A fortress church (
German: Kirchenburg) is a particular type of
church that, in addition to its religious functions is also used by the local population as a retreat and defensive position, similar to a
refuge castle. A fortress church usually implies that the church is enclosed by its own fortifications, such as
curtain walls and
defensive towers. By comparison, a church with simple defensive features, such as
battlements and
embrasures on the church itself, is usually just referred to as a
fortified church.
Architectural history
The fortress church is typically surrounded by
defensive walls equipped with
wall towers and
wall walks. It is a development of the
fortified churches, whose defensive walls were also the actual walls of the church. Although the terms are often used interchangeably without clear distinction, a fortified church properly refers to a single building whereas a fortress church is a building complex. Construction of defensible churches evolved over time. Earlier constructions included a church surrounded by barns in which a siege of several days could be endured. Then fortified cemeteries (Wehrfriedhof) arose and simple
fortified churches, to finally the fortress church. The fortress churches surviving today date from the 15th century.
Unlike the populations of towns and cities, villagers could not afford to build defences around an entire settlement. The fortress churches were often the only stone building in such places and so were the population's only refuge from the violence of the military conflicts, the local raiding and plundering that often accompanied military campaigns, as well as providing defence against nomadic bands of marauders.
In the
Early Middle Ages, especially in recently Christianised regions like
Saxony, former bishop's seats were designed as fortress churches. In Saxony they were referred to as a Domburg or "cathedral castle". Fortress churches are especially common in
Franconia,
South France and
Transylvania (
Romania). Particularly in Transylvania, a historically German settlement area, there are well over a hundred fortress churches of which
seven have been designated as
UNESCO World Heritage Sites (Birthälm/Biertan in 1993, Kelling/Calnic, Wurmloch/Valea Viilor, Dersch/Darjiu, Deutsch-Weißkirch/Viscri, Keisd/Saschiz and Tartlau/Prejmer in 1999). These were established in order to defend against successive
Turkish invasions.
Fortress churches have not survived in North Germany, most likely due to the re-use of their stone for other building purposes during period of scarcity of such materials. The only well-known fortress church in the coastal region of North Germany is the Church of St. Dionysius in
Bremerhaven-
Wulsdorf, which is recorded as having a
field stone curtain wall up to 3.60 metres high.
Karl Kolb: Wehrkirchen in Europa: eine Bild-Dokumentation. Echter, Würzburg, 1983,
ISBN3-429-00818-2
Wolfram Freiherr von Erfa: Wehrkirchen in Oberfranken. Kulmbach, 1956
Dirk Höhne: Bemerkungen zur sogenannten Wehrhaftigkeit mittelalterlicher Landkirchen. In: Burgen und Schlösser in Sachsen-Anhalt 12 (2003), pp. 119–149 - kritisch u.a. zu H. Müller
Dirk Höhne/Christine Kratzke (eds.): Die mittelalterliche Dorfkirche in den Neuen Bundesländern II. Funktion, Form, Bedeutung (= Hallesche Beiträge zur Kunstgeschichte 8), Halle, 2006 (elf Aufsätze zum Thema "Wehrhaftigkeit von Dorfkirchen").
Norbert Klaus Fuchs: Das Heldburger Land–ein historischer Reiseführer; Verlag Rockstuhl, Bad Langensalza, 2013,
ISBN978-3-86777-349-2
Hans u. Berta Luschin: Kärntens schönste Wehrkirchen. Carinthia, Klagenfurt, 1985,
ISBN3-85378-237-X
Karl Kolb: Wehrkirchen und Kirchenburgen in Franken. 2nd edition. Echter, Würzburg, 1981,
ISBN3-921056-16-0.
Heinz Müller: Wehrhafte Kirchen in Sachsen und Thüringen. Oberlausitzer Verlag, Waltersdorf, 1992,
ISBN3-928492-26-8
Gerhard Seib: Wehrhafte Kirchen in Nordhessen. In: Beiträge zur hessischen Geschichte 14. Trautvetter & Fischer, Marburg an der Lahn, 1999.
ISBN3-87822-111-8
Reinhard Schmitt: „Wehrhafte Kirchen" und der „befestigte Kirchhof“ von Walldorf, Kreis Schmalkalden-Meiningen. In: Burgen und Schlösser in Sachsen-Anhalt 9 2000, pp. 127–149 - kritisch u.a. zu G. Seib
Michael Weithmann: Wehrkirchen in Oberbayern. Eine typologische Übersicht, in: Schönere Heimat ISSN 0177-4492. 1992, Issue 4, pp. 211–222.
Joachim Zeune: Neue Forschungen an fränkischen Kirchenburgen. In: Burgenforschung aus Sachsen 5/6 1995, pp. 226–239 - kritisch hierzu, insbesondere zu den Publikationen von Kolb
Hermann und Alida Fabini: Kirchenburgen in Siebenbürgen : Abbild und Selbstdarstellung siebenbürgisch-sächsischer Dorfgemeinschaften 2nd edn. Koehler und Amelang, Leipzig, 1991,
ISBN3-7338-0073-7
Hermann Fabini: Atlas der siebenbürgisch-sächsischen Kirchenburgen und Dorfkirchen. Monumenta-Verlag, Hermannstadt,
ISBN3-929848-15-5; AKSL, Heidelberg 1999,
ISBN973-98825-0-1. – 527 fortress churches, all well known, are represented with floor plans and descriptions of their architectural history
Heinrich Lamping: Kirchenburgen in Siebenbürgen. Geographische Analysen, Kurzbeschreibungen, Bilddokumentation. In: Frankfurter wirtschafts- und sozialgeographische Schriften 57. Selbstverlag des Instituts für Wirtschafts- und Sozialgeographie, Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität, Frankfurt, 1991.