Vineyard Church Pillnitz

About

The Protestant Vineyard Church "Zum Heiligen Geist" is a baroque village church in the Dresden district of Pillnitz, named after its location in the Royal Vineyard. It is not to be confused with the Vineyard Church built in the 20th century in the Trachenberge district of Dresden. The Sacral architecture was built from 1723 as a replacement for the Pillnitz Palace, which was demolished for the expansion of Pillnitz Palace. It is the first executed church building by Matthäus Daniel Pöppelmann, the architect of the Dresden Zwinger, and is considered a "landmark of the Pillnitz landscape." The building, which had fallen into serious disrepair especially during the second part of the last century, was extensively restored in the 1990s. The vineyard church is under cultural heritage management and is part of the cultural landscape of the Dresden Elbe Valley.

Pillnitz was parished to Hosterwitz since the beginning of the 16th century and formed the parish Hosterwitz-Pillnitz since the Reformation. For church services, the inhabitants of the village of Pillnitz went to the Schifferkirche Maria am Wasser. In 1569, Christoph von Loss (1548-1609), who later became the head prince of Elector Christian I and a court councillor, acquired the Pillnitz manor, which soon led to conflicts with the Hosterwitz parish priest. In 1579, Christoph von Loß approached the chief consistory of the Protestant church in Dresden to enforce the construction of an "independent private church as a place of worship and burial." The foundation stone for the so-called Pillnitz Palace Church "Zum Heiligen Geist" was laid on May 8, 1594. A late Gothic building with a 30-meter-high tower was erected and completed in 1596. The consecration of the first Pillnitz church was performed by the then Dresden superintendent Polykarp Leyser. The village of Pillnitz now formed a parish independent of Hosterwitz.

The founder Christoph von Loß died in 1609 and received a larger-than-life epitaph in the church. Other members of the von Loß family, such as Joachim von Loß († 1633) and his eldest daughter Sophie Sibylle Loß, married von Bünau († 1640), were also buried in the castle church. Sophie Sibylle's husband Günther von Bünau († 1659) and his second wife Elisabeth von Löser († 1649) donated the altar to the church in 1648 on the occasion of their marriage and the end of the Thirty Years' War. Under Günther von Bünau, the parishes of Hosterwitz and Pillnitz were reunited - both parishes still form the Evangelical Lutheran Parish of Dresden-Hosterwitz-Pillnitz.

In 1694, the Saxon Kurhaus received Pillnitz from Günther von Bünau's son Heinrich, who was granted Lichtenwalde in return. From 1707 Pillnitz was owned by Countess Constantia von Cosel, before construction of Pillnitz Palace began under Augustus the Strong from 1720 on the site where the palace church was located. The demolition of the church was only agreed to by the Higher Consistory of the Protestant Church in Dresden on the condition that a new church be built in Pillnitz. On May 11, 1723, Augustus the Strong, who had initially considered an extension of the church Maria am Wasser as an alternative, gave the order to build a new church on a plot of land in the royal vineyard. For this purpose, building materials as well as the altar, bells and organ of the old castle church were to be reused in the new church building. The construction costs of the new church in the amount of 2000 thalers were borne by the Saxon Chief Building Authority. The castle church "Zum Heiligen Geist" was demolished in May 1723. In its place was built the Venus Temple, a dining hall where portraits of court ladies and mistresses hung, which burned down in 1818. Today, the site of the former church would be between the New Palace and the "Lion's Head" on the Elbe River.

Augustus the Strong had instructed that "another [church] be built not far from the village on Weinbergs-Preße." The design was commissioned to the then Oberlandbaumeister Matthäus Daniel Pöppelmann, and Christoph Schumann, who had also worked on the reconstruction of Moritzburg Castle and the Japanese Palace, was in charge of the construction. The church was built on the site of a church in the village. In the presence of, among others, Valentin Ernst Löscher, August Christoph von Wackerbarth and sculptor Johann Benjamin Thomae, the foundation stone of the new vineyard church was laid on June 24, 1723, which was also called the New Castle Church "Zum Heiligen Geist" in reference to the previous building. The vines had been pulled in May, and in July the mortal remains were transferred from six crypts of the old church to the vaults of the new church, which had already been completed at the beginning of July. With the erection of the tower and the raising of the bells of the old castle church on Reformation Day 1723 - after only five months of construction - the exterior construction of the church was completed. The interior construction of the church lasted until 1725. The church consecration was on November 11, 1725. The Vineyard Church served as a place of worship for the Protestant members of the princely and royal court as well as for the community until 1918.

