Church in Langen Trechow, Timber-framed chapel in Bernitt, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
The Kapelle Langen Trechow is a towerless timber-framed chapel with a rectangular plan and a three-sided polygonal choir. Its walls have exposed brick infill in herringbone and stepped patterns between dark timber beams, and the hipped roof is covered with beaver-tail tiles. Inside, a wooden barrel vault spans the simple hall, and the choir is raised by two steps.
The chapel was founded on 13 April 1329 by the Bützow chapter and confirmed by Bishop Johann von Schwerin. The medieval building was probably destroyed in the Thirty Years' War, and the present timber-framed chapel was rebuilt around 1691, after Langen Trechow passed in 1685 from episcopal to the von Plüskow family's patronage. Altar and pulpit of 1788 were removed around 1970; after repairs the chapel was reconsecrated on the first Advent of 2006.
The chapel's three choir windows carry the coats of arms and names of its patron families: the von Plüskow on the outer panes, beginning with Hans Albrecht von Plüskow, who rebuilt Gut Trechow from 1659 and received the patronage in 1663, and the von Plessen in the centre, from Anna von Plessen (born von Carnap), who bought the Trechow estates in 1847, to Hennecke von Plessen and his daughter Maria Therese (1925–2014), who had the windows restored and completed in 2000–01.
The chapel stands in the village of Langen Trechow, part of Bernitt, surrounded by a cemetery. The interior is reached through a narrow corridor leading from the modern west portal into the single nave, and the choir with the altar is raised by two steps. Two side rooms are used by the parish for community work.
The chapel's walls carry decorative brick infill laid in herringbone and stepped patterns, a detail easily missed from a distance. Three leaded glass windows in the choir hold the coats of arms and names of the patron families: the von Plüskow on the outer panes and the von Plessen in the centre, ending with Maria Therese von Plessen (1925–2014), who had the windows restored and completed in 2000–01.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 92,672 contributors worldwide.