Fortified Church of St. Arbogast

The fortified church with northern gate tower

The fortified church of St. Arbogast ( reformed ) in the municipality of Muttenz in the canton of Basel-Land is the only church of Switzerland, which is surrounded by an almost circular ring wall completely. This type of church is called a fortified church.

3.1 Fixed
3.2 Church
3.3 murals

Location

The church district is located in the upper village of Muttenz and forms the core of is radially propagating old village, which is bordered to the west by the Rütihard and east of Wartenberg.

History

Predecessor churches

The history of the church goes back, so already the Alemanni have built a wooden church in the 5th century on the foundations of an abandoned Roman building.

A solid construction then arose in the 8th or 9th century and was replaced by 1000. Shortly afterwards, the village of Muttenz came as Dinghof in the possession of the diocese of Strasbourg, the church was dedicated to St. Arbogast and he became their patron saint.

In the middle of the 12th century left rebuild the church in Romanesque style, a vassal, the building was never fully completed.

Destruction by an earthquake in 1356

In 1356 the great Basel earthquake destroyed parts of the church. Thus collapsed the north wall and the roof and the tower also suffered.

Reconstruction, extension

From 1359 the vassals Konrad Münch - Lowenberg began with the repair and completion of the church. Thus one finds in the church in various places his coat of arms, consisting of the monk and the lion. Around 1420 increased Thüringstrasse Hans Münch - Eptingen the church tower and as protection for the residents of the village of Muttenz church had been built as a refuge and surrounded by a wall. In 1504 the nave was increased. 1630 was the ship bigger windows and a gallery, the tower was increased by an additional floor and came to its distinctive spire.

Proposed demolition of the mounting

Mid-19th century it was decided by the Municipal Assembly of Muttenz the demolition of the fortifications, but thanks to the use of heritage -conscious citizens, especially the Zurich art historian Johann Rudolf Rahn, prevented.

Description

Plant

The fortified church of St. Arbogast consists of the church and its cemetery, which by an approximately 7 meter high perimeter wall with battlements and two gate towers is secured. The wall is pierced through the gate towers designated according to their location in the north and the south. Within the walls is next to the church with a nave, Vorchor, the altar and the house lying in Nordeck tower only, built in 1513 ossuary.

Outside the wall fitting is adjacent to the North Tower of the built in the 17th century guardhouse and was built in 1553 Sigristenhaus next to the south tower.

Church

The free-standing church shows in an easterly direction and is composed of ship, Vorchor and chancel. The tower is located on the north side, at the height of Vorchores. The nave has a late Gothic wooden plank ceiling by Ulrich brother from the year 1504. The church has an organ of Neidhart & Löthe, which is located on the mezzanine newly created in 1973. The Romanesque Vorchor is increased by three levels and has a ribbed vault with a final stone with the arms of Münch - Lowenberg of 1359th One can also find the baptismal font from 1618 and the pulpit corpus from the 18th century. On the north wall of the chancel, which is spanned by arched ribs of the 14th century, there is a late Gothic tabernacle and is the place of the stone altar table of 1805.

Murals

The emergence of the paintings found during the renovation of 1880 in the church date back to 1450. But mostly they made around 1507 by Martin Schongauer and depict scenes from the Arbogast and Niklaus legend, scenes from the life of Christ, Mary, the apostles and in the ossuary, the legend of the Grateful Dead. Among the paintings was left to create watercolors and breaks and then they vergibste again. Only the painting of the Last Judgment was left standing and restored.

Only when the total restoration in the years 1973-1975, all images were made visible again in the Church and in the ossuary and preserved.

For the painting, see:

Romanesque art 1356 Basel earthquake Steeple Aesch Castle Schauenburg Castle Angenstein Castle Birseck Castle Bischofstein Castle (Switzerland) Bottmingen Castle Schloss Ebenrain Reichenstein Castle (Arlesheim) Sissacherfluh Castle Wildenstein Castle (Bubendorf)

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