Blije is known to have had a church ever since the early 13th century, which in catholic times was dedicated to St. Nicolaas. Of the original Romanesque church built in that century only the tower remains. The church itself was replaced by the current Gothic one in the 16th century. It's a rather big church for such a small village, a reminder of the time when Blije was a place of larger regional importance.
Various sources state that the church was built in c. 1540, but it is unknown what part of the church this date refers to; not only is there a small gap between the nave and the choir, the windows of the choir are narrower as well, giving reason to believe the choir was built first, perhaps when the old and shorter church was still standing. Probably in 1737 the roof of the nave was heightened with 3.50 metres, The tower was heightened shortly after, in c. 1741.
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The Pilgrimage Church of Wies (Wieskirche) is an oval rococo church, designed in the late 1740s by Dominikus Zimmermann. It is located in the foothills of the Alps in the municipality of Steingaden.
The sanctuary of Wies is a pilgrimage church extraordinarily well-preserved in the beautiful setting of an Alpine valley, and is a perfect masterpiece of Rococo art and creative genius, as well as an exceptional testimony to a civilization that has disappeared.
The hamlet of Wies, in 1738, is said to have been the setting of a miracle in which tears were seen on a simple wooden figure of Christ mounted on a column that was no longer venerated by the Premonstratensian monks of the Abbey. A wooden chapel constructed in the fields housed the miraculous statue for some time. However, pilgrims from Germany, Austria, Bohemia, and even Italy became so numerous that the Abbot of the Premonstratensians of Steingaden decided to construct a splendid sanctuary.