Gedächtnis Kirche, Speyer
In the latter part of the nineteenth century during the time of the Kulturkampf, relations between Protestants and Catholics were strained. The Gedächtniskirche was intended as a mother church for Protestant Christianity, although debates among the Protestants led to a delay of about 35 years between the original idea and the laying of the foundations. The building of the memorial church was a reaction to Johann von Schraudolph's structural renewal and painting of Speyer Cathedral in the years 1846 to 1856. Originally the intention was to renovate the Baroque Trinity Church, situated near the cathedral, but it was decided that a new building should be built instead. In the decorative rose window, the protest is tied historically to events from the Old and New Testaments of the Christian Bible.
