, native_name = , native_name_lang = , image = Frauenkirche Munich - View from Peterskirche Tower2.jpg , pushpin map = , pushpin label position = , pushpin map alt = , pushpin mapsize = , coordinates = , osgraw = , osgridref = , location = Frauenplatz 12

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

, country = Germany , denomination =

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 ...

, website = , founded date = , dedication = , dedicated date = , consecrated date = 1494 , status = Co-cathedral , functional status = Active , heritage designation = , designated date = , architect =

Jörg von Halsbach Jörg von Halsbach (d. 6 October 1488), also called ''Halspach'' or ''Ganghofer'' was a German bricklayer and architect. He was from Polling and worked in Munich and Freising. Biography Jörg von Halsbach was educated probably in Braunau or ...

, architectural type =

Cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

, style =

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 ...

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

(domes) , years built = preced. 12th century
actual 1468–1488 , groundbreaking = , completed date = 1524 (domes added) , capacity = , length = , width = , archdiocese = Munich and Freising , archbishop = Reinhard Cardinal Marx , priest = Msgr. Klaus Peter Franzl , director = Lucia Hilz
(''Domkapellmeisterin'') , organist = Ruben Sturm

Martin Welzel Martin Welzel (born November 11, 1972 in Vechta, West Germany) is a German organist, musicologist, and pedagogue. Biography Martin Welzel received his first musical training in Bremen, where Käte van Tricht (a former student of Karl Straube) wa ...

(Associate Organist, 2021–2022)
Msgr. Hans Leitner (2003–2021) The Frauenkirche (Full name: german: Dom zu Unserer Lieben Frau, lit=Cathedral of Our Dear Lady) is a church in

, Germany, that serves as the

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

of the

Archdiocese of Munich and Freising The Archdiocese of Munich and Freising (german: Erzbistum München und Freising, la, Archidioecesis Monacensis et Frisingensis) is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in Bavaria, Germany.

and seat of its Archbishop. It is a landmark and is considered a symbol of the Bavarian capital city. Although called "Münchner Dom" (Munich Cathedral) on its website and

URL A Uniform Resource Locator (URL), colloquially termed as a web address, is a reference to a web resource that specifies its location on a computer network and a mechanism for retrieving it. A URL is a specific type of Uniform Resource Identifie ...

, the church is referred to as "Frauenkirche" by locals. Because of local height limits, the church towers are widely visible. As a result of the narrow outcome of a local plebiscite, city administration prohibits buildings with a height exceeding 99 m in the city center. Since November 2004, this prohibition has been provisionally extended outward, and consequently, no buildings may be built in the city over the aforementioned height. The south tower, which is normally open to those wishing to climb the stairs, will offer a unique view of Munich and the nearby

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...

after its current renovation is completed.

History

A late Romanesque church was added next to the town's first ring of walls in the 12th century,. This new church served as a second city parish following the older, Alter Peter church. The late

cathedral visible today, which replaced the Romanesque church, was commissioned by

Duke Sigismund Sigismund (26 October 1427 – 4 March 1496), a member of the House of Habsburg, was Duke of Austria from 1439 (elevated to Archduke in 1477) until his death. As a scion of the Habsburg Leopoldian line, he ruled over Further Austria and the ...

and the people of Munich, and built in the 15th century. The cathedral was erected in only 20 years' time by

. Because there was not a nearby stone quarry and for other financial reasons, brick was chosen as building material. Construction began in 1468, and when the cash resources were exhausted in 1479,

Pope Sixtus IV Pope Sixtus IV ( it, Sisto IV: 21 July 1414 – 12 August 1484), born Francesco della Rovere, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 August 1471 to his death in August 1484. His accomplishments as pope include ...

granted an

indulgence In the teaching of the Catholic Church, an indulgence (, from , 'permit') is "a way to reduce the amount of punishment one has to undergo for sins". The '' Catechism of the Catholic Church'' describes an indulgence as "a remission before God o ...

The two towers, which are both just over 98 meters (323 feet) tall, were completed in 1488, and the church was consecrated in 1494. There were plans for tall, open-work spires typical of the Gothic style, but given the financial difficulties of the time, the plans could not be realized. The towers remained unfinished until 1525. German historian,

Hartmann Schedel Hartmann Schedel (13 February 1440 – 28 November 1514) was a German historian, physician, humanist, and one of the first cartographers to use the printing press. He was born and died in Nuremberg. Matheolus Perusinus served as his tutor. ...

, printed a view of Munich including the unfinished towers in his famous ''

Nuremberg Chronicle The ''Nuremberg Chronicle'' is an illustrated encyclopedia consisting of world historical accounts, as well as accounts told through biblical paraphrase. Subjects include human history in relation to the Bible, illustrated mythological creatures, ...

