Breisach am Rhein is located on the German-French border.
In the late Middle Ages, Breisach was initially an independent imperial town in the Holy Roman Empire and later pledged to Austria, which is reflected in the town's coat of arms. In the early modern period, Breisach was developed into an imperial fortress.
The entrance to the cathedral is through a gate in the Hagenbach tower. First mentioned in 1319, the tower was used as a prison. The Burgundian bailiff Peter von Hagenbach was imprisoned here for several weeks before his conviction for murder, perjury and fornication and his execution on 9 May 1474.
This plaque with a view from the 17th century is located on a wall by the staircase to the cathedral.
Click on it to enlarge!
Breisach St Stephen's Minster is a Romanesque-Gothic church and landmark of the town of Breisach am Rhein. The church dates back to the late Romanesque period of the 12th/13th century and was extended until the Gothic period of the 15th century. Breisach Minster is known for its art-historically significant interior decoration, e.g. for the over 100 m2 large mural ‘The Last Judgement’ by Martin Schongauer (around 1500), for the high altar from the workshop of Master HL: a carved triptych (1523-1526) depicting a coronation of the Virgin Mary (left wing: Stephanus + Laurentius; right wing: Protasius + Gervasius) (town patrons), as well as for the Gothic rood screen made of reddish sandstone.
Interior views
In 1978, the crypt was remodelled into a memorial for the badly destroyed town of Breisach. The Breisach sculptor Helmut Lutz created a wreath of thorns with seven intertwined calyxes as a symbol of life from sandstone around the centre column of the crypt. Two pictorial emblems symbolise death and new life after the destruction. Both of Christ's arms are missing from the shattered corpus. This figure attached to the pillar is the remains of the baroque cross that stood in front of the cathedral's main portal before the war.
View from the cathedral
View of the Hagenbach tower
Descent into the city
View of the cathedral from the market square
The Way of St James continues across the Rhine towards Colmar and our hotel on the French side.
Oberrimsingen - Beisach
Colmar
