Holy Cross Church, Aachen

The Pfarrkirche Heilig Kreuz (Holy Cross Church) on Aachen's Pontstraße, near the Ponttor gate, is the third church on this site, and was consecrated in 1902. Laying its foundation stone in 1898 was preceded by a lengthy dispute, as to where it should stand; so long in fact that the pastor had resigned and only the radical actions of his successor made it possible to “set the ball rolling”.

The very first chapel on the spot, rather modest in size, also took quite a long time to build, from 1363 to 1372. Later, the original structure was rebuilt several times. During the fire in 1656, it was destroyed down to the outer walls and was fully restored only in 1770, hampered by the wars and periods of unrest.

The architect Joseph Buchkremer planned the current church in the spirit of historicism, combining German and French High Gothic elements. The public accused him of arbitrariness in the choice of stylistic elements, yet today the Heilig-Kreuz-Kirche remains one of the few churches in Aachen with an almost authentic historic church interior.

The building is a cross-shaped, three-aisled basilica with a short nave, which creates the impression of a temple surrounded by chapels. Resorting to this construction form was dictated by the limited space available.

The single tower in the northern part of the church, a component of German High Gothic, is particularly striking. Another point of interest is the Sacrament Chapel, located on the site of the former Julian Chapel. The capitals of the round columns of the church, supporting the ribbed vault, are decorated with vine leaves and foliage.

The façade consists of a vestibule with three portals, surmounted by a large window with a stone crucifix and the statues of the Virgin Mary and John the Baptist. The text on the façade reads "Stat crux, dum volvitur orbis " (The cross stands firm while the world turns) which is originally the motto of the Carthusians. In the upper part of the façade is a statue of Saint Helena.

Inside, the church contains numerous art treasures spanning the 15th through 20th centuries. Among them the most noteworthy is a silver chalice with Gothic ornamentation (dating from the late 15th century), gilded and with small enamel decorations, including a Latin text engraved with the names of the donors.