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Origin and history

The chapel of Goetzenbruck's glassworks was originally built in 1724 by Jean-Baptiste Poncet, founder of a glass factory in the village in 1721, to honor the Virgin Mary and serve the glassmakers. It symbolized the devotion of the artisans, as witnessed by Georges Walter, master glassmaker, evoking the collective contribution of the inhabitants of Goetzenbruck and Königsberg (Sarreinsberg). The services were provided by the Augustinians of Bitche, then by the parish priest Jean-Nicolas André de Soucht, before the commune became parish in 1802 under the archiprire of Bitche.

In 1776, a canonical visit ordered by the bishop of Metz, Louis-Joseph Montmorency Laval, revealed the need to enlarge the chapel because of the population growth (952 inhabitants in 1810). Unable to extend, it was rebuilt in 1807 by the master of glassware, at the place called Appelgarten. Used as a warehouse and degraded, it was saved from demolition by its inscription in the Historical Monuments in 1978. Its architecture, with a single nave and polygonal choir, reflects the local tradition, although later modifications (modern bays, concrete slabs) altered its original appearance.

The chapel was home to a bell founded in 1720 by Matthaeus Edel of Strasbourg, now kept in town hall, as well as a sandstone cross of 1724, of which only the base remains. It also served as a burial place for influential glassmakers, such as Pierre Stenger and his sons (1764–73), and was part of the marriage of Jean-Martin Walter, co-founder of the factory. Renovated in 2009 (roof and frame), it remains private property and bears witness to the industrial and religious heritage of the Country of Bitche.

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