VISBY
CATHEDRAL
Gotland,
Sweden
The Cathedral of St. Mary is the only
medieval
church in
Visby that survived the attack of the forces of Lübeck in 1525,
the many other
ruined churches in the City fell foul of the destruction meted out that
effectively ended Visby’s importance as a Baltic port.
Ironically, it
was Germans who built
the Church around 1225.
It remained as the German church for the town until 1350 when it was
enlarged
and turned into the Cathedral for Visby. A two-storey magazine was
added at the
time above the nave to act as a warehouse for the German merchants who
had
original founded the church. Much of the original interior was stripped
out at
the time of the Lutheran Reformation.
Possibly
because of its Germanic
origins, the Cathedral
survived the destruction that spilled out across Visby when the
Lübeckers
arrived in 1525 and laid waste to the City. Today Visby is famous for
its City
Walls and for the number of ruined churches that dot the City – a
reminder of
1525 still!
In 1744 the
west tower of the Cathedral
burnt down and was
replaced and the new spire added, in 1761 matching spires were added to
the
eastern towers. Early in the 20th Century the
Cathedral was
heavily
renovated and some of the changes are slightly cumbersome, but it is
otherwise
one of the most impressive single buildings in Visby.
Photo
- Andrew J. Müller
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Text copyright - Raving Loony Productions and Andrew J.
Müller
© Photos and Artwork - Andrew J. and Jacqui Müller
© Web Design and Layout - Andrew J. Müller
2018
