Spira (Speyer) 🇩🇪 La Bella Germania

Spira, the ancient imperial city on the Rhine, boasts a rich and busy past. There are few cities to have experienced as Spira the most absolute glory and the deepest misery. The cathedral is one of the largest and most significant Roman buildings in Germany. In 1980, this majestic church was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. Here we see the Virgin Mary, and the great rosary, with Christ in the centre. The cathedral of Saint Mary and Saint Stephen dates back to 1024 and is also called Kaiserdorf, the imperial cathedral, because in the crypt inside it are buried eight emperors. The cathedral was completed in 1061. On the south side of the cathedral is the imposing statue of the Oldberg, the Mount of Olives, built at the beginning of the 16th century. The cathedral is 134 metres long and 37 metres wide. The tallest tower is 73 metres high. On both sides of the main entrance there are magnificent sculptures and monuments. The western portal, as it appears today, was built in the mid-19th century by Henry Hooch and is called the Great Paradise. On the left is the monument to Adolfo di Nassau, on his knees. Adolfo was king of Germany from 1292 to 1298. At the time his title was Rex Romanorum, but he is generally known as Adolfo di Nassau. In the niches of the narthex are placed the statues of the four Salic emperors and the four kings who are buried in the tombs of the main nave of the crypt. The second monument on the right depicts Rodolfo d'Hasburgo with the signs of the globe and the sword. Rodolfo was crowned in the cathedral of Aquisgrana on 24 October 1273. Compared to the portico, the entrance portal is more recent, from 1971, and depicts episodes of Christian history, the good shepherd and the symbols of the seven sacraments. The seven sacraments are considered the sacraments of Christ, of the Church, of faith, of salvation and of eternal life. The interiors of the cathedral may seem too sober because it is practically devoid of decorative elements on the walls and on the pilasters. The perfect symmetry of each architectural element is typical of the Romanesque style. The cathedral inside features columns with elegant capitals, some frescoes dating back to the years 1846-1853, and two major altars at different heights on the stairs of the presbytery. Next to the altar is the statue of the Virgin of Spira. The cathedral of Spira is truly impressive for its grandiose and unique structure. Its sobriety strikes visitors. Only the essential elements necessary for religious practices are present. The Via Crucis depicts the last hours of Jesus' life and his devotion to his Passion. The stations are generally a series of 14 images or sculptures depicting the scenes of the Passion. The original appearance of the cathedral was left practically intact until the end of the 17th century. During the succession war of the Palatinate, the French troops plundered the cathedral of works of art and set it on fire. The effects were devastating. The stables of the choir feature a series of bas-reliefs by J. Aldart, a sculptor from Halleim. There are only a few preserved chapels. To the south is the Chapel of San Martino and above is the Chapel of Santa Caterina, with an octagonal luminary. The only decoration is represented by the 24 paintings of Schraudolf. The modern organ is inserted into the walls of the cathedral and is visible from all corners of the church. In the Cathedral of Spira, organistic competitions are periodically organized. The impressive dimensions of the cathedral are amplified by the nature and the colours of the stones used. Its simple and sober decorations facilitate meditation. There are only a few chapels to be survived the tumultuous past of the city. The Chapel of the Emperor surprises the visitor for its sobriety and its dimensions. A rose of contemporary era illuminates the interiors. The crypt deserves special attention because it retains its original appearance. The cathedral is the family church and the place of burial of the Salic emperors. The crypt has its own altar and in the first period of construction it was used as a place of worship until the end of the Navate. This is one of the most beautiful crypts in the world. With its aligned columns, it is the oldest part of the cathedral. In the centre, the epitaph of Rodolfo d'Hasburgo, around 1300. Also in the centre, two stone bas-reliefs, around 1480. One depicts four emperors, the other four kings of Germany. Under the vault, there are the tombs of Emperor Corrado II and his wife Gisella, his son Enrico III, his nephew Enrico IV and his wife Bertha, Enrico V, Adolfo di Nassau, Rodolfo d'Hasburgo e Beatrice, second wife of Federico I Barbarossa. This two-storey fortification, with its two staircase towers, was erected in 1280 as part of the city's wall wall. It is located beyond the southern part of the cathedral and the statue of the Albergue, which once stood in the centre of the cathedral. The narrow symmetrical construction on two floors, with its small towers and staircases, shows how a fortification does not necessarily have to give up artistic qualities. An ancient legend of Spira tells that the emperors descended from the cathedral and crossed the Rhine to assist the empire in times of particular need. These bronze sculptures in the lower garden of the cathedral are a tribute to this legend. The garden of the cathedral, a vast park, was built in the 19th century in the place where the Vescovile Palace once stood and some chapels surrounding the Kaiserdom. Spira has always been an important city of passage for pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. One of the oldest churches in Spira is the Church of San Giuseppe, built between 1912 and 1914 by Ludwig Becker. One of the tallest and most suggestive gates in all of Germany is the main gate of the city, known as the Alte Porte, which is located to the west and is 55 metres high. It is connected to the cathedral via the magnificent main road of Spira. The gate was first mentioned in 1176. Today it is the most important ancient fortification in the city. Its lower sections were built between 1230 and 1250. Today the centre of Spira has strong connotations of the 18th century. It is a productive urban centre, a good example of a link with history and tradition. The memorial church was built at the end of the 19th century in memory of the protest of the Lutherans of Spira who demanded the end of the imperial veto against Luther. Behind the beautiful neogothic portal is the Memorial Hall of the Reformation, with a statue of Luther. The interiors are different from the medieval cathedrals due to the total absence of stucco or paintings. The columns and walls are exposed and the only colours come from the stained glass. The historic windows are an integral part of the construction. There are 14 windows in the lower part of the church and 19 above the galleries, plus three more at the entrance. The original organ was started in 1900 and finished by Oettingen-Firmsteinmeier in 1902. The windows survived the massive destruction of the Second World War and can be divided into eight groups, each with similar themes. The memorial church is a neogothic building with a nave and two trusses, a cross-shaped vault and a Latin cross-shaped plan. All the details are very neat. Visible from miles away, with its six towers and its copper roofs, the cathedral symbolically emerges from the arena.