The Churches of Munich

I am not a particularly religious person so it was a surprise to me that I seemed to be drawn to many of the churches in Munich. I worked out later that it was not the religious aspect that appealed but more the grand architecture, the art and interior decoration and the relative solitude that I found within the buildings. I say relative solitude because the Dom and St Peter’s, being the two most popular churches with visitors, are never really quiet and subdued although they still have a lovely atmosphere. A couple of the other churches we visited certainly provided a wonderful sense of calm, which was welcome after the noise and bustle on the outside.

Munich’s churches showcase 800 years of architecture. Lined up as a string of pearls, the churches are located on an east-west axis through the town centre and all can be easily reached on foot. The Peterskirche (St Peter’s) close to Marienplatz is the oldest church of the inner city. It was first built during the Romanesque period. Close by, the Gothic hall-church Heiliggeistkirche (The Church of the Holy Ghost) was converted to baroque style from 1724 onwards.

The Dom, the most prominent building in the city, is a Gothic-style building. The nearby Michaelskirche (St Michael’s) is the largest Renaissance church north of the Alps, while the Theatinerkirche is a basilica in Italianate high baroque which had a major influence on Southern German baroque architecture. The Asamkirche (Asam church) was endowed and built by the Brothers Asam, pioneering artists of the rococo period.

A great view of the city is afforded after 306 steps up the spiral staircase of ‘Alter Peter’, as the locals call the tower of Peterskirche. Together with more than half the city’s buildings it was severely damaged during World War II. When the demolition of the 91m high tower was successfully prevented after the war, the way lay open for the restoration of the church, but also for the wide-ranging reconstruction of the entire inner city of Munich in accordance with ancient records that had been kept. You can also get to the top of one of towers of the Dom, this time by elevator, for a similar great view.

For lovers of sacral music, St. Peter’s is an address worth remembering, as the popular Masses by Mozart and Haydn are often performed here on Sundays.

Quick Tips:

Early weekday mornings are good for visiting if you want to avoid the crowds. There are seldom people waiting when the doors to the churches open. Early afternoon can see crowds.

Most churches do not admit sightseers during services. If you want to attend a service you should arrive at least 5 minutes before the scheduled start. In fact it is better to be earlier as music is very much a part of some churches and listening to an organ in such a majestic setting is magnificent.

This city of churches and cathedrals is the home capital of Pope Benedict XVI - he spent his time as Archbishop of Munich from 1977-1982.

Best Way To Get Around:

All the churches in this journal are within the central city and it is easy to walk between any of them. If you are a serious church viewer, you can see all six churches in one day.

You cannot miss St Peter’s church because of its central location and its tall steeple. The exterior of the church is imposing but the good news is that recent renovations have turned the interior into something quite magical. Munich's oldest church (1180), known locally as Old Peter, has had its white-and-gray interior decorated with gilded baroque accents which are quite spectacular.

St. Peter's was named after the old hill on which it stands, the Petersbergl. There was apparently a chapel on the site even before Munich was founded, which was then replaced with a Romanesque structure in the 11th century and later a Gothic building. In the 14th century, the double-tower was redeveloped to form the single tower which remains today.

The church marks the site where monks in 1158 began building the core of today's Munich. The church is famous for the lantern-dome tower created when the building was remodelled in Renaissance style. Have a look at it. The most unusual feature of the tower is its eight asymmetrically placed clock faces. The renowned chimes include one of the oldest bells in Germany; the best time to hear them is 3pm on Saturday, when they ring in the Sabbath.

Don’t just race in and out again as the inside of the church needs to be given some time. The rich baroque interior has a magnificent late-Gothic high altar and aisle pillars decorated with exquisite 18th-century figures of the apostles. It also contains a series of murals by Johann Baptist Zimmermann, and masterpieces by Grasser, E.Q. Asam, Günther, Straub and Schwanthaler. The high altar was designed by E.Q. Asam and executed by Stuber. Jan Polacks paintings of St. Peter hang on the walls of the choir. Nothing, however, tops the attraction of the bizarre relic in the second chapel on the left: the gilt-covered and gem-studded skeleton of St. Mundita.

