St Elizabeth's Church, Wiesbaden

Geschichte

The Russian Orthodox Church of Saint Elizabeth in Wiesbaden is the only Russian Orthodox church in Wiesbaden, Germany and is located on Neroberg. Besides the Russian church there is a parsonage and a Russian cemetery, which is the largest in Europe . St. Elizabeth's Church and its parishioners belong to the Diocese of Germany in the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia.HistoryThe Russian Orthodox Church in Wiesbaden was built from 1847 to 1855 by Duke Adolf of Nassau on the occasion of the death of his wife, the 19-year-old Grand Duchess Elizabeth Mikhailovna of Russia, niece of Emperor Nicholas I. Adolf and Elizabeth married in 1844, but the following year, she died in childbirth, as did their newborn daughter. He grieved so profoundly that he decided to build a church around her grave. He obtained the money for this church, with the blessing of Tsar Nicholas, from her dowry.Construction of the church was assigned to senior building officer (Oberbaurat) Philipp Hoffmann, who studied Russian church architecture, particularly at first in Russia. As a template for this church, he took the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow. On 25 May 1855 the church was finally dedicated in honour of St. Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist and patron saint of the deceased princess. Shortly afterwards, the coffin containing the Grand Duchess and her baby was taken in a procession from the Bonifatiuskirche, its previous temporary shelter, into the crypt of the Russian church and buried there.