Speyer Cathedral. The Imperial Cathedral Basilica Of The Assumption And Saint Stephen. Dom Zu Unserer Lieben Frau In Speyer. Domus Sanctæ Mariæ Spiræ.

Speyer Cathedral.

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English: Speyer Cathedral.

Deutsch: Der Kaiser- und Mariendom zu Speyer in der

Nacht vom nördlich gelegenen Rheinufer aus fotografiert.

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Text from Wikipedia - the free encyclopædia,

unless stated otherwise.

Speyer Cathedral, officially the Imperial Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption and Saint Stephen (Latin: Domus sanctæ Mariæ Spiræ) (German: Dom zu Unserer lieben Frau in Speyer), in Speyer, Germany, is the Seat of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Speyer and is Suffragan to the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bamberg.

The Cathedral, which is dedicated to Saint Mary, Patron Saint of Speyer (“Patrona Spirensis”) and Saint Stephen, is generally known as the Kaiserdom zu Speyer (Imperial Cathedral of Speyer).[1]

Speyer Cathedral.

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Pope Pius XI raised Speyer Cathedral to the Rank of a Minor Basilica of the Roman Catholic Church in 1925.

Begun in 1030 under Conrad II, with the East End and High Vault of 1090 – 1103, the imposing Triple-Aisled Vaulted Basilica of Red Sandstone is the “culmination of a design which was extremely influential in the subsequent development of Romanesque architecture during the 11th- and 12th- Centuries”.[2]

The Crypt, Speyer Cathedral.

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As the burial site for Salian, Staufer and Habsburg Emperors and Kings, the Cathedral is regarded as a symbol of Imperial Power.[3][4]

With the Abbey of Cluny in ruins, it is the largest remaining Romanesque Church.[5][6]

English: Speyer Cathedral Nave and Organ.

Deutsch: Dom zu Speyer: Mittelschiff mit Blick auf die Hauptorgel. Der romanische Kirchenbau wurde etwa 1030 begonnen. Die Einweihung erfolgte im Jahre 1061.

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It is considered to be “a turning point in European architecture”,[7] one of the most important architectural monuments of its time[8] and one of the finest Romanesque monuments.[9][10][11]

In 1981, the Cathedral was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List of culturally-important sites as “a major monument of Romanesque art in the German Empire”.[2][12][13][14]

Speyer Cathedral.

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In 1025, Conrad II ordered the construction of the Christian Western World’s largest Church in Speyer, which was also supposed to be his last resting place.

Construction began in 1030 on the site of a former Basilica which stood on an elevated plateau by the River Rhine, but safe from high water.

Speyer Cathedral.

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Along with Santiago de Compostela (begun 1075), Cluny Abbey (Cluny III, begun 1085), and Durham Cathedral (begun 1093), it was the most ambitious project of the time.[15]

The Red Sandstone for the building came from the mountains of the Palatine Forest and is thought to have been shipped down the channelled Speyerbach, a stream running from the mountains into the Rhine at Speyer.[16]

Neither Conrad II, nor his son Henry III, were to see the Cathedral completed. Conrad II died in 1039 and was buried in the Cathedral while it was still under construction; Henry III was laid next to him in 1056. The graves were placed in the Central Aisle in front of the High Altar.

Speyer Cathedral.

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Nearly completed, the Cathedral was Consecrated in 1061. This phase of construction, called Speyer I, consists of a Westwerk, a Nave with two Aisles, and an adjoining Transept.

The Choir was flanked by two Towers. The original Apse was round inside, but rectangular on the outside. The Nave was covered with a flat Wooden Ceiling, but the Aisles were Vaulted, making the Cathedral the second-largest Vaulted building North of the Alps (after Aachen Cathedral).

It is considered to be the most stunning outcome of early-Salian architecture and the “culmination of a design which was extremely influential in the subsequent development of Romanesque architecture during the 11th- and 12th-Centuries”.[2][17]