Freiburg Minster
The Freiburg Münster is the cathedral of Freiburg, Germany. It was built in three stages, the first beginning in the year 1120 under Konrad I of Bohemia, the second beginning in 1210, and the third in 1230. Of the original building, only the foundations still exist. The church became seat of the Bishop of Freiburg, when it officially became recognised as a cathedral, in 1827.
Architecture
The Swiss historian Jacob Burckhardt is quoted as having said that the church's 116 metre tower is the most beautiful tower in Christian architecture.
The tower is nearly square at the base, and at its centre is the dodecagonal star gallery. Above this gallery, the tower is octagonal and tapered, and above this, is the spire.
It is the only Gothic church tower in Germany, and was completed in the Middle Ages (1330), and miraculously, has lasted until the present, surviving the bombing raids of November 1944, which destroyed many of the nearby houses. The tower was under heavy vibration at the time, and its survival of these vibrations is attributed to its lead anchors, which connect the sections of the spire. The windows had been taken out of the spire at the time, and so, these also suffered no damage.
The Freiburg Müuster was not the seat of the bishop of Freiburg until 1827, long after it was built, and so in contrast to other Gothic cathedrals, it has only one tower. Only cathedrals built as the bishop's seat have two towers in Germany.
The tower has 16 bells, the oldest being the "Hosanna" bell from 1258, which weighs 3,290 kilograms. This bell can be heard on Thursday evening after the Angelus, on Friday at 11:00 am (a time consequently known as "Spätzleglocke"), on Saturday evenings, and each year on the 27 November in remembrance of the air raid.
Interior
There are two important altars inside the cathedral: the high altar of Hans Baldung, and another altar of Hans Holbein the Younger in a side chapel.
The windows were donated by the guilds, and the symbols of the guilds are featured on them. In 2003, the Lenten cloth was restored and backed with a supporting material. It now weighs over a ton, and so, must be carried from the workshop with heavy machinery for its use during Lent.
The Legal Situation
From the time of its construction, the cathedral was not owned by the Church, but by the people of Freiburg. In the middle ages, the situation changed so that the building was self-owned, and administered by a curator appointed by the people of the city. More recently, the Münsterbauverein association was created, which now legally owns the cathedral.
Conservation
For the conservation of the cathedral, the Freiburger Münsterbauverein (Freiburg Association for Cathedral construction) was established. The association is has to invest several million Euros each year into care and maintenance of the building and its interior. The present architect in charge is Yvonne Faller and the chair of the association is Sven von Ungern-Sternberg.