Michaeliskirche, Church tower in Ohrdruf, Germany

Michaeliskirche in Ohrdruf is a ruined church of which only the 15th-century square tower of rubble masonry survives, rebuilt in 1998/99 with a pale cream facade, a balustraded gallery, a clock face and a dark multi-sided dome. The nave was demolished after the 1945 bombing; its foundations are traced in the pavement.

A chapel linked to Saint Boniface around 724/725 preceded the church; a Gothic hall church burned in 1753, leaving only the Gleichen crypt of 1616 and the lower tower. Johann David Weidner rebuilt it from 1754 to 1760, and after the 1808 fire it was renewed from 1818 to 1823. American bombs destroyed the nave on 6 February 1945; the 15th-century tower was restored and completed in 1999.

The dedication to Saint Michael goes back to the monastery Boniface reportedly founded here around 724/725. The tower now holds a small chapel and an exhibition on the church's history, and the foundations of the destroyed nave are traced in the stone paving. A small memorial there recalls where Bach learned to play the organ and carries Beethoven's line: "Nicht Bach, sondern Meer sollte er heißen".

The tower can be visited on a guided tour; the foundations of the destroyed nave are traced in the stone paving outside, where a small monument marks the spot where Bach learned the organ. The tower holds a small chapel and an exhibition on its history, and further rooms created during the restoration are used for events.

The tower's three bells, cast in 1822 by the Ulrich family of Apolda, weigh 4,070 kg in total and form a complete set from a single casting. Art historians regard this surviving early-19th-century peal as exceptional. The tower also holds a small chapel and an exhibition on the church's history.