St Thomas’ Church, Erfurt

St Thomas' Church, Erfurt tickets: which one to buy

The Thomaskirche, St Thomas' Church, is a Protestant church in the neo-Gothic style in the Löbervorstadt district of Erfurt, the capital of Thuringia in central Germany, standing in a small park on the Schillerstrasse, south of the old town. It is a parish church rather than a major sightseeing monument, and it is open mainly for services, concerts and events, so check with the parish before visiting. Its tower, about seventy-two metres high, is the second tallest church tower in Erfurt, and it can be seen from across the southern part of the city.

Most travellers come to Erfurt for the old town, with the Cathedral of Saint Mary and the Church of Saint Severus on the Domplatz, the inhabited Merchants' Bridge, the Augustinian Monastery where Martin Luther lived as a monk, the Old Synagogue, one of the oldest in Europe, and the Petersberg Citadel, and the Thomaskirche can be added on a walk south towards the Steigerwald forest and the ega park, a large garden and exhibition park. Trams run along the nearby streets. The church is a good choice for travellers interested in late nineteenth and early twentieth century church architecture, or in the carved Gothic altarpiece it keeps.

Visiting St Thomas' Church, Erfurt: what to see

The parish goes back to the Old Thomaskirche, a small Gothic church in the Löberstrasse first mentioned in 1282, which served the tanners and labourers of the poor Löbervorstadt district. After Erfurt's fortifications were removed in 1872, the district expanded south, many new houses were built and wealthier residents moved in, and the old church became too small. The foundation stone of the new church was laid on 29 April 1900, and the building, designed by the Hanover architect Rudolph Eberhard Hillebrand in the neo-Gothic style, was consecrated on 15 June 1902, with room for about 1,100 people.

The old church was demolished a year later, and its most precious furnishings, including a carved Gothic altarpiece from 1445, one of the four valuable carved altarpieces of Erfurt, and a sacrament house, were brought to the new church. The altarpiece, painted over in the nineteenth century, was restored to its original colours in the early 1930s. On 31 March 1945 an American air raid, which, according to later reports, had been meant for Gotha, hit the east part of the church, damaging the roof, walls, vaults, galleries, organ and painted decoration and destroying the windows. The church was later repaired and returned to use by the parish.

St Thomas' Church, Erfurt opening hours and the best time to go

The church is open for Sunday services and for concerts and events, and at other times it may be closed. Erfurt is pleasant from spring to autumn, and the Krämerbrückenfest, a festival on the Merchants' Bridge, is held in June. The DomStufen-Festspiele bring open-air opera to the cathedral steps in summer. The Christmas market on the Domplatz is one of the most beautiful in Germany. Winters are cold. Allow about half an hour for the church when it is open, and continue to the old town or the ega park.