The church has a 92-meter tall steeple, which you can climb. There are about 300 steps so check out the colored circles on the lower platform which tell you about the visibility and hence whether the climb is worthwhile before you start. If the circle is white, you can see as far as the Alps. On a nice day, the view is great.

The church is open daily from 7.30am to 7pm except for Wednesday afternoon. No entrance for sightseeing is allowed during services.

The tower is open in the summertime: Monday through Saturday from 9am to 7pm; Sunday and holidays from 10am to 7pm and in winter: Monday through Saturday from 9am to 6pm; Sunday and holidays from 10am to 6pm.

I had not heard of the Holy Ghost church before going to Munich, so the imposing building overlooking the very popular and central Viktualien food market was a very pleasant surprise. When we entered we were the only people in the building and this also gave a special feeling of peace and solitude, which I did not experience in any other church in Munich. I immediately liked the place.

Originally belonging to the 14th-century Hospice of the Holy Ghost, a medieval order flourishing in the 1300s, this is called a Gothic "Hall Church." It was built on foundations laid by another structure in the 12th century, and the church was completed in 1730. Except for the church, the other hospice buildings were demolished in 1885. Architects at that time added three bays on the western facade of the church, giving it a neo-baroque facade. The tower (1730) has a lantern dome of characteristic Munich type.

World War II bombs brought much destruction, and only the original choir, buttresses, and the north wall of the nave remain intact. The rest of the building, which you see today, is a reconstruction but frankly, you cannot really tell.

This is not one of Munich’s most spectacular churches but it is impressive for its size and location. The interior of the church was renovated at great expense in 1991 and it is certainly worth wandering around seeing some of the attractions. Among several items of considerable art-historical interest in the church are: in the porch, to left and right of the main entrance, parts of a bronze memorial made in 1608 by Hans Krumper for Duke Ferdinand of Bavaria and in the chancel the high altar by Nikolaus Stuber (1730), with an altarpiece by Ulrich Loth "The Effusion of the Holy Spirit" (1661) and two flanking figures of angels by Johann Greiff (1729).

Other features are by the right aisle, a series of wall paintings (1725) by Peter Horeman illustrating the "Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit"; in the Kreuzkapelle, a Late Gothic crucifix (1510); and, midway along the left aisle, an altar with a miraculous image of the "Hammerthaler Madonna" (15th C.).

If you are planning to visit St Peter’s church, which is just across the street, visit here first and I am sure you will be impressed by both buildings.

The Frauenkirche ("Dom zu unserer Lieben Frau" - Cathedral of Our Lady), or Dom as most visitors know it, is the most famous building in the city center and serves as the cathedral for the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising. It is particularly famous for the brass onion domes that top the twin towers and which have become the symbol of Munich. The domes were added in the 16th century, in a style that contrasted with the Gothic style of the rest of the building. The original design, apparently, called for pointed towers like Cologne Cathedral but they were never completed due to lack of money.

The monumental late Gothic brick church has shaped Munich's skyline for 500 years. The towers are not only an impressive sight but the south tower is also accessible via an elevator. When you look at the church, the two towers appear to be the same height but in fact one is slightly taller than the other. Unlike most buildings in Munich's old town, the towers of the Frauenkirche (but not the church itself) survived WW2 intact, making them more than 500 years old. The Frauenkirche's towers (99 meters and 100 meters) are also the measurement for a rule which limits the height of new buildings to the same height in the city. This rule was passed in November 2004 by the people of Munich in a referendum.

