St Hippolyte's Parish Church

The parish church in Vichtenstein is dedicated to St Hippolytus.

The beautiful parish church of Vichtenstein is located in the village centre just a few metres from the Donausteig. The neo-Gothic hall church impresses with a granite fan vault, symbolic decorations on the vault keystones, several stone "rosettes" in the church walls,... - see and discover! The total length is 33 metres, the width is 14.50 metres and the tower is 40 metres high. The presbytery is lit by three large windows and the double nave by 6.50 m high windows. The highlight is the Hausmutter von Vichtenstein, a miraculous statue of the Virgin Mary. It was created around 1430 and originally stood in the castle chapel. After a fire in 1773, which destroyed a large part of the castle and its chapel, the wooden statue disappeared. It mysteriously reappeared in 1881 when the tower cross was placed on the new parish church. The solution to the mystery: the wife of the caretaker of the castle had taken it without permission and only returned it ruefully on her deathbed. The statue is credited with several miraculous healings and was a favourite pilgrimage site for the local population for centuries.

Vichtenstein Castle has always been the manorial centre of the village. The ecclesiastical centre, however, was located around 6 km to the north-west in Esternberg, the oldest parish in the northern Sauwald. The chapel of Vichtenstein Castle served as a branch church until the 18th century. In 1785, Vichtenstein finally became an independent parish. The reason: according to Emperor Joseph II, no subject should have an arduous journey to their church. In 1877, the painstaking construction of today's parish church began, which was completed with the ceremonial placing of the tower cross in 1881. Incidentally, the granite used for the church did not come from a quarry, but was found and worked in the surrounding forests. (Source: Schulz-Wulkow, K. (2012). Vichtenstein in the Sauwald)

Now the question arises: What is a hall church?
In a hall church, the nave characterises the church interior. The naves are of equal height and are usually united under a common gabled roof. This creates a spacious, hall-like feeling of space. Here in Vichtenstein, however, static considerations were more decisive for the two-nave architecture. Due to the steep slope, the plateau for the parish church had to be partially heaped up. Three central columns were erected in the nave to take some of the pressure off the outer walls on the valley side. Learn to read church architecture!

Tip: A short detour to the parish church is worthwhile!