Aachen Cathedral

Aachen Cathedral is a Catholic church located in Aachen, Germany.

It serves as the cathedral for the Diocese of Aachen. This site is one of the oldest cathedral buildings in Europe. It was originally built as the royal chapel for the Palace of Aachen. This palace belonged to Emperor Charlemagne. The building is highly significant because of its artistry and architecture. It played a central role in the history of the Holy Roman Empire. Because of this, UNESCO listed it as a World Heritage Site in 1978.

The core of the cathedral is the Carolingian-Romanesque Palatine Chapel.

This central structure was modeled after the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna. The design features a domed octagonal inner room. This octagon is surrounded by a sixteen-sided outer wall. The architect of this chapel was Odo of Metz. The chapel includes a high octagonal room with a two-story circuit below. This lower level is called the Hochmünster, or high church. The two floors are separated by an expansive cornice. The high altar and the Imperial throne sit in an octagonal side room.

Different architectural styles appear throughout the cathedral's many parts. The central octagon uses the Carolingian-Romanesque style. The choir was later constructed in the Gothic style.

Some areas show the Ottonian style, specifically around the throne. Other sections were finished in the 19th century using revivalist styles. The western facade, known as the westwork, is of Carolingian origin. It is a two-story building flanked by two stair-towers. The cathedral also features a cupola and several other chapels. These additions happened at various dates throughout history. This mixture of styles shows how the building grew over many centuries.

The history of the cathedral began around the year 796.

Charlemagne started the construction of the Palatine Chapel and the palace. A letter from Alcuin in 798 says the work was nearly finished. Pope Leo III consecrated the completed chapel in 805. Charlemagne was buried in the chapel in the year 814. The building faced destruction during a Viking raid in 881. It was later restored in 983. In 1165, Charlemagne was canonized by Antipope Paschal III. This event turned the chapel into a major site for pilgrims. To handle the crowds, a Gothic choir hall was added in 1355.

The cathedral holds great historical and political significance. From 936 to 1531, it was used for royal coronations. Thirty-one German kings were crowned within its walls. Twelve queens also held their coronations there. The building also contains many precious artistic objects. A bronze foundry was used near the end of the 8th century. This foundry cast bronze doors, railings, and statues. One famous entrance is the Wolf's Door, or Wolfstür. Its bronze leaves weigh 43 hundredweight. The cathedral also houses the Barbarossa chandelier.

Many mathematical and symbolic ideas are built into the structure. The number eight is used frequently in the design. In Christian symbolism, eight represents the eighth day or Sunday. This symbolizes the Resurrection of Jesus Christ and eternal life. The diameter of the inner octagon is exactly one hundred Carolingian feet. This is the same as the height of the dome. Historians like Ulrike Heckner have studied these measurements. She proposed a specific unit called the Aachen royal foot. This unit measures 322.4 millimeters. These geometric choices show how deeply math and faith were connected.

The cathedral survived the heavy damage of World War II.

Allied bombing and artillery fire caused much harm to Aachen. The cathedral's basic structure survived the fighting. However, many artistic objects were moved to secure storage. Some items, like the 14th-century glazing, were irretrievably destroyed. The Holiness Chapel and the Gothic Revival altar were also lost. Reconstruction and restoration lasted for more than 30 years. The total cost for these repairs was about 40 million euros. Today, the cathedral remains a major landmark of European history.