The foundation stone of the building was laid by Duke Sigismund in 1468. The church is huge but simple and is a ‘must-see’ when visiting Munich. Its central location just a few meters from the Town Hall means that you cannot miss it. Much of the original Gothic interior has been destroyed or removed partially by contra-reformists. An unusual feature of the building is that when viewed from the porch, the aisles and side windows are invisible, the octagonal pillars of the nave having the appearance of a wall; at one time the window of the choir was also obscured by the high altar.

The cathedral houses an elaborate 15th-century black-marble tomb guarded by four 16th-century armored knights. It's the final resting place of Duke Ludwig IV (1302-47), who became Holy Roman Emperor Ludwig the Bavarian in 1328. The Frauenkirche's great treasure, however, is the collection of 24 carved wooden busts of the apostles, saints, and prophets above the choir, made by the 15th-century Munich sculptor Erasmus Grasser. Don’t leave without seeing these.

In the chapel directly behind the high altar is the cathedral's most interesting painting: The Protecting Cloak, a 1510 work by Jan Polack, showing the Virgin holding out her majestic robes to shelter all humankind. The collection of tiny figures beneath the cloak includes everyone from the Pope to peasants.

The church becomes especially impressive at night when the entire facade is illuminated. Entry to the cathedral is free, but the tower costs €2. The tower elevator operates from April to October, Monday to Saturday from 10am to 5pm.

This was another surprise to me. This church is the polar opposite of the Frauenkirche that is located just around the corner. From the outside the church has a modest appearance. The most notable feature is the giant statue of St. Michael conquering Satan. The figures are almost lifelike and looking at it you can feel the struggle between not only these two but between good and evil itself. There are no major towers (although it once had one) and the facade is not particularly grand, but the treat is inside where you will find a ceiling and vaults that really impress.

The former Jesuit church of St Michael is the largest Renaissance church north of the Alps. It was built by Duke William V between 1583 and 1597 as a spiritual center for the Counter Reformation. It was erected in two stages. In the first stage (1583-88) the church was built using a model from Rome and given a barrel-vaulted roof by an unknown architect, the vault being the largest in the world apart from that of St Peter's in Rome, spanning freely more than 20 meters.

When the church was built there were doubts about the stability of the vaulting. But it was the tower that collapsed in 1590, destroying the just completed choir. Duke William V took it as a bad omen and so planned to build a much larger church. Therefore, in a second phase of construction lasting until 1597, Friedrich Sustris built on to the undamaged nave a new choir and a transept not envisaged in the original plan.

When you enter today, the aisle-less nave with its high barrel-vaulted roof is impressive. The dominant feature is the triumphal arch at the entrance to the choir, the pattern of which is continued in the arches of the transepts, side chapels and galleries.

Inside, the Church is very bright and the high altar is gilded in beautiful gold. There is also a lovely statue of Mary in one of the side altars. The artwork is stunning and the crypt is fascinating and definitely not to be missed.

The furnishing of the interior with altars and figures is, I am told, dictated by a rigorous program of atonement and purification. A striking feature is the tall three-story high altar, a joint work by Friedrich Sustris, Wendel Dietrich and Christoph Schwarz; the altarpiece "St Michael fighting the Devil" (1587) is by Schwarz. If you go in the mid-morning or evening, sunbeams penetrate the upper windows and make the scenery seem almost come alive.

This church is easy to overlook when strolling along the pedestrianised shopping street but it's definitely worth a look inside and 20 minutes of your time.

The Theatine Church is located diagonally opposite the Feldherrenhall (Field Marshals' Hall) and the Hofgarten (Court Garden) at the end of pedestrianised Theatinerstrabe. It is a natural stopping point if you are exploring central Munich on foot.

The church's impressive yellow facade introduces a touch of Italy to Munich. Henriette Adelaide of Savoy, wife of the elector Ferdinand Maria, donated this church to the Italian Order of the Theatines in gratitude for the birth of the long-awaited heir to the throne, Prince Max Emanuel. The Baroque church (Latin cross plan, domed) was designed by the Italian architect Agostino Barelli, who also directed the first stage of its building (1663-69).

