One of Rostock’s most beautiful viewpoint points is St Peter’s Church and is located high up on the church’s distinctive tower. It is worth climbing the steps to the tower and enjoying the view over the city.
The Hanseatic city of Rostock once had four city churches. The Marienkirche, the Nikolaikirche, the Jakobikirche and the Petrikirche. The Jakobikirche was destroyed in the Second World War and demolished in 1960. Of the three former city churches that now remain, St Peter’s Church is not only the oldest, but also the tallest of the churches at 117 metres.
Where St. Peter’s Church stands today, a church building already stood around 1300. There is evidence of building materials in the walls of today’s church that date back to this time. Today it can be reconstructed that the church building must have had three naves and consisted of dark red to purple stones.
In the middle of the 14th century, the people of Rostock replaced the existing church building with a three-nave basilica in the brick Gothic style. Around 1500, the then 127-metre-high church tower stood. Just a few years later, in 1543, a lightning strike destroyed the tower. It took until 1578 for the tower to get its new spire and, with its now 117 metres, became an important landmark for shipping.
The next centuries gnawed at the church building, but the damage could be repaired with minor renovations and refurbishments. In the Second World War, during air raids at the end of April 1942, the Petri Church in Rostock was badly damaged. Not only did the copper spire burn, but the organ, the baroque altar and the Renaissance pulpit also fell victim to the flames. The vault of the nave and one side aisle collapsed. The weathercock from the spire fell from the roof, but was preserved despite its damage. It was later placed in the church.
Reconstruction was very hesitant. An emergency roof secured the tower and the central nave was closed with a makeshift flat wooden ceiling. The arcades between the nave and the side aisles were simply bricked up and the walls whitewashed.
The tower gets a viewing platform
It was not until 1994 that the tower could be rebuilt. A viewing platform was created at a height of 45 metres, which can be reached via a lift or the existing steps.
With the help of various sources of money and subsidies, it was now also possible to finance a new copper-covered tower helmet. After this was placed on the tower, the restored and newly gilded weathercock crowned the tower. From now on, the town had its landmark back, visible far beyond the town.
Ascent to the viewing platform
We had the choice of taking the lift or climbing the stairs. For me, it’s clear that you have to climb a tower – so you walk up and then you can take the lift down.
A total of 195 steps lead up to the viewing platform. At the beginning, they wind up narrowly and there is hardly any possibility to avoid oncoming traffic. Actually, you can be relatively sure that there is no oncoming traffic on the stairs. Most visitors use the lift, which reaches its destination in 26 seconds. In the upper section of the tower, the stairs become wider, making the ascent a little more pleasant.
The openings, through which you have a fantastic view of the city and the Warnow, are barred. At first I was a bit disappointed, because taking photos through the bars is not so nice. Then I discovered larger holes in the grids, which made photography possible without any problems.
I think it’s really worth visiting this vantage point in Rostock. With a good view, you can discover the seaside resort of Warnemünde in the far north. The Warnow stretches out directly in front of you and the excursion ships sail in the distance.
Before we went back down in the lift, I discovered a small box on the wall. If you put some money in there, it activates a timer that turns on the light in the beams of the tower. A nice gimmick that makes the wooden construction clearly visible. Without this lighting, however, I didn’t find the view much worse.
Visit to the church
The church can be visited free of charge and we went inside after visiting the tower.
The three-nave basilica ends in the nave with a choir. Here, the eye is immediately drawn to the beautiful windows. These were inserted into the Gothic arches during the reconstruction in 1962/63. Each window consists of individual pictures depicting events from the life of Peter.
The Rostock artist Mannewitz designed the motifs, which were subsequently realised in lead-framed glass paintings. Three figures appear again and again on close inspection: Christ with a golden-yellow halo and cross, Peter with a purple halo and John with a yellow halo.
I really like the windows and they remind me a bit of the Glass Bible we saw in Frankfurt (Oder).
The walls to the side aisles are still bricked up and there are only a few openings. On the walls and hanging from the ceiling I discover some ship models. This is quite often the case in churches on the coasts and were made in thanksgiving for God’s help from distress at sea or to sail with the request for God’s blessing and given to the local church. These votive ships are usually very detailed.
Unlike many other churches that were destroyed during the war, the vaulted ceiling in St. Peter’s Church was not reconstructed. The church has a flat wooden ceiling. This decision made it possible to extend one side aisle to two storeys. A hall is located on the upper floor and several rooms have been created on the ground floor. These are lit by windows in the base area.
As we left the church, I noticed another beautiful detail. The handle of the church door represents Jonah and the whale.
Address:
Alter Markt 1,
18055 Rostock
Opening hours:
May – September
daily 10-18 h
October – April
daily 10-16 h
The church cannot be visited during services and events.
Admission prices:
Tower ascent
Adults: 4,-€
Church
free of charge
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