St. Peter und Paul

About

St. Peter and Paul is the Roman Catholic parish church of Bonndorf im Schwarzwald in the Waldshut district of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Constructed in the Rundbogenstil (Romanesque Revival) influenced by Heinrich Hübsch and designed by Josef Berckmüller, this three-nave pseudobasilica features a façade tower and a three-sided apse. It replaced a monastery church destroyed by fire in 1842, built at a new location. After multiple plan revisions, construction was completed in 1850. However, the parish community was dissatisfied with the initial interior furnishings, leading to a thorough renovation and decoration by Franz Joseph Simmler between approximately 1893 and 1900. The church's interior was restored between 1972 and 1974 to preserve this state. Together with its affiliated churches in Ebnet, Wellendingen, and Wittlekofen, the parish belongs to the Bonndorf-Wutach pastoral unit in the Waldshut deanery of the Archdiocese of Freiburg.

Bonndorf was first mentioned in 800 as “Pondorf,” with the parish documented in 1223 through the mention of a pleban (parish priest). By the late 14th century, the parish was vacant. In 1402, Rudolf von Wolfurt and his wife Elisabeth von Krenkingen, with the approval of their son Wolf and the local council, founded a Pauliner monastery, transferring the parish church to it for incorporation. The Pauliner monks subsequently provided the parish priests. In 1731, records mention the reconstruction of monastery buildings, with timber supplied by St. Blaise Abbey, which had owned the Bonndorf lordship since 1612.

Following the secularization of church properties in 1806, Bonndorf came under the Grand Duchy of Baden, and the Pauliner monastery ceased in 1807 after over 400 years. The monastery church reverted to a parish church, with maintenance responsibilities transferred to the Grand Duchy. Ecclesiastically, Bonndorf moved from the Diocese of Constance to the Archdiocese of Freiburg in 1821.

On the evening of July 18, 1842, a fire broke out in the church fund administrator's residence. Despite a calm night preventing the fire's spread, it destroyed seven private homes, including barns and stables, the rectory, and the former monastery church.

After secularization, the Grand Duchy assumed responsibility for church construction. Around 1840, plans existed for a new parish church at the original site, but these were abandoned after the fire. Instead, Karlsruhe building inspector Friedrich Theodor Fischer drafted a new plan, approved in April 1844. The Donaueschingen district building office appointed Georg Steinwarz as the local construction supervisor. Following complaints from Bonndorf residents about Steinwarz and his assistant, and their request for an alternative supervisor, the Baden Court Domain Chamber removed the project from Donaueschingen's jurisdiction in May 1844, assigning it to Josef Berckmüller, a highly skilled pupil of Friedrich Weinbrenner. Berckmüller, then a private architect and trainee, reserved the right to revise Fischer's plans. His revised plans were submitted to the Catholic Church Council on July 17, 1844, and approved the same day. Having relocated from St. Blasien to Karlsruhe in 1844, Berckmüller was appointed district building master on December 19, 1844, and military building master in April 1845, while also handling police matters (e.g., building permits and neighbor disputes), effectively holding three roles simultaneously.

Initially, the church was planned for the site of the burned-down predecessor at coordinates 47°49′13″N 8°20′29″E  /  47.820403°N 8.34132°E  / 47.820403; 8.34132  ( coordinates ) However, by June 1845, Berckmüller deemed the site unsuitable after foundation work revealed unstable ground, as evidenced by cracks in the previous church. Heinrich Hübsch, Baden's chief building official and a stylistically influential church architect, along with fortress architects Georg Eberle and Major Mali, criticized the site, highlighting the need for costly stabilization measures.

Due to higher foundation costs, persistent risks, and potential delays, the Court Domain Chamber rejected the original site in early July 1845. Alternatives included a site at the cattle market square (47.819993, 8.346153) and the current location above the town (47.819485, 8.337422), behind Joseph Dobler's house. By August 1845, the latter was chosen, largely due to the unanimous preference of the Ebnet filial community for its proximity. Bonndorf residents favored the cattle market square for its central location.

Berckmüller likely adjusted his plans for the new site, with the cornerstone laid on May 7, 1846. Stones from the demolished monastery church ruins were used for the foundation, supplemented by sandstone from a quarry now part of the local sports field. Alongside site issues and slow funding, the Baden Revolution of 1848, with its “democratic turmoil” and “insurgent uprisings,” further delayed progress. In 1848, Franz Josef Bodenmüller from Engen arrived in Bonndorf, succeeding Joseph Gerspacher, who had served since 1838 after Joseph Anton Heizmann (1836) and Dominikus Kuenzer.

In December 1848, the parish complained to the Grand Ducal Domain Chamber about delays, despite the completion of the rough construction. Another complaint in January 1849 suggested work had stalled entirely. Progress resumed, with negotiations for bells and an organ in 1849, and Berckmüller designing the altar and baptismal font. The church was likely handed over on May 23, 1850, with work continuing until December 15. In 1850, Hieronymus Schuler from Engen was appointed parish priest from Frickingen, becoming the third priest involved in the rebuilding.

