Margarethenkirche, Gothic church in Krofdorf-Gleiberg, Germany.
The Margarethenkirche is a white-plastered hall church on a rectangular plan, standing inside a walled churchyard in Krofdorf-Gleiberg. Its steep saddle roof carries a slender octagonal ridge turret with a Gothic spire, and a rectangular unplastered choir closes the east end. The nave, rebuilt in 1513 and inscribed "Anno d[omi]ni xvc xiii", is joined to the lower choir by a large pointed triumphal arch.
First mentioned in 1271 in a deed of donation by Landgrave Henry of Hesse to Altenberg Abbey, the church was then a Nassau proprietary church. Its Romanesque choir and sacristy were rebuilt in Gothic style in the first half of the 14th century, and the nave was renewed in 1513. Justus Breul served as first Protestant pastor from 1546 to 1560; in 1585 Kinzenbach was made a filial, regaining independence in 1968.
The church is dedicated to Saint Margaret; it lost that name at some point and was renamed after her in 1997. Since 1547, when it became a preaching church, wooden galleries with turned balusters called "Docken" were installed on the north and west sides. Since 2021 the parish has been part of the united Protestant congregation of Wettenberg, with about 6,000 members.
The church stands inside a walled churchyard; the cemetery there was used for burials until 1855. Since 1834 a separate outside door on the south side has given access to the sacristy, which was previously reached only through the choir. A memorial plaque on the northern churchyard wall commemorates the murdered Jewish residents of Krofdorf.
The medieval sandstone altar slab, removed in 1835, was rediscovered in 2005 in front of the west portal and placed on a new altar west of the church in 2008. A memorial plaque on the north cemetery wall commemorates the murdered Jewish residents of Krofdorf.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 93,231 contributors worldwide.