Ensemble paroissial Saint-Joseph de Koenigshoffen

English translation

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History

The church of Saint-Joseph of Koenigshoffen was built in 1901, following repeated requests from the Catholic community to have a place of worship near their place of residence. The plans for the church and its presbytery are signed by the architects Lütcke and Backes, famous for their many works in the Neustadt. The building is constructed in pink Vosges sandstone and is in the neo-Romanesque style. It has on one side of the gable of the nave a bell tower rising to 45 metres in height, and on the other side is found a cylindrical bell turret of 22 metres high crowned by a slightly concave conical roof. The lower part of the bell tower has buttresses with very prominent bossage, a reference to castle architecture. One can observe in the architects' design a desire to play with solids and voids. Inside, the church presents a basilical plan, a narthex precedes the entrance into the long nave, flanked by two aisles widening slightly at the level of the fourth bay to suggest the form of a transept. The decorative roof structure covering the central vessel is a broken barrel vault, it recalls a boat's keel. It is a roof structure with a plank lining of boarding. The vast choir accommodates a high altar and two side altars created in the Moroder workshops (formerly Simmler) in Offenburg, as well as an altar facing the people made from panels of the former communion rail. The furniture of the church takes up the trilobate motif of the roof structure. The original Stiehr-Mockers organ dated from 1825 and came from the church of Saint-Jean. In July 1917 the façade pipes of the organ were requisitioned by the military authorities. It was subsequently repaired on numerous occasions. In 1987, a new instrument was commissioned. This latter, inaugurated in 1988, is the work of the Muhleisen organ manufacture of Cronenbourg which copied the original Stiehr pipes. The bulk of the sculptures, as well as the side altars, come from the workshops of the Moroder brothers, established in Offenburg. Archives prior to 1941 inform us that the vaults were painted with a starry decoration. Of this first decoration there remain still some traces of polychromy, as well as on the twelve pillars and pilasters of the entrance nave and of the choir, painted crosses of consecration. The plans for the presbytery are also signed by the architects Lütcke and Backes, in 1899. This is a fine noble house of Gothic inspiration. The façades are treated in a qualitative manner. That to the North presents a gable with steps, large twin openings on the ground floor. The eastern façade presents a forward section in which is integrated an open-work oriel with columns and arcading. On the two upper levels of three façades timber framing is visible. The presbytery is separated from the church by an enclosed garden. The interior distribution of the rooms on the ground floor such as it was on the original plans has evolved somewhat, particularly to change the accesses to the presbytery, following the installation on the rear plot in 1906 of the Camille Clauss school. The reception room as well as the staircase, are decorated with stained glass with geometric and plant motifs. The two buildings have been the subject of regular maintenance work by the city of Strasbourg, the roofing has been replaced, the external painting has been redone, restoration work on the dressed stone elements has also been carried out.

Description

The plans for the church and its presbytery are signed by the architects Lütcke and Backes, famous for their many works in the Neustadt. The building, constructed in pink Vosges sandstone, is in the neo-Romanesque style. Inside, the church presents a basilical plan, a narthex precedes the entrance into the long nave, flanked by two aisles widening slightly at the level of the fourth bay to suggest the form of a transept. The decorative roof structure, which covers the central vessel, is a broken barrel vault; it recalls a boat's keel. The presbytery was built at the same period and the plans are also signed by the architects Lütcke and Backes. This is a fine noble house of Gothic inspiration. The façades are treated in a qualitative manner. That to the North presents a gable with steps, large twin openings on the ground floor. The eastern façade presents a forward section in which is integrated an open-work oriel with columns and arcading. On the two upper levels of three façades, timber framing is visible. The presbytery is separated from the church by an enclosed garden.