Aachen
As I blogged before, the genesis of our family trip to Europe can be traced to Randy's reading Monuments Men, and learning that Charlemagne's tomb is in Aachen Cathedral. Charlemagne, or no, I'm always happy to visit someplace new in Germany.
More after the jump
Our main reason for being in Aachen was to see the Cathedral there, which we did twice, once when it was open for public tours on Saturday and again on Sunday morning for Mass. We were waiting Saturday for the Cathedral to open for tourists, so we ducked into St. Foillan first.
The original St. Foillan was built in the 1400s, replacing earlier church buildings that dated back to 1180. While the Cathedral was exclusively for royalty, this church was allowed admittance of the peasants. St. Foillan himself actually came from Ireland, but he eventually came to what is now Belgium, where he was martyred. The church was destroyed during World War II over several battles as Hitler attached much importance to holding Aachen.
Reconstruction was commenced in the late 1950s. I was drawn to these windows which were in shades of drab with fracture-patterns, seeming to reference the history of the church in the 20th century.
There are a few older pieces of religious art housed in St. Foillan, like this Schöner Madonna from 1411.
After that we walked around the Cathedral to the entrance. Seeing it from the side was like looking at 1200 years of history.
The Palatine Chapel was started under Charlemagne in 796. He had moved the capital of his empire to the city that has also been known as Aix-la-Chapelle.
This Chapel was the site of the crownings of many German kings after Charlemagne.
The first part, after the entrance hall, is the original structure, modeled after San Vitale in Ravenna, another octagon-shaped church. The ceilings were initially covered in fresco, then in mosaic. A 19th century restoration resulted in the mosaic seen today. The guide book says that these were in keeping with the original designs, so they definitely have that older Byzantine style.
We craned our necks to see them all, to try to take them all in.
The Barbarossa chandelier was a gift to the Cathedral by Emperor Frederick (Barbarossa) I around 1180. 1180!
The Gothic Choir replaced the smaller Carolingian choir in 1414.
Housed in the choir are two reliquaries. One in German is called Marienschrein. It was built in the 1200s to house relics of Mary and was frequently the object of pilgrimage, so all the centuries of handling resulted in damage. Following a restoration in 2000, it was placed inside the glass case.
The second reliquary, Karlsschrein holds the remains of Charlemagne. He was originally interred in the Cathedral, but his bones were exhumed by Frederick Barbarossa, then transferred to this reliquary by Frederick III in 1215.
Charlemagne had been canonized by Antipope Paschal III in 1165, when Frederick Barbarossa had disinterred him. The Third Lateran Council vacated his ordinances, as well as Charlemagne’s sainthood.
Also in Aachen we saw the Rathaus, part of which was built using some existing structure from Charlemagne’s Aachen Palace.
The Granus Tower of the Rathaus was part of the palace, but historical record is silent on what the actual purpose of it was back then. About 20 meters of the tower dates to Charlemagne.
We at lunch in the cellar of the Rathaus. I was worried it would be a little too touristy—substandard food and high prices, but it was quite good and about the same price as other places we ate in Germany.
In a few places around Aachen are Archäologische Fenster, windows showing the contemporary setting peeled back to show Aachen’s past.
One is in a bookstore, showing a piece of a second century Roman thermal
Another is at the base of the Granus tower, showing the foundation to Charlemagne’s palace.
A third is much larger, located in the middle of the Elisengarten . This small park behind the Elisenbrunnen has yielded incredible archaeological finds, spanning Neolithic times to Roman occupation to the Middle Ages.
Of course, I am sure that what Brigid will remember most is the Puppenbrunnen, a posable fountain of marionettes.
Going to Aachen for the weekend allowed us to cover a lot of history in a very small space. We are big Teutonophiles anyway, but Aachen included Celts, Romans, Franks, modern Germans——several thousand years in just a few blocks.
More after the jump
Our main reason for being in Aachen was to see the Cathedral there, which we did twice, once when it was open for public tours on Saturday and again on Sunday morning for Mass. We were waiting Saturday for the Cathedral to open for tourists, so we ducked into St. Foillan first.
The original St. Foillan was built in the 1400s, replacing earlier church buildings that dated back to 1180. While the Cathedral was exclusively for royalty, this church was allowed admittance of the peasants. St. Foillan himself actually came from Ireland, but he eventually came to what is now Belgium, where he was martyred. The church was destroyed during World War II over several battles as Hitler attached much importance to holding Aachen.
Reconstruction was commenced in the late 1950s. I was drawn to these windows which were in shades of drab with fracture-patterns, seeming to reference the history of the church in the 20th century.
There are a few older pieces of religious art housed in St. Foillan, like this Schöner Madonna from 1411.
After that we walked around the Cathedral to the entrance. Seeing it from the side was like looking at 1200 years of history.
The Palatine Chapel was started under Charlemagne in 796. He had moved the capital of his empire to the city that has also been known as Aix-la-Chapelle.
This Chapel was the site of the crownings of many German kings after Charlemagne.
The first part, after the entrance hall, is the original structure, modeled after San Vitale in Ravenna, another octagon-shaped church. The ceilings were initially covered in fresco, then in mosaic. A 19th century restoration resulted in the mosaic seen today. The guide book says that these were in keeping with the original designs, so they definitely have that older Byzantine style.
We craned our necks to see them all, to try to take them all in.
The Barbarossa chandelier was a gift to the Cathedral by Emperor Frederick (Barbarossa) I around 1180. 1180!
The Gothic Choir replaced the smaller Carolingian choir in 1414.
Housed in the choir are two reliquaries. One in German is called Marienschrein. It was built in the 1200s to house relics of Mary and was frequently the object of pilgrimage, so all the centuries of handling resulted in damage. Following a restoration in 2000, it was placed inside the glass case.
The second reliquary, Karlsschrein holds the remains of Charlemagne. He was originally interred in the Cathedral, but his bones were exhumed by Frederick Barbarossa, then transferred to this reliquary by Frederick III in 1215.
Charlemagne had been canonized by Antipope Paschal III in 1165, when Frederick Barbarossa had disinterred him. The Third Lateran Council vacated his ordinances, as well as Charlemagne’s sainthood.
Also in Aachen we saw the Rathaus, part of which was built using some existing structure from Charlemagne’s Aachen Palace.
The Granus Tower of the Rathaus was part of the palace, but historical record is silent on what the actual purpose of it was back then. About 20 meters of the tower dates to Charlemagne.
We at lunch in the cellar of the Rathaus. I was worried it would be a little too touristy—substandard food and high prices, but it was quite good and about the same price as other places we ate in Germany.
In a few places around Aachen are Archäologische Fenster, windows showing the contemporary setting peeled back to show Aachen’s past.
One is in a bookstore, showing a piece of a second century Roman thermal
Another is at the base of the Granus tower, showing the foundation to Charlemagne’s palace.
A third is much larger, located in the middle of the Elisengarten . This small park behind the Elisenbrunnen has yielded incredible archaeological finds, spanning Neolithic times to Roman occupation to the Middle Ages.
Of course, I am sure that what Brigid will remember most is the Puppenbrunnen, a posable fountain of marionettes.
Going to Aachen for the weekend allowed us to cover a lot of history in a very small space. We are big Teutonophiles anyway, but Aachen included Celts, Romans, Franks, modern Germans——several thousand years in just a few blocks.
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True Confession: Monuments Men is still on my to-be-read pile