'', also known as Schedel's World Chronicle. Finally, because rainwater was regularly penetrating the temporary roofing in the tower's ceilings, the towers were completed in 1525, albeit using a more budget-friendly design. This new design was modelled after the

Dome of the Rock The Dome of the Rock ( ar, قبة الصخرة, Qubbat aṣ-Ṣakhra) is an Islamic shrine located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem, a site also known to Muslims as the ''al-Haram al-Sharif'' or the Al-Aqsa Compound. Its initial ...

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

, which itself was modelled from late

Byzantine architecture Byzantine architecture is the architecture of the Byzantine Empire, or Eastern Roman Empire. The Byzantine era is usually dated from 330 AD, when Constantine the Great moved the Roman capital to Byzantium, which became Constantinople, until th ...

and erroneously considered to be Solomon's original temple. The resulting domes atop each tower contributed to making the church a distinctive Munich landmark. The building has a volume of about 200,000 m³, and originally had the capacity to house 20,000 standing people. Later, pews for ordinary people were introduced. Considering late fifteenth-century Munich had only 13,000 inhabitants and an already established parish church in Alter Peter, it is quite remarkable that a second church of this magnitude was erected in the city. In 1919,

Eugen Leviné Eugen Leviné (russian: Евгений Левине; 10 May 1883 – 5 June 1919), also known as Dr. Eugen Leviné, was a German communist revolutionary and one of the leaders of the short-lived Second Bavarian Soviet Republic. Background ...

, leader of a short-lived

Bavarian Socialist Republic The Bavarian Soviet Republic, or Munich Soviet Republic (german: Räterepublik Baiern, Münchner Räterepublik),Hollander, Neil (2013) ''Elusive Dove: The Search for Peace During World War I''. McFarland. p.283, note 269. was a short-lived unre ...

, had the Frauenkirche declared a "revolutionary temple." The cathedral suffered severe damage during the later stages of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. After Allied forces' air raids, the church roof collapsed, one of the towers suffered severe damage, and the majority of the church's irreplaceable historical artifacts held inside were lost—either destroyed by bomb raids themselves, or removed with the debris in the aftermath. A multi-stage restoration effort began soon after the war. The final stage of restoration was completed in 1994.

Architecture

The Frauenkirche was constructed from red brick in the late

style within only 20 years. The building is designed very plainly, without rich Gothic ornamentation and with its buttresses moved into and hidden in the interior. This, together with the two towers' special design ( battered upwards, etc.), makes the construction, mighty anyway, look even more enormous and gives it a near-modern appearance according to the principle of "less is more". The Late Gothic brick building with chapels surrounding the

apse In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an ''exedra''. In ...

is long, wide, and high. Contrary to a widespread legend that says the two towers with their characteristic domes are exactly one meter different in height, they are almost equal: the north tower is while the south tower is only , less. The original design called for pointed spires to top the towers, much like

Cologne Cathedral Cologne Cathedral (german: Kölner Dom, officially ', English: Cathedral Church of Saint Peter) is a Catholic cathedral in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne and of the administration of the Archdiocese of ...

, but those were never built because of lack of money. Instead, the two domes were constructed during the

and do not match the architectural style of the building, however they have become a distinctive landmark of Munich. With an enclosed space of about 200,000 m³, with 150,000 m³ up to the height of the vault, it is the second among the largest

hall churches In architecture, a hall is a relatively large space enclosed by a roof and walls. In the Iron Age and early Middle Ages in northern Europe, a mead hall was where a lord and his retainers ate and also slept. Later in the Middle Ages, the grea ...

in general and the second among the largest

brick A brick is a type of block used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a block composed of dried clay, but is now also used informally to denote other chemically cured cons ...

churches north of the Alps (after St. Mary's Church in Gdańsk). In accordance with a law passed in 2004, no buildings within Munich city limits may be built taller than the Frauenkirche towers.

