Group 3 | Station 24A | Teutonic Order Church
Image Gallery 1
Teutonic Order Church
The “Teutonic Order Church” in Friesach is dedicated to St. Blaise. It stands outside the town wall in the south of Friesach.
The church has the appearance of a Gothic building that was later baroqueised, but apart from the choir extension, it is essentially a Romanesque building.
Recent research on the building shows that this is one of the first choir tower churches in Carinthia with a chancel decorated with wall paintings.
The bishop of Gurk, Roman I, could be considered as the builder, during the time when the Gurk clergy still resided at Virgilienberg. The church is dedicated to Saint Blaise.
Building
The Chancel
The two-bay chancel has a ribbed vault and a 5/8th end. It is supported by three-tiered buttresses on high bases.
The chancel end is pierced by four high, double lancet windows with original tracery.
The western bay and the walls of the three-bay nave are from the Romanesque period.
The end of the chancel and the eastern yoke were built in the first half of the 15th century.
The Nave
Around 1612, the nave was newly vaulted with a barrel vault.
A late Gothic gallery was built into the western part of the nave above a pillar arcade.
The walls in the nave are pierced by high rectangular baroque windows.
The chancel and nave are separated by a recessed, rounded arch.
A Gothic sacristy is joined to the northern corner of the chancel. A rounded arch portal connects the sacristy with the chancel.
The Tower
The tower (with its open entrance hall) faces the nave to the west. It was built in the 15th century and was baroqueised in 1738.
The three-storey tower is crowned with an onion dome and is sectioned by pilasters and moulded cornices.
A blind stucco coat of arms adorns the tower at mid-height on the west side.
The Gothic south portal was acquired from the pilgrimage church of Heiligengestade, which was demolished in 1891. It connects the nave with the monastery via a wing.
Frescoes
The frescoes in the first bay of the chancel were created around 1170 – 1180. They were rediscovered and uncovered in 1946.
Stained Glass Windows
The windows in the chancel were donated by aristocratic families at the end of the 19th century.
High Altar
The high altar is a late Gothic winged altar. It was acquired in 1883 from the Heiligengestade church, which was located on the shore of Lake Ossiach in Carinthia.
Labelled Images
Image Gallery 2
History
– In 1203, the Magdalene Hospital (in the north of Friesach) was given to the Teutonic Order by Salzburg Archbishop Eberhard II.
– Before 1275, the order moved to a new location in the southern end of the town.
– The church was destroyed by a fire in 1461.
– It was reconsecrated by the Bishop of Lavant Erhard Paumgartner in 1492 (after the chancel was extended and a new sacristy and tower were built).
– In 1582, the church was destroyed by fire once again and was not rebuilt until 1612.
– After a general visitation in 1719, it was baroqueised.
– In 1809, during the French occupation, the order was dissolved and the church fell into disrepair.
– From 1859 to 1870, the monastery was used as barracks for various hussar regiments.
– 1879 onwards, the church was renovated under Commander Count Eduard Gaston von Pettenegg and reconsecrated in 1880.
– After the annexation of Austria by Germany, the order was dissolved and the church was handed over to the diocese of Gurk in 1939.
– After the war, the church was returned to the Teutonic Order in 1946.
– Renovations took place in 1946, 1969 and 1977.
– The entire church inventory was restored between 1971 and 1977 in the workshops of the Federal Monuments Office in Vienna.
Map: 24A
Stations: 18A | 18B | 19 | 24A | 24B
Station 18A | St. Veiter Tor (Former Gate)
Station 18B | Villa Wünschmann
Station 19 | Ruins on Virgilienberg
Station 24A | Teutonic Order Church
Station 24B | Teutonic Order Hospital