Magdalenenkapelle, Gothic church in Magdeburg, Germany
The Magdalenenkapelle is a Gothic chapel of rough rubble stone with sandstone quoins at the corners, consisting of a square bay and a 5/8 polygonal apse. It has no buttresses; thick outer walls and a barrel vault in the lower church carry the structure. A small stair tower stands left of the west entrance, and five tall traceried windows light the interior.
Construction of the chapel began in 1315 during a key phase of Magdeburg's urban development. In 1385, Pope Urban VI granted patronage rights to the Magdalene Convent, strengthening its standing in the medieval community.
The chapel's name comes from the neighbouring convent of Mariae Magdalenae, to which Pope Urban VI granted patronage in 1385. Since 1991 the Catholic relief organisation Subsidaris has used the building, and from 2021 to 2023 a Premonstratensian convent was established beside it, intended to form an atrium complex with St. Peter's Church.
The chapel sits near St. Peter's Church and the Walloon Church, making it easy to reach on foot. Visitors should expect tight spaces and medieval architecture that shape the experience inside.
The small stair tower left of the west entrance is thought to have been the link between the chapel and the garden of the neighbouring Mariae Magdalenae convent, not a defensive structure. The chapel itself has no buttresses; its thick outer walls and the barrel vault of the lower church carry the load.
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