Page 34 - LOTN Autumn Issue 54 2023

FAITH AND CULTURE

Catholic church, but no cathedral. The summer residence
of the Bishops of Konstanz was Meersburg Castle which
remained the bishops’ primary residence until the beginning
of the 18th century when a new castle residence was built.
Meersburg is a delightful town to explore, and don’t
be surprised when a Zeppelin drones overhead. Count
Zeppelin was born in Konstanz and, as he developed his
ideas for airships, he needed land for a factory and airfield.
There was no space at Konstanz, so he was offered some
land at Friedrichshafen further down the lakeside. Zeppelin
trips are still offered from there today.
Returning to Konstanz, the cathedral saw many
improvements over the centuries, perhaps the largest being
the replacement of the Romanesque painted wooden
ceiling by a vaulted brick ceiling in 1637. The power and
status of the Bishop of Konstanz grew, until in 1821 the
bishopric, which was by then the largest in Germany, was
dissolved. In 1827 the bishop had to move to Freiburg in
Breisgau. This ended the 1200 years and 100 bishops who
had reigned in Konstanz.
However, the cathedral is still there. In 1955 Pope Pius Xll
raised its status to papal basilica minor. This ensured that it
would be protected and used. In 1962 a complete restoration
of the basilica was begun and completed around 2010. A
part of the restoration involved the installation of a carillon
of 12 new bells which were hung in the central tower.
Konstanz Cathedral towers over the city
Konstanz is a lovely place to explore, with lots of Catholic
in the Gothic style. interest, including St Stephan’s Church near the railway
At that time Hugo von Hohenlandenberg was Bishop of station. This was built around 1130 on the site of a church
Konstanz from 1496 to 1529, and again from 1530 until his from the Roman era. It contains an 18th century statue of
death in 1532. St Stephan, a pulpit from 1773, statues of the Apostles from
In 1526 the tide of reformation was becoming too strong the 18th century and an altar from 1863.
to be ignored. The bishop left Konstanz and moved across The railway station is shared with Swiss railways, whose
the lake to Martinsburg, in Meersburg. In his absence radical trains terminate here. The city is always busy, with no empty
protestants who followed the Zurich reformer Huldrych shops. There are always a lot of Swiss registered cars going
Zwingli, destroyed all the artwork in the Cathedral. about. This is because the Swiss can buy things here and
They believed that churches should be totally bare and receive the VAT back immediately, as can we, now that we
unadorned with "false images". It was not until 1551 that the are no longer in the EU! All the shops are organised to deal
bishop felt safe enough to return to Konstanz. with the paperwork. A good place for a bargain!
Meersburg is just across the lake. To go there today is The harbour is always busy too. Boats of all sizes operate
straightforward. The city bus network includes Meersburg. regular timetabled services to many other places around
The bus runs along the coast a little, then drives onto a the lake. At the end of one pier is an impressive, massive
waiting ferry. These ferries shuttle to and fro every 15 statue, called “Imperia”. This statue is nine metres (30
minutes. feet) high, weighs 18 tonnes, is made of concrete and
At Meersburg there is a very solid impressive looking rotates every three minutes. It is dedicated to the Council
of Constance, but in a very controversial way. “La Belle
Imperia” was a renowned Italian courtesan who lived 100
years after the Council but was used in a story by Balzac as a
lady who corrupted the hierarchy of the Church. The statue
has her hands held out at each side, on one sits a pope
(Martin V elected at the Council) and on the other Emperor
Sigismund who called the Council. She has them both in
her hands. The city council would not allow the erection of
this controversial statue, but at that time (1993) the railway
owned the harbour and as they did not object it was erected
there, on the end of the pier, and continues to be a bone of
contention.

To find out more about Konstanz, see www.konstanz-info.
com and for Meersburg go to www.meersburg.de
Meersburg Castle, the bishops' primary residence

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