Charles' Church, Tallinn
59.43194444444424.739166666667Koordinaten: 59 ° 25 ' 55 "N, 24 ° 44' 21" E
The Karlskirche (Estonian Kaarli Nicholas' Church ) is a Lutheran church in the Estonian capital Tallinn. It was built 1862-1870 after plans by the German architect Otto Pius Baltic Hippius. The two towers of the west facade were added in 1882.
History
The Karlskirche is located west near the old town of Tallinn Toompea between the Liberty Square ( Vabaduse väljak ) and the National Library of Estonia ( Eesti Rahvusraamatugkogu ). Near the new building of the Occupation Museum ( Okupatsioonide Muuseum ) and the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Estonia are. The church is located on a 36 m high hill, the " Anthony Hill " ( Tõnismägi ) is called.
Today's Karlskirche is probably the fifth sacral building at this point. Already at the time of the pagan Estonians a sacred place should there have found. With the conquest and Christianization of Tallinn by the Danes probably a church built in the first half of the 14th century, a Catholic chapel, later. It was first documented in 1458 and has been dedicated to St. Anthony. Saint Anthony gives the whole municipality until his name. The religious building was destroyed in the 16th century during the Livonian War in the Tallinn ( 1570/71 and 1577) was twice besieged.
One hundred years later, under Swedish rule in Estonia, in 1670 a new church was consecrated in wood at the same location. It was in honor of the then Swedish king Charles XI. (1655-1697, king from 1660) called the " Charles Church ". The layout was designed in the form of a Greek cross. The Lutheran church served the Estonian and Finnish-speaking community for their services. During the Great Northern War, the church burned down in 1710. The congregation remained still exist until 1739.
It was not until more than a century later maps arose again to build a new church on the Mount Anthony. In the 1850s and 1860s, the time for a new church building of the Estonian town of Tallinn was favorable. The economic situation allowed large buildings. The growing self-confidence of the Estonian population still strongly imprinted in German Tallinn demanded a prestigious building. The former Church of the Estonian community, the medieval Holy Spirit Church ( Püha vaimu Nicholas' Church ) in Tallinn Old Town, had become too small for decades.
Construction
The Oldermann the Domgilde and successful Estonian entrepreneur Hans Heinrich Falck (1791-1874) donated the land for a new, representative sacral available. The Domgilde was also the start-up capital in the amount of 15,000 gold rubles. On May 15, 1862, the Russian Tsar Alexander II gave his permission for the formation of the new parish.
Since the construction dragged on, a temporary wooden church in 1863 just west of the present church was built. It was in 1870, with the construction of the present church, demolished.
For the project of the new, imposing temple of local limestone Tallinn had been able to win the Baltic German architect Otto Pius Hippius ( 1826-1883 ). Originally from a pastor's family Hippius took no money for his work. The plans for the sacred building in the style of historicism were already available in 1858. As a floor plan Hippius chose the Latin cross. With an area of 1197 m² the church one of the largest in the Baltics should be his time. The nave is 24 m wide and 59 m long.
For the roof structures of the Baltic German engineer Rudolf Bernhard (1819-1887) has been committed to the Church created a wide room with modern constructions. The wooden roof structure rests on brick arches. Executive architect was the Baltic German Rudolf Otto von Knüpffer. He was Gustav Heinrich Beermann (1832-1917) as an experienced church architect to the side.
Hans Heinrich Falck submitted on October 18, 1862 in person the foundation stone for the new building, which should express the growing self-confidence of the Estonian believers. The construction of the church withdrew but then from 1862 to 1870 out. Reason was always a lack of money to advance the work.
Only in 1870 could the roof to be completed. In the same year, on December 20, 1870 the church was consecrated. The date marked on the very day the consecration anniversary of the former church in 1670. Both mighty towers in the Romanesque Revival style in addition to the main portal were not completed until 1882.
Interior
The most important artistic work inside the 1879 comes from the Estonian painter Johann Köler ( 1826-1899 ). He created for the vault of the apse is the monumental fresco " Come unto me, all you who are weary and burdened, I will give you rest "(Matthew 11:28). The three-part fresco including with scenes from the life of Christ is a work of Baltic German painter Sally of Kügelgen (1860-1928), which produced the frescoes in 1889 after sketches by Carl Timoleon von Neff ( 1804-1876 ).
The neo-Gothic altar is the work of Paul 's good. 1870, designed by Hippius pulpit was installed. It is designed so that it is visible from every seat in the church. No pillars obstruct the view of pulpit and altar. Hippius it was all about, align the typical Protestant preacher church on the Word of God out.
The for wall niches of Hippius actually provided sculptures are still missing.
The church bell cast in Stockholm in the north tower rang out already in the former church. It is the only surviving part of the church of Karl in 1670. Swedish King Karl XI. had given it to 1696 the former St. Charles Church. Your inscription reads: GLORIA IN Excelsis DEO ME FECIT HOLMIAE GERHARDT MEYER A to 1696.
The bell in the south tower was cast in Bochum. She was a 1870 gift of the Tallinn merchant JE Steinberg. The inscription reads: COME, BECAUSE IT'S ALL READY / LUK. 14.17 / THE DOM KARLSKIRCHE / FROM CITIZENS JESTEINBERG / Reval 1870 / BUT THANK GOD, THE / WE THE VICTORY HAS GIVEN / 1 COR. 15:57
1870, the first organ was installed in the Karlskirche. She came from the Estonian organ builder Gustav Normann (1821-1893), who extended in 1884. 1923, the organ was replaced. The new instrument was developed by the Ludwigsburg Eberhard Friedrich Walcker organ builder ( 1794-1872 ). It has three manuals and 81 stops. It was the first representative organ of the Republic of Estonia after independence in 1918. It has remained the largest and most prestigious organ of Estonia.
Charles Church today
2006, the church was renovated. She suffers particularly from the strong traffic, which passes on both sides of the church.
Today, with 1,500 seats, the Karlskirche has remained one of the largest in Estonia churches. It is the central place of the largest Lutheran church in Estonia.
The worship of the Estonian governance and the diplomatic corps of the national holiday of the Republic of Estonia is traditionally held on 24 February in the Karlskirche.