St. Michael’s Church

St. Michael’s Church in Sagard is a single-nave, four-bay Romanesque church built in the early 13th century. Of the original late-Romanesque structure, the nave walls and the western part of the triumphal arch have survived to their full height. The structure of the Romanesque upper wall has been preserved almost completely inside and out. In about 1400 the choir was rebuilt in Gothic style (using demolition material from the Romanesque choir) and a sacristy was added.

Alterations to the nave by insertion of arcades in the north wall and the construction of a northern aisle and a southern chapel were made in the course of the 15th century. In the south wall of the Romanesque nave, Gothic windows were inserted. The west tower was built in about 1500. The choir has a flat board ceiling (the planned vault was never built). The nave was vaulted after completion of the west tower. In 1633 the polygonal spire was restored and the pavilion roof built. In 1786/87 the south chapel was extended by two rib-vaulted bays in Renaissance style. The two-storey sacristy was built in the 18th century using wall remnants from an older sacristy. The outer wall of the northern aisle was newly faced in 1917. The interior is whitewashed. Fittings are painted a uniform yellowish brown. The floor is paved with brick and clay tiling. The choir is raised by four steps. The rooftruss is medieval. Oldest furnishings and accessories are the corpus of a triumphal cross ensemble from the 15th century.

References:

• European Route of Brick Gothic

Address

Apollonienmarkt 3, Sagard, Germany

Details

Founded: 13th century
Category: Religious sites in Germany
Historical period: Hohenstaufen Dynasty (Germany)