St. James' Church () is one of the five principal churches (''Hauptkirchen'') of Hamburg. In 1529, it became a
Lutheran
Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...
church. It is located directly in the city centre, has a 125 m tall tower and features a famous organ by
Arp Schnitger from 1693. It is dedicated to
St James the Greater and often incorrectly referred to in English as ''St Jacob's''.
History
The history of the church goes back to 1255 when St. James' was a small Roman Catholic chapel located outside the Hamburg
city walls. After these were extended in 1260, it became part of the Hamburg city territory. It is now in the heart of the city, hidden behind one of the main shopping streets (''Mönckebergstraße'').
Between 1350 and 1400, the chapel was replaced by a
hall church with three
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 ...
s, similar to
St. Peter's. Around one hundred years later, a fourth nave was added to the south side of the structure. The
sacristy
A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christianity, Christian churches for the keeping of vestments (such as the alb and chasuble) and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records.
The sacristy is us ...
in the northeast also comes from this time (1438) and is today Hamburg's only example of secular
gothic architecture.
From 1806 to 1813, when Hamburg was occupied by Napoleonic troops, the church was used mainly as stables.
The second tower, erected in 1826/27 after the previous one had become dilapidated, was destroyed in 1944, along with the rest of the church building, by bombing during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Only the historic interior furnishings were saved. It was not until 1963 that St. James' re-emerged, built to the medieval design, albeit with a modern
spire.
Notable features
The building sits a few metres east of the
10th meridian east longitude, which runs through the city centre.
The famous
Arp Schnitger organ of 1693 in the west gallery, with 60 registers and around 4,000 pipes, is the largest
baroque
The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...
organ in Northern Europe. From 1989 to 1993, the organ was completely restored, and since its rededication at
Easter
Easter, also called Pascha ( Aramaic: פַּסְחָא , ''paskha''; Greek: πάσχα, ''páskha'') or Resurrection Sunday, is a Christian festival and cultural holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, described in t ...
1993 it can be heard every Sunday during services.
The 34 pictures in the organ gallery are the works of Otto
Wagenfeldt and Joachim Lundt.
They were created to portray the Bible in illustrations which everyone could appreciate and understand.
St. James' has three medieval altars: the Holy Trinity Altar in the Main Choir (c. 1518, the St. Peter Altar in the first south nave (1508), and the St. Luke Altar in the second south nave (1500) that originally comes from the
Hamburg Cathedral. The St. Luke Altar was built by the former Guild of St. Luke. All three were built originally to serve as Roman Catholic altars.
Also worthy of notice is the Ministers' Room, which originally served as a library. Since 1543, it has been the collection room of the Cathedral ministers, and was remodelled in 1710. The ceiling murals, with their civic virtues, show the importance of maintaining parish to the city regiment. They were painted, like the landscape paintings on the wall, by Johann Moritz Riesenberger. Coats of arms on the walls name the pastors, vicars, and jurors who have served the parish since the sixteenth century.
Windows
The stained-glass windows are the work of
Charles Crodel, who also created the windows of
St. Matthew's Church in
Winterhude and those of
St. Mary's Church in
Fuhlsbüttel.
The windows depict in the main important events in the