Tours · Saarbrücken · Church
Ludwigskirche & Ludwigsplatz
A dazzling white baroque church rising from an elegant square, widely regarded as the crowning masterpiece of court architect Friedrich Joachim Stengel. It is the proud symbol of Saarbrücken.
About this place
Standing in the heart of Old Saarbrücken, the Ludwigskirche and its surrounding Ludwigsplatz were conceived as a single, unified work of art, a baroque place royale where church, palaces and civil servants' houses form one harmonious composition. Commissioned by Prince William Henry of Nassau-Saarbrücken and completed in 1775, the Lutheran church was designed down to the smallest door handle by Friedrich Joachim Stengel, whose vision fitted the entire ensemble into the main sightlines of the growing residence town. With its brilliant white sandstone facade, its crown of biblical statues and its unusual pulpit-altar interior, the church ranks alongside the Dresden Frauenkirche and Hamburg's St. Michael's as one of the most important Protestant churches in Germany. Almost entirely destroyed by wartime bombing, it was painstakingly rebuilt over decades and today glows once more above the square as the enduring emblem of the Saarland capital.
Key facts
- 1775 year — The white baroque church was consecrated on the 25th of August after thirteen years of building
- 28 statues — Figures of apostles, prophets and biblical scenes originally crowned the roof balustrade
- 1944 year — An October air raid left only the church's outer walls standing
📍 Am Ludwigsplatz 18, 66117, Saarbrücken