Bohemian Highlights -- Frankfurt am Main

Our first stop on this two-week Bohemian tour was an evening tour of Römerberg, the old medieval city of Frankfurt am Main. This beautiful part of the city was reconstructed after being almost completely leveled by British bombs during World War II. Actually, this reconstruction theme would play out in a number of the cities we visited. While the bombing and destruction was horrible, the reconstruction effort is a testament to the people's endurance, desire, and dedication to resurrect the cities that they loved. 

Our group of 38 people met at the Leonardo Hotel in Frankfurt (an Italian name in Germany!) where we stayed one night before beginning our journey of 1200 miles. On this first evening in the old city we stopped for dinner and a look around. I hooked up with two blood sisters from South Africa: Pam from Johannesburg and Patricia from Durham. We would hang out from time to time during the entire trip.

                                Our bus left us off in front of this red-bricked building, St. Paul's Church, a neoclassical circular building that was constructed between 1789 and 1833. It replaced a medieval church to serve as Frankfurt's main Protestant-Lutheran church until 1944. In March 1944, during World War II, the church was destroyed along with much of Frankfurt, including Römerberg. However, it was the first structure to be rebuilt in the city after the war because it was regarded as a symbol of the democratic movement in Germany. The first parliament met here from 1848-49.

Unfortunately, my camera had already run out of juice so for this blog I'm relying on Google Images for photos of Römerberg. I did get a photo of this plaque on St. Paul's exterior wall commemorating President John F. Kennedy's major speech here in 1963 on his visit to Germany.
 

The British Royal Air Force bombed Frankfurt am Main several times during 1939-45 and killed about 5,500 residents. They destroyed Römerberg, the largest half-timbered historical city center in Germany, by dropping 12,197 tons of explosives on the city). Post-war reconstruction generally applied modern architecture, and a few landmarks like Römerberg were rebuilt in a simple historical style. On this trip we were to see many cities that had been destroyed in the war and then rebuilt. One of the places where the two sisters and I spent some time was at St. Bartholomew's Cathedral. Miraculously, it was one of the only buildings left standing after the bombings. (It reminds me of the Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall, which is now called the Hiroshima Peace Memorial.)

 

The red brick interior was stunning and very different from the French churches I have been seeing over the past seven years. The altar was very simple even though the cathedral is Catholic. It was constructed in the 14th and 15th centuries on the foundation of an earlier church that dates back to the 7th century.

Like St. Paul's, St. Bartholomew's is also regarded as a symbol for national unity in Germany, especially during the 19th century. Although it had never been a bishop's seat, it is the largest church in Frankfurt, and its role in imperial politics, including the crowning of medieval German emperors, made the church one of the most important buildings of Imperial history.

This giant-sized triptych was the most fascinating piece in the church, especially given its history. This three-fold form of artwork features three panels and sometimes a fourth when the two outer panels fold to conceal the center image. The tri-fold design allows for the icon to be self-standing. Triptychs became quite common on the Altarpieces of medieval Europe in the Roman tradition, and later within Lutheranism as well. This historic triptych is from a Lutheran Altar in Wittenberg, Germany.

Frankfurt is oftentimes referred to as Germany's "Manhattan" because it serves as the country's financial center with its many skyscrapers. The skyscrapers are in the background of this photo with Römerberg in the center. The River Main (on the left) is the longest tributary of the Rhine River flowing west through central Germany 326 miles.

 We all got back to the bus on time. Timeliness is important on a tour with 38 people, especially in Germany, said our guide. ("On time" in Germany means 10 minutes ahead of the appointed time, which means you are 5 minutes late.) In the bus seats in front of me I met two couples who were all Sicilian. The women were cousins from New York City who married Sicilian men. I was excited to meet them and they were excited to meet me!
Actually, the group on this tour is very multicultural. We have 10 Australians, 3 South Africans, 6 Canadians, and 19 Americans. Our guide, Sylvija, is a woman from Latvia and Rodrek, our bus driver, is Polish from Warsaw. Sylvija will sometimes play music from the country we are visiting to provide ambience. She is pleasant, humorous and fully aware of and responsive to her guests and their needs. 

PLEASE NOTE:  I dedicate this blog post to Professor Rudy Siebert who was born and raised in Frankfurt. When Hitler came to power, he was a member of a Catholic youth group that opposed the dictator. Rudy was 17 years old when he was recruited by the German military--at the point of a gun. He flew planes against the Allies and shot down 12 Allied planes in defense of his city. Later, he was taken as a prisoner of war and served time in Maryland (USA). It was at this time that he had the opportunity to be educated by Ivy League professors, which started him off on his own career as a professor of religious studies. He subsequently studied history, philology, philosophy, sociology, psychoanalysis, and theology at the University of Frankfurt a.M., the University of Mainz, the University of Munster, and the Catholic University of America, Washington D.C. from 1947 - 1955. Rudy has taught, lectured, and published widely in Western and Eastern Europe, the United States, and Canada. He is professor emeritus of Religion and Society in the Department of Comparative Religion at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI.Because of his horrendous experience during the war--and his survival in all of it--he dedicated himself to giving six-week study-lectures at his parish church in Kalamazoo, Michigan every year, twice a year. He also faithfully attended philosophical lectures in Dubrovnik (among other places and venues) focused on the Frankfurt School, his area of expertise.  Rudy married Margaret née Noyes, and they had 8 children, 14 grandchildren, and 6 great grandchildren. Clearly, Rudy is a legend!
In 2022, he celebrated his 95th birthday. To get a better sense of who Rudy is, Click here for his YouTube birthday message. It's a treat!

SourcesHistoric Old Town -- https://www.skylineatlas.com/historic-old-town-of-frankfurt/ St. Paul's Church -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Paul%27s_Church,_Frankfurt_am_Main St. Bartolomew's Cathedral -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frankfurt_Cathedral
 Triptych -- https://authenticchristiangifts.com/blogs/blog/77778309-the-triptych-as-christian-art Bombing of Frankfurt am Main -- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_Frankfurt_am_Main_in_World_War_II