Despite completion, the Baden Finance Ministry faced repeated complaints from Bonndorf about incomplete furnishings, including the absence of choir stalls, an altar rail, and a tabernacle, suggesting Berckmüller's altar design was never executed. In July 1858, the ministry assigned the interior completion to Heinrich Hübsch, Weinbrenner's successor since 1826 as head of the Karlsruhe Building School and the subsequent Karlsruhe Institute of Technology. Hübsch designed three new altars, with paintings by Amalie Bensinger completed by 1859. The main altar depicted Christ with the St. Peter and Paul, while the side altars featured Mary (left) and Joseph (right). The Donaueschingen district building office resumed oversight. Hübsch also commissioned Franz Xaver Reich from Hüfingen to create a terracotta Madonna with angels above the main entrance, with the altars and relief costing 2,422 guilder.

Unlike Reich's relief, the altars are no longer present. By the late 19th century, during the HIistoricism period, Berckmüller's and Hübsch's neoclassical forms were deemed austere. Parish priest Fridolin Honold (1837–1900) advocated for a new interior from 1886, reporting to the Baden Finance Ministry that he had raised 3,400 marks for a high altar costing 8,000 marks. He detailed desired paintings and statues, but the Grand Ducal Domain Directorate dismissed his descriptions as exaggerated, offering only funding for a new interior paint job. Honold threatened to escalate the matter to the Directorate, the Grand Duke, and State Minister Ludwig Turban. The church authorities, also approached, saw little chance of success and suggested private donations.

Between approximately 1893 and 1900, after Bonndorf received city privileges in 1891, the current interior was created, entirely funded by private donations. Franz Joseph Simmler (1846–1926), who operated a large workshop for ecclesiastical art in Offenburg, was responsible. Simmler had drafted designs for the Bonndorf choir in spring 1892. In May 1894, he predicted completion by late autumn, except for the nave wall paintings. The communion rail, choir stalls, and Marian altar were finished in 1896. An Agnus Dei depiction with the Book of Seven Seals and victory flag in the tower vestibule ceiling records a renovation in 1894. Simmler had recently completed similar work at Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Bräunlingen, continuing until 1897.

In 1902, a rectory was built north of the church in the same style, using stone from the same quarry as the church and an intervening prison. From 1907, the original pulpit was replaced with a larger one featuring four Church Fathers reliefs and a new sounding board, crafted by the Moroder brothers, who took over Simmler's workshop and completed a new baptismal font by 1911. After Bonndorf's electricity plant was approved in 1902 for 150,000 gold marks (approximately 1.2 million euros in 2025), a chandelier illuminated the nave.

In 1919, the parish, represented by the Catholic Upper Foundation Council in Karlsruhe, sued the Baden Finance Ministry, arguing that post-secularization, the state was responsible for new needs, such as heating costs for the church and sacristy. After three legal instances, the Bonndorf Agreement of July 1927 mandated the state to cover 60% of such costs, setting a precedent applied to other churches previously managed by monasteries.

Before World War II, three confessionals were installed between buttresses in the outer walls, one replacing the right side door.

In the 1960s, the tower was renovated. Following the liturgical reforms of the Second Vatican Council in 1963, the unneeded column was moved closer to the altar, the soundboard removed to improve visibility. The communion rail, crafted by Simmler with the choir stalls, was relocated from the choir to the altar steps to accommodate a new trapezoidal celebratory altar. A steel-and-wood ambo with interchangeable fabric was added. The faded interior paintings were debated for repainting, with the state, responsible for maintenance, delaying a decision.

A comprehensive restoration from 1972 to 1974 replaced the blockwork painting with plain, light surfaces. New wooden furnishings, including a celebratory altar, ambo, choir stalls, and pews, were designed and installed, replacing outdated seating. The communion rail and pulpit were removed, with the pulpit's Church Fathers reliefs relocated to the nearby Paulinerheim community center. During renovations, the evangelical community lent their Pauluskirche, allowing Catholics to return in a procession to their restored church. About 100 years earlier, the evangelical diaspora community had moved into Bonndorf's castle chapel, remaining until 1954 when they relocated to their newly built Pauluskirche under the ringing of St. Peter and Paul's bells.

The roof was re-tiled in 1999. A heating system upgrade was planned for 2014, with the type undecided. By December 2015, Solarcomplex AG connected the church to Bonndorf's second district heating network, replacing the oil boiler with a heat exchanger while retaining the warm air heating system.

Initially, the church was planned for the site of the burned-down predecessor at coordinates 47°49′13″N 8°20′29″E  /  47.820403°N 8.34132°E  / 47.820403; 8.34132  ( coordinates ) However, by June 1845, Berckmüller deemed the site unsuitable after foundation work revealed unstable ground, as evidenced by cracks in the previous church. Heinrich Hübsch, Baden's chief building official and a stylistically influential church architect, along with fortress architects Georg Eberle and Major Mali, criticized the site, highlighting the need for costly stabilization measures.

Due to higher foundation costs, persistent risks, and potential delays, the Court Domain Chamber rejected the original site in early July 1845. Alternatives included a site at the cattle market square (47.819993, 8.346153) and the current location above the town (47.819485, 8.337422), behind Joseph Dobler's house. By August 1845, the latter was chosen, largely due to the unanimous preference of the Ebnet filial community for its proximity. Bonndorf residents favored the cattle market square for its central location.