In the 18th century there were reconstructions in the church. Smaller renovations to the roof truss took place in 1800 and 1839. During the first major reconstruction from 1852 to 1853, the pulpit was moved and the pews in the chancel were removed. In 1876 the church received the tower clock. The installation of a new organ in 1891 required a reconstruction of the western galleries with new side entrances. After the purchase of a stove to heat the church, the Vineyard Church received a chimney around 1900. In 1910, a new furnace was given another location. For the relocation of the furnace, the access to the sacristy had to be moved.

The maintenance of the church was in the hands of the Royal court until 1918, as the (Catholic) king had promised at the time of construction. With the end of the monarchy, the building passed to the state domain administration. When the Ministry of Finance and the Evangelical Lutheran Church finally agreed on a cost-sharing arrangement in 1930, roof repairs followed in 1932. Already at that time, the slow decay of part of the church was deplored, such as the location of the valuable grave monuments on the damp church walls and the faded colors of the church.

With the land reform in 1945, the Vineyard Church became the property of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Saxony. The church was renovated in 1954, but increasingly fell into disrepair thereafter. Its use for worship ended in 1976, when it was deconsecrated for Thanksgiving. The regional church, which did not have the funds to maintain the church, requested that the building be transferred to the state. In addition to deterioration-related defects in the roof, windows and plastering, further damage had been caused by vandalism and theft. In 1983, after protracted negotiations, the church became the property of the city of Dresden, which established it as a legal entity under the Dresden museums united to form the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden. The church was partially secured and used for storage. It was not until after the fall of the Wall that the dilapidated Vineyard Church received more attention again.

In 1990, the Interessengemeinschaft Weinbergkirche Pillnitz e. V. was founded with the aim, among others, of collecting donations for the restoration of the church. For example, the community organized benefit concerts and solicited funding. In 1991, the first Elbhangfest under the title Von Bähr to Pöppelmann drew attention to the condition of both the Vineyard Church and the Loschwitz church, which was under reconstruction. In June 1991, the ridge turret of the Vineyard Church, which had been reconstructed with donations since November 1990, was handed over. In 1992, the roof was re-roofed and in the following year the exterior plaster of the church was renewed and painted illusionistically in red and yellow tones, in accordance with the original color scheme. The exterior color restoration was completed in 1993. In the same year the church became the property of the Free State of Saxony. In 1994, the efforts of the community of interest for the Pöppelmann building were awarded the Silbernen Halbkugel of the German Prize for Monument Protection.

This was followed by the restoration of the church interior, which was largely completed in 1995. The ceremonial handover of the restored church took place on November 12, 1995, and the consecration of the restored Jehmlich organ took place on the occasion of the Elbhang Festival in 1997.

Since then, some services of the Evangelical Lutheran Parish of Hosterwitz-Pillnitz have been held in the Vineyard Church again. Otherwise, the church is mainly used for weddings, concerts and exhibitions. Every year there is a spring festival around the church, a wine festival in October and a Christmas market on the third Sunday of Advent. The vineyard church is also a "landscape-bound structure." It is located as a colorful eye-catcher in the Great Royal Vineyard. which has been almost completely replanted since 1976. Since the 1990s, Müller-Thurgau, Traminer, and Pinot Blanc, among others, have been grown there.

Pillnitz was parished to Hosterwitz since the beginning of the 16th century and formed the parish Hosterwitz-Pillnitz since the Reformation. For church services, the inhabitants of the village of Pillnitz went to the Schifferkirche Maria am Wasser. In 1569, Christoph von Loss (1548-1609), who later became the head prince of Elector Christian I and a court councillor, acquired the Pillnitz manor, which soon led to conflicts with the Hosterwitz parish priest. In 1579, Christoph von Loß approached the chief consistory of the Protestant church in Dresden to enforce the construction of an "independent private church as a place of worship and burial." The foundation stone for the so-called Pillnitz Palace Church "Zum Heiligen Geist" was laid on May 8, 1594. A late Gothic building with a 30-meter-high tower was erected and completed in 1596. The consecration of the first Pillnitz church was performed by the then Dresden superintendent Polykarp Leyser. The village of Pillnitz now formed a parish independent of Hosterwitz.

The founder Christoph von Loß died in 1609 and received a larger-than-life epitaph in the church. Other members of the von Loß family, such as Joachim von Loß († 1633) and his eldest daughter Sophie Sibylle Loß, married von Bünau († 1640), were also buried in the castle church. Sophie Sibylle's husband Günther von Bünau († 1659) and his second wife Elisabeth von Löser († 1649) donated the altar to the church in 1648 on the occasion of their marriage and the end of the Thirty Years' War. Under Günther von Bünau, the parishes of Hosterwitz and Pillnitz were reunited - both parishes still form the Evangelical Lutheran Parish of Dresden-Hosterwitz-Pillnitz.

