32. The Cornelia Church

The Cornelia Church (Cornelienkirche)

The Cornelia Church (Cornelienkirche) is situated at the eastern exit of the town in the valley in the middle of the cemetery bordering on the railway embankment. General Tilly is said to have planned his strategy here before the battle of Wimpfen in 1622; that is why this little church is also known as „Tilly’s Chapel“. It was built in 1476 and was called „Liebfrauenkirche“ („Church of Our Lady“).

The northern porch bears the inscription „1476 hie solt ir schaven, die gan zu Cornelia unser lieben frawen“ (here shall you look who go to our dear lady Cornelia) .This little church was completely derelict (like the cathedral) by the beginning of the 19th century, when it was about to be pulled down, but it was saved and renovated at the turn of the century. It has a simple rectangular layout and a simple structure. Only the north and west porches are decorated. The northern porch is a work of exceptional beauty. The entrance is separated by a pillar decorated once with a statue of Mary. The console and a canopy have been preserved. The arch shows a splendid relief of the Annunciation: to the right the archangel Gabriel, in the background the Trinity – God as an old man, the Holy Ghost as a dove, Baby Jesus with the cross descends on a fan of rays emanating from God’s chest. Inside the church there are some remarkable murals from the 15th century on the south wall. They were redone in 1918. The story of Genesis is depicted in 8 pictures. To the right St. Jodokus whom an angel relieves of the crown and hands a pilgrim’s staff to; to the left a holy family; above, a crucifixion scene. Then follows a strange picture: Christ with loincloth and thorny crown; from the stigma on his left foot grows a wheatsheaf: a strange and quite unique representation of the sacrament followed by another depiction of the Annunciation and of the Last Judgement.