Charlemagne's Palace Chapel at Aachen

We're at the Palace Chapel in Aachen, in what is now Germany. This was the center of Charlemagne's empire. So if one has experience being in a building as old as this, one expects to see marble that has been worn away, floors to be uneven, parts of mosaics to be incomplete. None of that is here. And that's because much of what we're seeing, that is the surface decoration, was added in the 19th century. We walk into a building like this in a sense wanting to walk into the 9th century. But instead, we're first confronted with the 19th century. And then our job is to understand this building as it changes through time. Let's see if we can go layer by layer back to the era of Charlemagne. We know that the building would have originally had mosaic. There would have been stone revetment. But the decorations that we're seeing here speak to a 19th century aesthetic. This 19th century work was being done at a moment when Germany was unifying into a single state and looked at a building like this as critical for its historical identity. That had been challenged by Napoleon. Napoleon conquers much of Europe. The Holy Roman Empire that Charlemagne had founded ended. And Napoleon also stole works of art from the various places that he conquered. And Aachen is no exception. He took columns, capitals. Most of it was returned after Napoleon's defeat. One of the problems that the restorers in the 19th century faced is they weren't sure where things went. And so 19th century restorers had to make decisions without much documentary evidence. And so the columns that we're now seeing may well not be in the correct location. But it would be a mistake to think that the building was in pristine historical condition when Napoleon entered. In fact, the chapel had been remade most recently in the style that we now call the Baroque. So not only was the surface decoration changed, but there were also architectural additions. In the Gothic era, an entire choir was added. We can go even further back in time if we look at the large chandelier brought to Aachen in the 12th century by Frederick I. And it's a magnificent and rare example of a large round chandelier. Now we can step back to the Atonians, that is the dynasty of Holy Roman Emperors that ruled in the years surrounding the turn of the millennia, that is right around 1000. One of the most remarkable additions of the Atonians is an ambo, that is a pulpit, that was added by the Holy Roman Emperor Henry II. It's no longer in its original location, which would have been much more central. Today, it's right at the entrance to the Gothic choir that was built. And so this ambo, even though it's covered in gold and precious stones and ivory panels, is actually not noticed by most people who come to the chapel. What I'm most struck by is that nothing matches. It's kind of a collage of different materials, of different scales, of different techniques, as if you take a series of separate treasures and put them together. Henry II, through various violent and nefarious machinations, managed to become king and emperor. And because his rule was contested, it is that very mixture of things that demonstrate his power over a vast empire. The elements that are embedded in the ambo likely come from across the empire and even well beyond. Some scholars have hypothesized that some elements may have come from the Islamic world, specifically from Fatimid Egypt, that there may be elements that come from the Byzantine Empire in the east. What's interesting about those ivories is that two of those panels represent the pagan god of wine, Dionysus. So on this Christian pulpit are decorations that date back to pre-Christian Rome. But that would have made sense to the Atonians, who were using ancient Roman objects as a way of expressing the legitimacy of their rule. That they were the inheritors of the Roman Empire. But let's go further back in time, beyond the Atonians, to the Carolingians. It was Charlemagne who built this chapel as part of his palace, along with many other buildings. Today, what remains is just this chapel. And really all that remains of Charlemagne's original structure is this very tall, domed interior space and an ambulatory that is octagonal in shape. And that supports a two-storied gallery. What's critical is that we are looking at a centrally planned space. And so art historians believe that Charlemagne chose this form, which was very unusual north of the Alps, for its symbolic meaning. That this centrally planned structure would recall important historical precedents. And the building that is most usually referenced as a precedent is San Vitale in Ravenna. And there are some clear parallels. You have a large, open, domed space. It is a centrally planned space. It is also octagonal. And it is covered with complex, decorative revetment and mosaics. This building may have also been recalling Hagia Sophia in Constantinople. Some of the elements that Charlemagne used to build this church were taken from Rome and Ravenna. So Charlemagne got in touch with the Pope and said, I'm building this new church in my new capital at Aachen. Can I have some columns and capitals, some spolia? These were ancient columns that Charlemagne brought to Aachen as a symbolic way of saying that his empire was recalling the grandeur of ancient Rome. And what better way than to bring architectural elements from Rome and Ravenna here to Aachen. And despite the fact that the Athonian emperor, Otto III, digs up the body of Charlemagne, Charlemagne still remains in this church, entombed in an elaborate golden reliquary that stands in the Gothic extension. So for me, the historical weight of this building is overwhelming. And it reminds me of how every single person that we've talked about felt that historical weight. From Charlemagne, who's bringing spolia from Rome and Ravenna, to Otto III, who's digging up the remains of Charlemagne himself, to Henry II, who's building the ambo to legitimize his reign, to Napoleon, who's stealing bits of architecture from this building, to the 19th century that wants to recreate what this building originally looked like in the year 800, when it was first built, in order to celebrate a German identity. And today, for all the tourists and worshipers who come to visit, I feel very lucky that this building still stands and we're able to experience it despite everything it's been through. ["Jingle Bells"]