great church" or
imperial cathedral) or simply the ''Dom'' due to its importance as former election and
coronation
A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a coronation crown, crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the ...
church of the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...
.
As one of the major buildings of the Empire's history, it was a symbol of national unity, especially in the 19th century.
The present church building is the third church on the same site. Since the late 19th century, excavations have revealed buildings that can be traced back to the seventh century. The history is closely linked with the general history of Frankfurt and Frankfurt's old town because the cathedral had an associated role as the religious counterpart of the
Royal Palace
This is a list of royal palaces, sorted by continent.
Africa
* Abdin Palace, Cairo
* Al-Gawhara Palace, Cairo
* Koubbeh Palace, Cairo
* Tahra Palace, Cairo
* Menelik Palace
* Jubilee Palace
* Guenete Leul Palace
* Imperial Palace- Massa ...
in Frankfurt.
History
![Martin van Meytens 015](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Martin_van_Meytens_015.jpg)
Frankfurt Cathedral was an imperial
collegiate church In Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college of canons: a non-monastic or "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-governing corporate body, which may be presided over by a ...
, termed
Dom Dom or DOM may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Dom (given name), including fictional characters
* Dom (surname)
* Dom La Nena (born 1989), stage name of Brazilian-born cellist, singer and songwriter Dominique Pinto
* Dom people, an et ...
in German – a
synecdoche
Synecdoche ( ) is a type of metonymy: it is a figure of speech in which a term for a part of something is used to refer to the whole (''pars pro toto''), or vice versa (''totum pro parte''). The term comes from Greek .
Examples in common Engl ...
for all collegiate churches used
totum pro parte
''Totum pro parte'' is Latin for "the whole for a part"; it refers to a kind of metonymy. The plural is ''tota pro partibus'', "wholes for parts". In a context of language, it means something is named after something of which it is only a part (o ...
also for cathedrals -, and thus traditionally translated as cathedral in English. St. Bartholomew's is the main church of Frankfurt and was constructed in the 14th and 15th centuries on the foundation of an earlier church from the
Merovingian
The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from the middle of the 5th century until 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the Franks and northern Gauli ...
time.
Since 1356, when the
Golden Bull of 1356
The Golden Bull of 1356 (, , , , ) was a decree issued by the Imperial Diet at Nuremberg and Metz ( Diet of Metz, 1356/57) headed by the Emperor Charles IV which fixed, for a period of more than four hundred years, important aspects of the con ...
was issued by
Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles IV ( cs, Karel IV.; german: Karl IV.; la, Carolus IV; 14 May 1316 – 29 November 1378''Karl IV''. In: (1960): ''Geschichte in Gestalten'' (''History in figures''), vol. 2: ''F–K''. 38, Frankfurt 1963, p. 294), also known as Charle ...
, emperors of the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...
were elected in this collegiate church as kings in Germany, and from 1562 to 1792, emperors-elect were crowned here.
The imperial elections were held in the ''Wahlkapelle'', a chapel on the south side of the choir (''Hochchor'') built for this purpose in 1425 (See the Plan to the right) and the anointing and crowning of the emperors-elect as
King of the Romans
King of the Romans ( la, Rex Romanorum; german: König der Römer) was the title used by the king of Germany following his election by the princes from the reign of Henry II (1002–1024) onward.
The title originally referred to any German k ...
took place before the central altar–believed to enshrine part of the head of
St. Bartholomew
Bartholomew (Aramaic: ; grc, Βαρθολομαῖος, translit=Bartholomaîos; la, Bartholomaeus; arm, Բարթողիմէոս; cop, ⲃⲁⲣⲑⲟⲗⲟⲙⲉⲟⲥ; he, בר-תולמי, translit=bar-Tôlmay; ar, بَرثُولَماو ...
– in the crossing of the church, at the entrance to the choir (See the Plan to the right).
When the city of Frankfurt
secularized
In sociology, secularization (or secularisation) is the transformation of a society from close identification with religious values and institutions toward non-religious values and secular institutions. The ''secularization thesis'' expresses the ...
, it appropriated the remaining Catholic churches and their
endowments of earning assets, however, leaving the usage of the church buildings to the existing Catholic parishes. Thus St. Bartholomew's became of the city's
dotation churches, owned and maintained by the city but used by Catholic or Lutheran congregations.
St. Bartholomew's was seen as symbol for national unity in Germany, especially during the 19th century. Although it had never been a bishop's seat, it was the largest church in Frankfurt and its role in imperial politics, including crowning of medieval German emperors, made the church one of the most important buildings of
Imperial history.
In 1867, St. Bartholomew's was destroyed by a fire and rebuilt in its present style.
During World War II, between October 1943 and March 1944, the
old town of Frankfurt, the biggest old Gothic town in Central Europe, was devastated by
six bombardments of the Allied Air Forces. The greatest losses occurred in an attack by the
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
on 22 March 1944, when more than a thousand buildings of the old town, most of them half-timbered houses, were destroyed.