Interior

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...

is held regularly in the cathedral, which still serves as a parish church. It is among the largest

hall church A hall church is a church with a nave and aisles of approximately equal height, often united under a single immense roof. The term was invented in the mid-19th century by Wilhelm Lübke, a pioneering German art historian. In contrast to an archi ...

es in southern Germany. The hall is divided into 3 sectors (the main nave and two side aisles of equal height () by a double row of 22 pillars (11 at either side, ) that help enclose the space. These are voluminous, but appear quite slim because of their impressive height and the building's height-to-width ratio. The arches were designed by Heinrich von Straubing. Peter Candid - Assumption of Mary

From the main portal the view seems to be only the rows of columns with no windows and translucent "walls" between the vaults through which the light seems to shine. The spatial effect of the church is connected with a legend about a footprint in a square tile at the entrance to the nave, the so-called "devil's footstep". A rich collection of 14th to 18th century artwork of notable artists like

Peter Candid Peter de Witte, known in Italy as Pietro Candido and in Bavaria as Peter Candid (c. 1548 – 1628) was a Flemish-born Mannerism, Mannerist painter, tapestry designer and draughtsman active in Italy and Bavaria.Erasmus Grasser Erasmus Grasser (c. 1450 – c. 1515) was a leading master builder and sculptor in Munich in the early 16th century. Biography He developed in an animated and realistic style, furthering on the works of Nikolaus Gerhaert. Grasser worked mainly i ...

Jan Polack Jan Polack Johannes Po(l)lack (Hanns Polagk, Polegk), ( la, Ioannes Polonus) (between 1435 and 1450 – 1519) was a 15th-century painter. From his nickname it is assumed that he might have been born and/or worked in Kraków. From the mid-1470s ...

Hans Leinberger Hans Leinberger, sometimes given as Lemberger (c.1475/1480 – after 1531) was a Late Gothic sculptor from Altbayern, who worked in wood, metal and stone. Life and work His exact birthplace is unknown, as is the place and manner of his arti ...

Hans Krumpper Hans Krumpper (c.1570 – between 7 and 14 May 1634) was a German sculptor, plasterer, architect, and intendant of the arts who served the Bavarian dukes William V, Duke of Bavaria, William V and Maximilian I, Elector of Bavaria, Maximilian I. ...

and

Ignaz Günther Ignaz Günther (22 November 1725 – 27 June 1775) was a German sculptor and Woodworking, woodcarver working in the Bavarian Rococo tradition. He was born in Altmannstein, where he received his earliest training from his father, then studied in ...

decorates the interior of the cathedral again since the last restoration. The Gothic nave, several of the Gothic stained-glass windows, some of them made for the previous church, and the tomb monument of

Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor Louis IV (german: Ludwig; 1 April 1282 – 11 October 1347), called the Bavarian, of the house of Wittelsbach, was King of the Romans from 1314, King of Italy from 1327, and Holy Roman Emperor from 1328. Louis' election as king of Germany in ...

are major attractions. For the daily choral prayers Erasmus Grasser created in 1495–1502 the choir stalls with busts of apostles and prophets and small statues which survived the alterations of the Baroque period and the Gothic Revival, but burned in World War II, only the figures had been relocated and preserved. Therefore, the Frauenkirche still has the largest surviving ensemble of characters from the Late Gothic in Germany. The optical end of the sanctuary is formed by a column on which stands the St. Mary statue by

Roman Anton Boos Roman Anton Boos (28 February 1733 (?) in Bischofswang, near Roßhaupten - 19 December 1810, Munich) was a German sculptor. Biography He was born into a family of farmers. Despite being unlettered, his father recognized his son's talent and ob ...

, which he executed in 1780 for the

sounding board A sounding board, also known as a tester and abat-voix is a structure placed above and sometimes also behind a pulpit or other speaking platform that helps to project the sound of the speaker. It is usually made of wood. The structure may be spe ...

of the former pulpit. The former high altar painting completed by

Peter Candid Peter de Witte, known in Italy as Pietro Candido and in Bavaria as Peter Candid (c. 1548 – 1628) was a Flemish-born Mannerism, Mannerist painter, tapestry designer and draughtsman active in Italy and Bavaria.Assumption of Mary The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it in 1950 in his apostolic constitution ''Munificentissimus Deus'' as follows: We proclaim and define it to be a dogma revealed by Go ...

into heaven.

''Teufelstritt'', or Devil's Footstep and perpetual wind

Much of the interior was destroyed during World War II. An attraction that survived is the ''Teufelstritt'', or Devil's Footstep, at the entrance. This is a black mark resembling a footprint, which according to legend was where the

devil A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conceptions of t ...

stood when he curiously regarded and ridiculed the 'windowless' church that Halsbach had built. (In baroque times the high altar obscured the one window at the very end of the church, that visitors can see now when standing in the entrance hall.) In another version of the legend, the devil made a deal with the builder to finance construction of the church on the condition that it contain no windows. The clever builder, however, tricked the devil by positioning columns so that the windows were not visible from the spot where the devil stood in the foyer. When the devil discovered that he had been tricked, he could not enter the already consecrated church. The devil could only stand in the foyer and stomp his foot furiously, which left the dark footprint that remains visible in the church's entrance today. Legend also says the devil then rushed outside and manifested his evil spirit in the wind that furiously rages around the church. Another version of that part of the legend has it that the devil came riding on the wind to see the church under construction. Having completely lost his temper, he stormed away, forgetting the wind, which will continue to blow around the church until the day the devil comes back to reclaim it.