His successor Enrico Zuccali completed the 71m-high dome, decorated the interior and built the twin towers which had not been provided for in Barelli's plan. It later received finishing touches in Rococo style by the Cuvilliés, father and son, in 1768. The towers have serpentine ornament just below their domed tops while the massive central dome is capped by a lantern with a lion weather-vane.

The church's interior is unusual for Bavarian Churches. It is dominated by the tall round-headed arches of the barrel vaulting and the dome over the crossing. It is monumental and full of southern pathos, dominated by the stucco works of the Italian stucco masters Moretti, Brenni, and Perti. The rich stucco ornaments inside the church have a remarkably light feeling owing to the brilliant white color. The church's high altar, whose gable figures represent dignitaries of the House of Savoy, gives further evidence of the Italian influence.

Among the most notable features are the great black pulpit which is a work of Andreas Faistenberger and the statues of Saint Marcus and Saint John which were created by Balthasar Ableithner. A small chapel contains the tombs of King Max 11 and his wife. Several members of the House of Wittelsbach have been buried in the Fürstengruft (Royal Sepulcher).

Don’t leave without seeing the paintings on the three altars. The high altar has a picture, "The Virgin enthroned with Angels" (1646), by Caspar de Crayer, a pupil of Rubens. The Altar of the Virgin (right transept), has "Holy Kinship" by Cignani (1676) and an "Annunciation" by Desmarées (on the altar-table), while the Altar of St Cajetan (left transept), has a painting by Sandrart, "Intercession of St Cajetan during the Plague in Naples".

We had an hour left in central Munich before we had to head for the airport, so we asked a local what we should see. Without hesitation he said the Asam church, so we took his advice and discovered a quite amazing building that we had never heard of. It really is a hidden treasure but is only a ten-minute walk from the main square. I would recommend it to everyone. This is undoubtedly Munich’s most unusual church.

This rococo church was built in the mid-1700s by the brothers Cosmas Damian and Egid Quirin Asam, who had vowed they would build a church if they avoided being shipwrecked. The church, a mere 8.8 metres wide and 28.8 metres long, was erected on their private property next to their richly decorated living-quarters (Asam House). The initial building application was refused, since neither the town council nor Elector Karl Albrecht saw any need for an additional church. This would have been a big mistake.

Although modest on the outside, the interior of this small 18th-century church is a baroque fantasy. This unusual church has a suitably extraordinary entrance, framed by raw rock foundations. The insignificant door, crammed between its craggy shoulders, gives little idea of the opulence and lavish detailing within. Above the entrance stands a statue of the church's patron, St. Nepomuk, a 14th-century monk (said to have performed many noble deeds and known for helping the poor), who drowned in the Danube.

As you enter the chapel, you are greeted with a burst of frescoes surrounded by rich red stucco and lavishly gilded woodwork, a superb illustration of the Bavarian passion for ornamentation. It is almost overwhelming. The interior of the church is a prime example of true southern German late-baroque architecture. Frescoes by Cosmas Asam and rosy marble cover the walls. The sheer wealth of statues and gilding is stunning. Every inch is decorated with gold leaf, sculptures, and frescoes. One of Asam's works is at the altar, showing the crucified Christ in God's embrace - The Throne of Mercy.

A wrought-iron grille (1776) separates the stucco figures of the saints from the long nave with its galleries and projecting cornice under the ceiling. On the ceiling is a magnificent fresco depicting the life of St John of Nepomuk by Cosmas Asam (this was restored in 1977).

The impressive twilight effect of the interior is created by its concealed windows. When, during restoration work in the 1970s, a large window was inserted in the choir and the church was flooded with light, there was a bitter controversy among art historians about the authenticity of the change, and in the end the authorities responsible for the conservation of historical monuments decided the window should be closed up.

The church is open daily from 9am to 5:30pm. You must see it.