Five churches in Munich you shouldn’t miss? In reality, there are more than five churches in Monaco, but today I want to talk to you about what I saw during my week in the city and that, for some reason, I think you should visit if you are in Munich.
I start from Peterskirche: near Marienplatz, this is one of the main, and most famous, churches in Munich. Of the interior, I loved the frescoes, especially those of the ceiling and the fact that it appears to be (in my opinion) relatively “simple” compared to some churches seen around the world, despite its grandeur, the vast amount of gold and the majesty of the altar. Before leaving, if you like to look at the places you visit from an elevated point of view (I love it very much), go up to see the view from the Peterskirche tower:
the ticket costs 3 euros, the steps to climb are 300, and the view goes all over the city (and over my expectation). The next church I definitely recommend you to visit is Frauenkirche.
It’s close to the previous one, and with my friend, we went to look for the devil’s step. The legend says that, during the construction of the church, the architect had bet with the devil that he would build a church without windows. When the devil returned (actually to “curse” the church), at the end of construction, from that point, he saw no window! In fact, there were windows, just take a step forward to see them, but he got so angry about losing the bet that he stepped on the floor with so much strength that he left his footprint.
Also in this church, right at the beginning of the right aisle, is located the mausoleum of Emperor Ludwig IV the Bavarian (1282-1347), the first member of the Wittelsbach family to become Kaiser of the Holy Roman Empire.
Not far away, along Neuhauser Strasse, we found the Church of St. Michael (Michaelskirche. It is one of the most important churches in Munich, built by the Duke William V of Bavaria for the Jesuits. The Jesuit priest Rupert Mayer preached against the Nazi regime from the pulpit of this church in central Munich. Despite strong threats and arrests continued in his fight against Nazism until he was brought to a concentration camp. We entered in this church “just because outside it was raining”, but I admit that amazed me: looking at the facade, with gold statues “embedded” in some lodges, I had seemed decidedly smaller than it turned out when we entered to visit its interior. Without too many frills to weigh it down, it is indeed worth a stop if you are exploring the city centre.
Changing city area, I would like to point out to you the Conventual Church of Sant’Anna:
The name in German is Klosterkirche St. Anna im Lehel, and it is a small rococo church in the district of Lehel. With very simple interior spaces, with virtually no frescoes, it is close to the Odeonsplatz, the residence (and its gardens).
The last stop on this tour of five churches to see in Munich is Ludwigskirche. It’s located in the university area, close to the national library (which was one of the rare disappointments of this trip) and a few minutes walk from Odeonsplatz. We decided to go there for a particular reason: inside there is a fresco of the universal judgment that, talking about the size, is second only to the homonymous painting by Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel! This fresco, seen up from a closer point of view, looks gigantic and also very beautiful. I advise you to visit the church not only for the fresco but also because even the church itself is worth a visit: the murals on the ceiling are also noteworthy, and statues, frescoes or paintings unnecessary don’t “burden” the interior.