St Maurice's Church, Strasbourg Explained

St Maurice's Church
Native Name:French: Église Saint-Maurice
Pushpin Map:France Strasbourg
Map Caption:Location within Paris and the inner ring
Coordinates:48.5847°N 7.7706°W
Country: France
Location:Neustadt district, Strasbourg
Dedication:Saint Maurice
Consecrated Date:28 May 1899
Denomination:Roman Catholic
Status:Parish church
Functional Status:Active
Architectural Type:Church
Style:Gothic Revival
Groundbreaking:November 1895
Archdiocese:Strasbourg

St Maurice's Church (French: église Saint-Maurice) is a Roman Catholic church building located on Place Arnold in the Neustadt district of Strasbourg, France. It was built during the Annexation of Alsace-Lorraine into the German Empire in the late 19th century.

History

The construction works of the church started in November 1895 within the framework of the construction of the Neustadt district. The church was designed by architect Ludwig Becker from Mainz,[1] whose preliminary draft was selected during an architectural competition in 1893. After several years of construction works, the church was consecrated on 28 May 1899.[2] [3] It was originally the church of the Catholic garrison of the city.

On 21 February 2013, the church was vandalised by a man who damaged about fifteen statues and laid an Islamic prayer rug and a Qur'an which he had stolen in a mosque. The man probably suffered from mental illness.[4]

Architecture

The Gothic Revival church was meant to be visible from far away, like the Protestant Church of St. Paul. The tall and thin bell tower of St Maurice is 65 meters high[5] and was placed in the several-kilometer-long perspective of Avenue des Vosges and Avenue de la Forêt-Noire which connect Place de Haguenau to Place Arnold.

A 1897 cast of Paul Dubois's statue of Joan of Arc is located to the east of St Maurice's Church.[1] The statue used to stand at the entrance of the church but was moved after Place Arnold was renovated.[1]

Interior

The main altar shows the life of St. Maurice, while the upper crucifix is surrounded by representations of St. Mary and St. John.[6]

In the southern chapel, an altarpiece depicts the Virgin Mary.[6]

The side chapel has a modern artwork made by Sylvie Lander.[6]

All the windows of the church are filled with stained glass.[6]

Organ

The organ of the church was made by Friedrich Weigle in 1899. It has 43 stops and 3 keyboards, as follows:[7]

I Grand Orgue C–g3----
Principal 16′
Principal 8′
Bourdon 8′
Wienerfloete 8′
Viole de gambe 8′
Octave 4′
Flûte à cheminée 4′
Doublette 2′
Cornet III-V 8′
Mixture VI
Bombarde 16′
Trompette 8′
Clairon 4′
II Positif expressif C–g3----
Geigenprincipal 8′
Hohlfloete 8′
Salicional 8′
Unda maris 8′
Flûte harm. solo 4′
Nasard
Cornet III 4′
Basson 16′
Trompette harm. 8′
Clairon 4′
Clarinet 8′
Trémolo
III Récit expressif C–g3----
Quintaton 16′
Bourdon double 8′
Gemshorn 8′
Viole 8′
Aéoline 8′
Voix céleste 8′
Flûte traverse 4′
Flageolet 2′
Plein-jeu V
Hautbois 8′
Voix humaine 8′
Trémolo
Pédale C–g1----
Principal acoustique 32′
Principal 16′
Violoncelle 16′
Soubasse 16′
Octavebasse 8′
Violoncelle8′
Choralbass 4′
Posaune 16′

Bibliography

Notes and References

  1. Web site: fr. Saint Maurice. https://web.archive.org/web/20050120073936/http://www.visiter-strasbourg.com/Liste_Totale/culte/maurice.htm. January 20, 2005. visiter-strasbourg.com. December 24, 2019.
  2. Book: de. Deutsche Bauzeitung. Deutsche Bauzeitung. 50. 24 June 1899. 324.
  3. Web site: fr. L'église Saint-Maurice. patrimoine.alsace. September 25, 2015. March 4, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304023200/http://patrimoine.alsace/actualites/L-eglise-Saint-Maurice.html. dead.
  4. News: fr. Strasbourg : l'église catholique Saint-Maurice vandalisée jeudi. France 3 Alsace. February 22, 2013. December 24, 2019.
  5. News: fr. Nouvelle vie pour la tour. Les Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace. June 16, 2015. Myriam Ait-Sidhoum.
  6. Web site: fr. Eglise Saint-Maurice (catholique) (Strasbourg). archi-wiki.org. December 24, 2019.
  7. Web site: fr. Strasbourg, St Maurice. decouverte.orgue.free.fr. December 24, 2019.