The Reformed Nydeggkirche (from the

Bernese German Bernese German (Standard German: ''Berndeutsch'', gsw, Bärndütsch) is the dialect of High Alemannic German spoken in the Swiss plateau (Mittelland) part of the canton of Bern and in some neighbouring regions. A form of Bernese German is spoke ...

expression for "Lower corner") is located on the eastern edge of the

Old City of Bern The Old City (german: Altstadt) is the medieval city center of Bern, Switzerland. Built on a narrow hill bordered on three sides by the river Aare, its compact layout has remained essentially unchanged since its construction during the twelfth ...

, in the

Nydegg The Nydegg is a historic section in the Old City of Bern in Bern, Switzerland. The first expansion of Bern occurred as the city was founded in 1191. At the east end of the central and oldest neighbourhood, the ''Zähringerstadt'' ( Zähringe ...

section.

The castle Nydegg

The old town is situated on a peninsula in a loop of the

Aare The Aare () or Aar () is a tributary of the High Rhine and the longest river that both rises and ends entirely within Switzerland. Its total length from its source to its junction with the Rhine comprises about , during which distance it descen ...

and developed in several expansion stages. The first occurred in 1191, as an existing settlement was expanded in the area of Nydeggkirche to the Clock Tower (

Zytglogge The Zytglogge (Bernese German: ; ) is a landmark medieval tower in Bern, Switzerland. Built in the early 13th century, it has served the city as guard tower, prison, clock tower, centre of urban life and civic memorial. Despite the many re ...

). In 1190 Duke Berchtold V von Zähringen had built the castle Nydegg. After the extinction of the House of Zähringen, it came under the control of the city and was razed in 1266-73 by the inhabitants of Bern, in order to develop the Nydegg section. It possessed four corner towers and was located about where the current

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...

of the church stands.

The Church

The original small church was built from 1341 to 1346 to replace the old fortress. It was first

sanctified Sanctified may refer to: *Sanctification, the process of making holy Music Albums * ''Sanctified'' (album), by Morgana Lefay, 1995 *''Sanctified'', by Jack McDuff, 1961 *''Sanctified'', by the Rance Allen Group, 1975 Songs *"Sanctified", by The ...

in March 1344, followed by a second on 23 May 1346. This early church featured a bell tower. On 12 January 1469 the city asked the

Teutonic Order The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians on ...

to donate the Nydegg chapel to the Mary Magdalene Brotherhood and to allow them to use the money paid to the chapel to rebuild the building. However, the city had to wait until the end of the

Burgundian Wars The Burgundian Wars (1474–1477) were a conflict between the Burgundian State and the Old Swiss Confederacy and its allies. Open war broke out in 1474, and the Duke of Burgundy, Charles the Bold, was defeated three times on the battlefield in t ...

(1472-1476) to begin the project. From 1480 to 1483 the city added a tower and from 1493 to 1504, a new

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

was added. After the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and ...

in 1529, the Nydeggkirche was transformed into a warehouse for barrels, timber and grain, but in 1566 again served as worship space. Beginning in 1566 it was cleaned out and minor renovations made to the windows and walls. However, in 1568 the bell tower roof caught fire and was destroyed. The new roof was finished and the damaged clock work repaired by the end of May 1571. The large wrought iron cross which tops the main spire was built by Caspar Brükessel during the same time. The current tower's appearance mostly dates back to the 1571 reconstruction. The later changes to the tower were fairly minor. For example, in 1625 four small

embrasure An embrasure (or crenel or crenelle; sometimes called gunhole in the domain of gunpowder-era architecture) is the opening in a battlement between two raised solid portions (merlons). Alternatively, an embrasure can be a space hollowed out ...

s or firing slits were broken out of the tower to help defend the city gate and in 1631 eight

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

waterspouts A waterspout is an intense columnar vortex (usually appearing as a funnel-shaped cloud) that occurs over a body of water. Some are connected to a cumulus congestus cloud, some to a cumuliform cloud and some to a cumulonimbus cloud. In the com ...

were added to the roof.Hofer, pg. 242 Until 1721 it was a branch church of the

Münster of Bern Bern Minster (german: Berner Münster) is a Swiss Reformed cathedral (or minster) in the old city of Bern, Switzerland. Built in the Gothic style, its construction started in 1421. Its tower, with a height of , was only completed in 1893. It is ...

. Today's congregation forms part of the

Reformed Churches of the Canton Bern-Jura-Solothurn The Evangelical Reformed Church of the Canton Bern-Jura-Solothurn is a Reformed state church in three cantons of Switzerland. It is located within the Canton of Bern, Canton of Jura, and Canton of Solothurn. The official worship language are ...

. In 1863, the church was extended to the west and an entrance from the Nydeggbrücke (Nydegg Bridge) was added. Then, from 1951 to 1953 a total renovation happened. During the renovation, bronze reliefs by Marcel Perincioli were added to the main entrance at Nydegghöfli and the entrance to the bridge. The Nydegghöflibrunnen or Stalden fountain was added to a niche under Nydegggasse at Nydegghöfli in 1857. Then, in 1968, the Zähringer monument at Nydegghöfli was erected, which had previously been on the Munster platform.

The bronze reliefs

In 1956, bronze reliefs by Perincioli were inspired by medieval role models in front of San Zeno in

Verona Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city municipality in the region and the second largest in nor ...

and the Cathedral of

Hildesheim Hildesheim (; nds, Hilmessen, Hilmssen; la, Hildesia) is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany with 101,693 inhabitants. It is in the district of Hildesheim, about southeast of Hanover on the banks of the Innerste River, a small tributary of the L ...

. On the main door, you can see scenes from the life and work of Jesus, on the left wing, from top to bottom: *The announcement of the birth of Jesus to the shepherds (Luke 2:8-14) *The baptism of Jesus (Mark 1:1-11) *Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) *The healing of a paralytic (Mark 2:1-12) and on the right wing: *The birth of Jesus in the stable at Bethlehem (Luke 2) *The temptation of Jesus (Mark 1:12 f.) *The miraculous feeding (Mark 6:30-44) *The Raising of Lazarus (John 11:17 ff) On the ''Brückentüre'' are on the left wing, from top to bottom are following scenes: *The women come to the grave of Jesus (Mark 16:1-8) *Jesus before Pontius Pilate (Mark 15:1-5) *The foot washing (John 13:1-20) *The anointing at Bethany (John 12:1-10) and on the right wing: *The risen Christ on the Sea of Galilee (John 21:1-14) *The burial of Jesus (John 19:38-42) *Jesus in Gethsemane (Mark 14:32-42) *The entrance to Jerusalem (John 12:12-19)

Notable Pastors

Worked as a chaplain at the Nydeggkirche * Jeremiah Lorza (from 1800 to 1832) * Edward Guedes (from 1855) * Kurt Marti (from 1961 to 1983) On 8 July 1995, the pastor of Nydeggkirche, Bäumlin Klaus (born 1938), caused a media storm following his offering of a blessing service for same-sex couple for Stephan Diggelmann and Bareld Storm.

Sources

External links

Nydegg.ch: Parish Nydegg Bern website

Nydegg.ch: Photos of the bronze reliefs

Nydeggkirche chapter in Volume 5 of the artistic monuments of the canton of Bern

Blessing service in the Nydeggkirche (1995)
* {{Old City of Bern Old City (Bern) Reformed churches in Bern Tourist attractions in Bern Gothic Revival church buildings in Switzerland Churches in the canton of Bern