St. Bartholomew's suffered severe damage; the interior was burned out completely. The building was reconstructed in the 1950s. The height of the spire is .
Frankfurt Cathedral Choir School
The Frankfurt Cathedral Choir School (German: ''Frankfurter Domsingschule''), founded in 2011, is a mixed ecumenical children's and youth choir, which accompanies not only mass and evensongs, but also official receptions and openings.
The ''Frankfurter Domsingschule'' offers any singer, regardless of their religious affiliation, age-based, free vocal basic training at regular rehearsals and valuable one-on-one and group vocal training or early musical education. This extensive basic training is unique for Frankfurt.
Notable people associated with the cathedral
*
Conrad III of Dhaun
Conrad may refer to:
People
* Conrad (name)
Places
United States
* Conrad, Illinois, an unincorporated community
* Conrad, Indiana, an unincorporated community
* Conrad, Iowa, a city
* Conrad, Montana, a city
* Conrad Glacier, Washingto ...
, former provost
*
Madern Gerthener
Madern Gerthener (1360/1370 – 1430) was a German stonemason and late Gothic architect.
Biography
Gerthener was born in Frankfurt to Johann Gerthener, a stonemason whose business the younger Gerthener took over by 1391. In 1395 he entered the ...
, stonemason and architect who designed the cathedral
*
Johannes Jeep
Johannes Jeep (pronounced "Yape"; also Johann or Jepp; 1581/1582 – 19 November 1644) was a German organist, choirmaster and composer.
Biography
Jeep, who was born in Dransfeld, Germany, is remembered for his choral writing. He collected his ...
, organist
*
Joseph Weyland
Joseph Weyland (born 24 April 1943) is a Luxembourgian diplomat and was Luxembourg's Ambassador to the United States from 2 March 2005 to 2008. In addition, he was concurrently accredited to Canada, Mexico, and the Organization of American Sta ...
,
Bishop of Fulda
The Diocese of Fulda (Latin ''Dioecesis Fuldensis'') is a Roman Catholic diocese in the north of the Germany, German state of Hessen. It is a suffragan diocese of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Paderborn, Archdiocese of Paderborn. The bishop ...
*
Hans Abel, artist contributing to the stained glass
;Notable burials
*
Johannes Karl von und zu Franckenstein
Johannes Karl von und zu Franckenstein (1610–1691) was the Prince-Bishop of Worms from 1683 to 1691.
Biography
A member of the House of Franckenstein, Johannes Karl von und zu Franckenstein was born in Castle Frankenstein in 1610.
On 17 A ...
,
Prince-Bishop of Worms
*
Günther von Schwarzburg
Günther XXI von Schwarzburg (c. 1304 – 14 June 1349), disputed King of Germany, was a descendant of the counts of Schwarzburg.
Biography
Born as the younger son of Henry VII, Count of Schwarzburg-Blankenburg (c. 1267 - 1324) and his wife, ...
,
anti-king
An anti-king, anti king or antiking (german: Gegenkönig; french: antiroi; cs, protikrál) is a would-be king who, due to succession disputes or simple political opposition, declares himself king in opposition to a reigning monarch.OED "Anti-, 2 ...
and member of the
House of Schwarzburg
The House of Schwarzburg was one of the oldest noble families of Thuringia. Upon the death of Prince Friedrich Günther in 1971, a claim to the headship of the house passed under Semi-Salic primogeniture to his elder sister, Princess Marie An ...
Gallery
File:Frankfurt Cathedral Tower Detail.jpg, The tower
File:Frankfurt Cathedral Organ.jpg, The organ
File:Frankfurt Cathedral Vaults.JPG, Vaulted ceilings
File:Mk Frankfurt Dom Grundriss.png, Plan
File:Mk Frankfurt Dom Baugeschichte de.gif, Historical development of the current building; colors distinguish its various architectural styles.
File:Frankfurt Domturm vor 1867.jpg, Frankfurt Cathedral: tower before the fire of 1867
File:Rooftopper on top of Frankfurts Kaiserdom.jpg, alt=A rooftopper on top of Frankfurts Kaiserdom., A rooftopper on top of Frankfurts Kaiserdom.
See also
*
List of Gothic Cathedrals in Europe This is a list of gothic cathedrals in Europe that are active Christian cathedrals (the seats of bishops), but also includes former cathedrals and churches built in the style of cathedrals, that are significant for their Gothic style of architecture ...
References
Further reading
*
*
External links
Dompfarrei St. BartholomäusDomturmFrankfurter Domsingschule*
{{Authority control
Roman Catholic cathedrals in Hesse
Roman Catholic churches in Frankfurt
Gothic hall churches in Germany
Frankfurt-Altstadt
16th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Germany
Roman Catholic churches completed in 1550
Imperial election (Holy Roman Empire)
Churches in the Diocese of Limburg