St John’s Church – History

Second great destruction of Magdeburg on 16 January 1945

History

Of all venues in Magdeburg, it is St John’s, the former market and parish church, which stands out as a historical gem.

The history of St John’s Church dates back to mentions of predecessor churches in 941, 946 and 1015, when the church entered the history books as the first referenced merchants’ church in Germany. In 1170, the market church, which is dedicated to John the Evangelist, was placed under the patronage of the Monastery of Our Lady. The church was extensively damaged as a result of the great city fire of 1188. From 1207 to 1238 it saw the construction of two west towers, which formed the first manifestation of the double tower front that later became typical to parish churches in Magdeburg. Reconstruction work began around the year 1300 and transformed the church into a three-nave Gothic church. In 1451, the church was destroyed by fire caused by a lightning strike. The new reconstruction work created the Gothic west vestibule with its high ribbed vault, the sacristy in the northeast corner of the church and a stair tower. In 1524, Martin Luther used St John’s Church to deliver his sermon “A Study of Genuine and False Justice”, which caused the council and city to declare their support for the Protestant movement. When Magdeburg was destroyed during the Thirty Years' War (1631), St John’s Church was also reduced to rubble. The replacement church building was inaugurated on the first Advent Sunday in 1670. In 1672, the “welschen Hauben” (Roman domes) were placed on top of the towers. The fixtures inside the church were enhanced by the Baroque pulpit (1669), made by the Magdeburg sculptor Tobias Wilhelmi, and the great organ (1695). The organ was constructed by the master organ-builder Arp Schnitger from Hamburg, making it one of the most famous and most discussed organs in Germany. When Magdeburg was bombed between the 29th September 1944 and the 16th January 1945, history repeated itself for St John’s Church, which was yet again destroyed. On the 2nd October 1999, the church, which today belongs to the Stadthallen Magdeburg, was reopened as a venue for festivals and events and the church roof was returned to its former dimensions.
Otto von Guericke, his first wife, his son and his son’s first wife were all buried in a vault on the north side of St John’s Church. Otto von Guericke (1602-1686) is considered to be the father of experimental physics in Germany. He proved the existence of the vacuum and created many inventions, the most famous being the vacuum pump. He also was the Mayor of Magdeburg and represented the city in the negotiations for the Peace of Westphalia. The coats of arms of the Guericke Family and the Old City of Magdeburg are preserved in the church. These were given to the city by Guericke, after being made by the sculptor Tobias Wilhelmi in 1674. In 1890, the burial vault was vacated to make space for a boiler room. There are unfortunately no references as to the current location of the coffins.
An extra snippet of information is that a set of rooms in the church towers was inhabited until 1874.
The Martin Luther Memorial in front of the church is the work of the sculptor Emil Hundrieser (1886). The bronze door and its two solitary sculptures “War” and “Peace” were made by the Magdeburg sculptor Heinrich Apel as a reminder of the destruction of Magdeburg in 1631 and 1945. The door and sculptures were handed over to the public on the 10th May 1983. The only intact item that could be saved from the destroyed church was “Magdeburg in Mourning”, a partner sculpture of the Luther Monument in Worms.

Text by Ludwig Schumann

Second great destruction of Magdeburg on 16 January 1945

Magdeburg became the target of anglo-american bomber divisions during World War II because it was part of the future sowjet occupation zone.
At 11 am, the 8th division of the US Air Force began the bombardment of
the Krupp-Gruson factory, Junkers factory and industrial area. At 8.30 pm
the 4th and 6th division of the British Air Force commando arrived. Navigational light bombs were thrown at the city. Shortly after 9 pm, the inferno started. Explosive bombs, fire bombs and air mines hailed from the sky. The whole attack lasted no longer than 38 minutes. 90% of the city centre was left in ruins. Thousands of people lost their lives in the last days
of the war that Hitler had once started. The outcome of the war wasn't decisively influenced by the bombardment of Magdeburg. The end of World War II was only a matter of weeks.