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  2. Patrimoine
  3. Grand-Est
  4. Bas-Rhin
  5. 67360 Frœschwiller

  6. Church of Peace

Church of Peace à Froeschwiller dans le Bas-Rhin

Bas-Rhin

Church of Peace

    19 Rue Principale
    67360 Frœschwiller
Eglise de la Paix
Eglise de la Paix
Eglise de la Paix
Eglise de la Paix
Eglise de la Paix
Eglise de la Paix
Eglise de la Paix
Eglise de la Paix
Crédit photo : © Ralph Hammann - Wikimedia Commons - Sous licence Creative Commons

Timeline

Temps modernes
Révolution/Empire
XIXe siècle
Époque contemporaine
1700
1800
1900
2000
1685
Simultaneous Church
6 août 1870
Battle of Frœschwiller-Wœrth
1872
First stone
30 juillet 1876
Inauguration
1898
German classification
9 mai 2022
English classification
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui

Heritage classified

The Church of Peace, in its entirety, including its parish enclosure, with the exception of the funeral monument of the Strauss-Durckheim family, on plots No.66 and No.67 of section 1 of the cadastre, as shown on the plan annexed to the decree: classification by order of 9 May 2022

Key figures

Charles Winkler - Architect Designs neo-Gothic reconstruction.
Frédéric-Guillaume - Prince Royal Prussian Symbolically supervises the work.
Charles Klein - Lutheran Pastor Deliver the opening speech.
Fr. W. Wanderer - Painter Author of stained glass and altarpiece.
Georges Schwenkedel - Organ factor Replaces the façade in 1931.

Origin and history

The Peace Church, located in Frœschwiller in Lower Rhine, is a Lutheran temple built after the destruction of the old church at the Battle of Frœschwiller-Wœrth in 1870. This Franco-German conflict, which opposed 50,000 French soldiers to 130,000 Prussians, killed more than 20,000. The church, used as a makeshift hospital, was burned down, and the German authorities promised its reconstruction.

The reconstruction project, entrusted to architect Charles Winkler in 1872, adopted a neo-Gothic style inspired by the cathedral of Laon. Financed by German donations through the association Hilfsverein Nürnberg, the building was inaugurated in 1876 by Pastor Charles Klein, who dedicated it to Peace. Royal Prince Frédéric-Guillaume, present during the victory of 1870, symbolically supervised the works.

The church was classified as a historical monument by the Germans in 1898, then declassified in 1930 after the return of Alsace to France. Despite three applications for re-protection (1968, 1979, 1981), it was only reinstated in 2020 and closed in 2022. Its furniture, including a Steinmeyer organ unique in France, and its stained glass windows signed Fr. Wanderer, bear witness to its German-Alsatian heritage.

Architecturally, the church is distinguished by its three-span porch, its stone bell tower adorned with gargoyles, and a vaulted nave without transept. The rosac arch keys, hooked capitals, and cut-out sheet stands reflect a neat craftsmanship. The choir, shallow, is illuminated by five high bays.

An adjacent funerary monument, dedicated to the Straus-Durckheim family, dates from the mid-19th century. Composed of an obelisk on pedestal and surrounded by a wrought iron fence, it commemorates five members of this line, including Charles Theodore Straus-Durckheim (1783–49), linked to the nearby castle.

The history of the church illustrates the Franco-German tensions in Alsace, between war destruction and symbolic reconstruction. Its late ranking underscores the complexity of heritage memory in this border region.

External links

Page Wikipedia
Page Monumentum