Burials

The crypt contains the tombs of the

Archbishops of Munich and Freising The following people were bishops, prince-bishops or archbishops of Freising or Munich and Freising in Bavaria: Bishops of Freising * St. Corbinian (724–730); founded the Benedictine abbey in Freising, although the diocese was not orga ...

and among others of these members of the

Wittelsbach dynasty The House of Wittelsbach () is a German dynasty, with branches that have ruled over territories including Bavaria, the Palatinate, Holland and Zeeland, Sweden (with Finland), Denmark, Norway, Hungary (with Romania), Bohemia, the Electorate ...

, (reg. 1294–1347) * Duke Louis V, (reg. 1347–1361) * Duke Stephen II, (reg. 1347–1375) * Duke John II, (reg. 1375–1397) * Duke Ernest, (reg. 1397–1438) * Duke William III, (reg. 1397–1435) * Duke Adolf, (reg. 1435–1441) *

, (reg. 1460–1467) * Duke Albert IV, (reg. 1467–1508) * Duke William IV, (reg. 1508–1550) * Duke Albert V, (reg. 1550–1579) * King Ludwig III, (reg. 1912–1918)

Organs

The current organs were built in 1993–1994 by

Georg Jann Georg Jann (17 January 1934 – 12 February 2019)Wir trauern um OBM Georg Jann

. The Great Organ (1994) on the west gallery has 95 stops (140 ranks, 7,165 pipes), which can be played from two four-manual general consoles (a tracker console behind the Rückpositiv division, and a second movable electric console on the lower choir gallery). The Choir Organ (1993) is located on a gallery in the right nave, near the altar stairs. It has 36 stops (53 ranks) and can be played from a three-manual tracker console, as well as from the two main consoles on the west gallery. Both organs together contain 131 stops (193 ranks, 9,833 pipes) and are the largest organ ensemble in Munich.

Organists

* Abraham Wißreiter, from 1576–1618 * Hans Lebenhauser, from 1618-1634 * Anton Reidax, from 1634-1676 * Johann Kherner, from 1676-1699 * Johann Prunner, from 1699-1713 * Max Weißenböck, from 1713-1728 * Joseph Mamertus Falter, from 1728-1784 * Franz Anton Stadler, from 1792-1846 * Cajetan Stadler, from 1846-1899 * Karl Ludwig Ziegler, from 1899-1901 * Joseph Schmid, from 1901-1944 * Heinrich Wismeyer, from 1945-1969 * Franz Lehrndorfer, from 1959-2002 * Willibald Guggenmos, from 2001-2004 (Assistant Organist) * Michael Hartmann, from 2002-2003 (Interim Organist) * Msgr. Hans Leitner, from 2003-2021 *

, from 2021-2022 (Associate Organist) * Ruben Sturm, since September 1, 2022

Bells

Both towers contain ten bells cast in the 14th, 15th, 17th and 21st centuries. Their combination is unique and incomparable in Europe. The heaviest bell called ''Susanna'' or ''Salveglocke'' is one of the biggest bells in Bavaria. It was cast in 1490 by Hans Ernst by order of

Albrecht IV Albert IV of Austria (19 September 1377 – 14 September 1404) was a Duke of Austria. Biography He was born in Vienna, the son of Albert III of Austria and Beatrix of Nuremberg. He was the Duke of Austria from 1395 until 1404, which then ...

Other

In the church's north tower, since the mid 1980s, was a radio relay station of the German foreign intelligence service BND and another secret servic

The relay station was removed in 201

References

External links

Official Website
*

*
Frauenkirche music

Munich Frauenkirche – video

Munich Frauenkirche Photo Spread

Warburg Institute Iconographic Database (images of the church interior)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Frauenkirche Roman Catholic churches completed in 1494 15th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Germany Gothic architecture in Munich

Tourist attractions in Munich Roman Catholic churches in Munich

Munich Frauenkirche , native_name = , native_name_lang = , image = Frauenkirche Munich - View from Peterskirche Tower2.jpg , pushpin map = , pushpin label position = , pushpin map alt = , pushpin mapsize ...

Munich Cathedral , native_name = , native_name_lang = , image = Frauenkirche Munich - View from Peterskirche Tower2.jpg , pushpin map = , pushpin label position = , pushpin map alt = , pushpin mapsize ...

Burial sites of the House of Wittelsbach Cultural heritage monuments in Munich