Rotary St@dttour Bad Münder

Petri-Pauli-Church

The steeple of protestrant Petri-Paul-Church measures 58 m in hight. It is a prominent emblem of Bad Münder town and the oldest consisting part oft the church. The baroque spire had been built in 1751. It was renovated from 2005 to 2009. Spectacular has been the removal (2005) and reinstallation (2008) of the spire using a large crane. Nowadays, a watchman leads visitors to the top of the steeple. The view of the town is gorgeous.
Bookings to visit the steeple at Tourist-Information (Tel. 05142929804).

Eponym of the church is perhaps an old church at this place from early medieval which had been consecrated to St.Peter (1st building). 1440 this church had been replaced by a late gothic cross church with a fortified steeple and belfry (2nd building). 1519 during feud of Hildesheim this church was destroyed and rebuilt in 1528 (3rd building). 1543 with reformation protestant services became usual. During the Thirty Years war the church was destroyed again and rebuilt .(4th building). Because of weak construction of the nave it has been replaced by the present classisist nave (5th building). This nave has got an unusual north-south orientation for spatial reasons.

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The lower part of the steeple had been built in 1528. Its basis is a square 10 by 10 meters, altitude 25 meter, fortified tower and belfry. It contains 1350 cubic meters of building material, rubble, sand and quicklime, about one fifth of the quantity used for the wall of the town, which is 1030 meters long. (see Steinhof)

More points of interest:

Area of altar and ceiling (1939)

The wall of the altar got a rounded absis corresponding to the taste of those years. Altar pulpit and altar got a new shape. 1964 the inside of the church got a simple painting. Repairs during the nineties had been used to return to the architecture of 1939. The barrel ceiling was reconstructed according to photographs. A costly structure had been used to steer the sight to the painting of the altar.

Crucifixion relief and thumb stones

A 15th century crucifixion relief is situated at the entrance. The side aisle contains a crucifix. The four streams of paradise arise from the trunk of the cross. Many 16th and 17th century thumb stones (epitaphs) are fixed to the wall of the chapel in the steeple.

Nave

The font is situated in the centre of the church.

Bell

During World War I there had been an urgent need for raw material for arms industry, the big bell of 1713 was smelted, only the little bell from 1901remained in service. By financial engagement of two Bad Münder emigrants to USA two new bells could be bought in 1928, they became victims of World War II. 1949 the parish got two new bells which are ringing now.

Organ

The 1989 Rohlf organ is well known in the region and organ concerts attract visitors to Bad Münder.

Organ music sample:

Johann-Sebastian Bach, part of preludium and fuge Es-Dur BWW 552