St. Bonifatius is a
Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
church in , part of
Lorch, Hesse
Lorch am Rhein () is a small town in the Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis in the of Darmstadt in Hesse, Germany. It belongs to the Rhine Gorge World Heritage Site.
Geography
Location
The town is characterized by winegrowing and tourism.
Lorch lies ...
, Germany. The large church in
Gothic revival style
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...
was completed in 1879.
History
The former church in Lorchhausen, from the 14th century and dedicated to
Saint Boniface
Boniface, OSB (born Wynfreth; 675 –5 June 754) was an English Benedictines, Benedictine monk and leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the Germanic parts of Francia during the eighth century. He organised significant foundations of ...
, was too small and also damaged by several fires,
one in 1801, and again in 1872.
The parish priest from 1869, Wilhelm Aloys Ohlenschläger, initiated the building of a larger church. The
Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...
of 1870/71 delayed the project. Due to the narrow situation in the village, the old church could not be replaced. The Pforten vineyard was chosen as the new site. Building began on 21 May 1872 with flattening the site, done by the villagers. In September 1875, the
Diocese of Limburg
The Diocese of Limburg () is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in Germany. It belongs to the ecclesiastical province of Cologne, with metropolitan see being the Archdiocese of Cologne.
Its territory encompasses parts of the States ...
approved the design of a church in
Gothic revival style
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...
by architect Kontzen from
Oestrich
Oestrich-Winkel () is a town with roughly 12,000 inhabitants in the Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis in the ''Regierungsbezirk'' of Darmstadt in Hesse, Germany.
Geography
Location
Oestrich-Winkel, which culturally belongs to the Rheingau region, lies o ...
.
The building was supervised by the Franciscan , who changed the plans, enlarging the interior. The corner stone was set on 19 March 1877. In May 1877, took over,
changing the plans again regarding doors, windows, vault, dome and floor. The church was consecrated on 5 June 1879 by Ohlenschläger.
The parish became part of
Heilig-Kreuz in Geisenheim, and belongs to the
Diocese of Limburg
The Diocese of Limburg () is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in Germany. It belongs to the ecclesiastical province of Cologne, with metropolitan see being the Archdiocese of Cologne.
Its territory encompasses parts of the States ...
.
Architecture
The church is built following medieval models, in
Gothic revival style
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...
. It has one high tower in the west, and three naves.
Most of the furnishings date from 1884, including a high altar with scenes from the life of Saint Boniface
by Theodor Stracke.
New bells were needed, as the former ones melted in the fire. The company created four large bells.
Organ
The
pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurised air (called ''wind'') through the organ pipes selected from a Musical keyboard, keyboard. Because each pipe produces a single tone and pitch, the pipes are provide ...
was built in 1897 by
Johannes Klais.
It had first two manuals and 14 stops. The organ was remodelled in 1962, again by Klais. In 1983, expanded the organ further.
[W. Augstein: ''St. Bonifatius-Kirche – 450 Jahre Pfarrei Lorchhausen.'' (Festschrift, in German) Kath. Pfarrgemeinde St. Bonifatius Lorchhausen, 4 June 2001]
Further reading
* Dagmar Söder: ''Rheingau-Taunus Kreis I.2 Altkreis Rheingau.''
Landesamt für Denkmalpflege Hessen. Theiss-Verlag, Darmstadt 2014, ISBN 978-3-8062-2987-5.
* ''Lorchhausen: Geschichte und Geschichten eines Weindorfs.'' Hrsg. Heimatverein Lorchhausen e. V. 2011
* Herbert Gräff, Wolfgang Krammes (ed.): ''Die Kirchen im Mittelrheintal.'' Michael Imhof Verlag, 2004, ISBN 3-935590-64-4.
* Hubert Foersch: ''Limburger Glockenbuch – Glocken und Geläute im Bistum Limburg.'' Verlag des Bischöflichen Ordinariates, Limburg 1997
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Bonifatius, Lorchhausen
Churches in the Diocese of Limburg
Gothic Revival church buildings in Germany
Roman Catholic churches completed in 1879