St. Nicolai, Alfeld, Lutheran hall church in Alfeld, Germany

St. Nicolai is a Gothic hall church in Alfeld whose white walls, steep red tiled roof and two slender dark spires on the western tower rise above the Leine valley. Pointed-arch windows and a recessed pointed-arch entrance open the facade, and a small dark roof lantern sits on the main ridge. Inside, the organ stands above a painted balustrade beneath pointed arches.

The original church was a Romanesque basilica from the late 11th century, when the archdeaconry of Freden moved here, spurring Alfeld's growth. Around 1400 the nave became a Gothic hall, and by the century's end the Romanesque choir was replaced by three hall bays. In 1542 the council and citizens adopted the Lutheran faith, making St. Nicolai a superintendent's seat, then a general superintendent's in 1569.

The church is named after Nicholas of Myra, patron saint of sailors and merchants in the Middle Ages. Since 1542 it has been the Lutheran main church of Alfeld, and from 1569 the seat of a general superintendent. In the Steinberger Chapel, built 1409–1423, stands a fine epitaph for Catharina von Steinberg.

The church stands centrally in Alfeld and is easily accessible on foot, especially when exploring the town center. The courtyard and surrounding streets provide good reference points for navigating the historic district.

The 1970s restoration uncovered numerous graves beneath the organ gallery and the choir. The church also keeps a baptismal font from around 1400 and a late-Gothic sacrament house from the second half of the 13th century, both easily missed by visitors heading straight for the organ.