In 1694, the Saxon Kurhaus received Pillnitz from Günther von Bünau's son Heinrich, who was granted Lichtenwalde in return. From 1707 Pillnitz was owned by Countess Constantia von Cosel, before construction of Pillnitz Palace began under Augustus the Strong from 1720 on the site where the palace church was located. The demolition of the church was only agreed to by the Higher Consistory of the Protestant Church in Dresden on the condition that a new church be built in Pillnitz. On May 11, 1723, Augustus the Strong, who had initially considered an extension of the church Maria am Wasser as an alternative, gave the order to build a new church on a plot of land in the royal vineyard. For this purpose, building materials as well as the altar, bells and organ of the old castle church were to be reused in the new church building. The construction costs of the new church in the amount of 2000 thalers were borne by the Saxon Chief Building Authority. The castle church "Zum Heiligen Geist" was demolished in May 1723. In its place was built the Venus Temple, a dining hall where portraits of court ladies and mistresses hung, which burned down in 1818. Today, the site of the former church would be between the New Palace and the "Lion's Head" on the Elbe River.

Augustus the Strong had instructed that "another [church] be built not far from the village on Weinbergs-Preße." The design was commissioned to the then Oberlandbaumeister Matthäus Daniel Pöppelmann, and Christoph Schumann, who had also worked on the reconstruction of Moritzburg Castle and the Japanese Palace, was in charge of the construction. The church was built on the site of a church in the village. In the presence of, among others, Valentin Ernst Löscher, August Christoph von Wackerbarth and sculptor Johann Benjamin Thomae, the foundation stone of the new vineyard church was laid on June 24, 1723, which was also called the New Castle Church "Zum Heiligen Geist" in reference to the previous building. The vines had been pulled in May, and in July the mortal remains were transferred from six crypts of the old church to the vaults of the new church, which had already been completed at the beginning of July. With the erection of the tower and the raising of the bells of the old castle church on Reformation Day 1723 - after only five months of construction - the exterior construction of the church was completed. The interior construction of the church lasted until 1725. The church consecration was on November 11, 1725. The Vineyard Church served as a place of worship for the Protestant members of the princely and royal court as well as for the community until 1918.

In the 18th century there were reconstructions in the church. Smaller renovations to the roof truss took place in 1800 and 1839. During the first major reconstruction from 1852 to 1853, the pulpit was moved and the pews in the chancel were removed. In 1876 the church received the tower clock. The installation of a new organ in 1891 required a reconstruction of the western galleries with new side entrances. After the purchase of a stove to heat the church, the Vineyard Church received a chimney around 1900. In 1910, a new furnace was given another location. For the relocation of the furnace, the access to the sacristy had to be moved.

The maintenance of the church was in the hands of the Royal court until 1918, as the (Catholic) king had promised at the time of construction. With the end of the monarchy, the building passed to the state domain administration. When the Ministry of Finance and the Evangelical Lutheran Church finally agreed on a cost-sharing arrangement in 1930, roof repairs followed in 1932. Already at that time, the slow decay of part of the church was deplored, such as the location of the valuable grave monuments on the damp church walls and the faded colors of the church.

With the land reform in 1945, the Vineyard Church became the property of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Saxony. The church was renovated in 1954, but increasingly fell into disrepair thereafter. Its use for worship ended in 1976, when it was deconsecrated for Thanksgiving. The regional church, which did not have the funds to maintain the church, requested that the building be transferred to the state. In addition to deterioration-related defects in the roof, windows and plastering, further damage had been caused by vandalism and theft. In 1983, after protracted negotiations, the church became the property of the city of Dresden, which established it as a legal entity under the Dresden museums united to form the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden. The church was partially secured and used for storage. It was not until after the fall of the Wall that the dilapidated Vineyard Church received more attention again.

In 1990, the Interessengemeinschaft Weinbergkirche Pillnitz e. V. was founded with the aim, among others, of collecting donations for the restoration of the church. For example, the community organized benefit concerts and solicited funding. In 1991, the first Elbhangfest under the title Von Bähr to Pöppelmann drew attention to the condition of both the Vineyard Church and the Loschwitz church, which was under reconstruction. In June 1991, the ridge turret of the Vineyard Church, which had been reconstructed with donations since November 1990, was handed over. In 1992, the roof was re-roofed and in the following year the exterior plaster of the church was renewed and painted illusionistically in red and yellow tones, in accordance with the original color scheme. The exterior color restoration was completed in 1993. In the same year the church became the property of the Free State of Saxony. In 1994, the efforts of the community of interest for the Pöppelmann building were awarded the Silbernen Halbkugel of the German Prize for Monument Protection.

This was followed by the restoration of the church interior, which was largely completed in 1995. The ceremonial handover of the restored church took place on November 12, 1995, and the consecration of the restored Jehmlich organ took place on the occasion of the Elbhang Festival in 1997.