St. Bonifatius Church

St. Boniface Minster in Hamelin is a former monastery and collegiate church, now Evangelical-Lutheran, located on the southwestern edge of the old town near the Weser.

Architecture

The church shows layers of history: Romanesque transept and towers, Gothic hall-church nave, flat-ended choir, and the Elisabeth Chapel. The crossing tower received a Baroque lantern, while neo-Romanesque elements were added during a 19th-century restoration by Conrad Wilhelm Hase. Most interior fittings date from the late 20th century.

History

Its origins go back to a private church founded shortly after 800 by the Saxon nobles Bernhard and Christina of Engern and Ohsen. After their deaths in 826, it passed to Fulda Abbey, which established a monastery with relics of St. Boniface and later St. Romanus. Around the 11th century it became a collegiate foundation, around which Hamelin grew. The Romanesque basilica was later rebuilt in Gothic style.

The Reformation reached the church in 1578, and the medieval furnishings were removed. Though the chapter survived as a Protestant body until 1848, the church fell into decline, used at times as a stable and storehouse. Thanks to efforts led by Franz G. F. Schläger, it was restored and rededicated in 1875, with a further major renovation a century later.

Address
Münsterkirchhof 7, Hameln, Germany

Established
13th century