Nikolaikirche, Gothic church in Meissen, Germany

The Nikolaikirche is a small single-tower church on the Triebisch, 30 metres long, 12 metres wide and 7 metres high, its exterior largely as rebuilt after the Hussite wars. Inside it is divided into a congregation area on the south side and a choir; remains of early Gothic wall paintings showing the childhood and Passion of Christ survive on the choir wall.

The Nikolaikirche was built before 1150, perhaps as early as 980, on the Triebisch and is first documented in 1220, when it was placed under the Benedictine convent Heilig Kreuz. It was damaged in the Hussite wars in 1429 and in the Meissen town fire of 1447; its exterior still largely reflects the rebuilding that followed. After the Reformation it passed to the St.-Afra parish, probably in 1542, and served as a cemetery chapel.

The church is named after Saint Nicholas, patron saint of merchants and fishermen, who worshipped here near the Triebisch. Since 1929 it has served as a memorial to Meissen's victims of the First World War, furnished with Meissen porcelain epitaphs and elements; these are currently threatened by rust and damp.

The entrance was moved from the south long side to the west gable end during the 1920s conversion, behind a heavy oak door. The church stands by the Triebisch at the Neumarkt, near the former Nikolaifriedhof, which was closed in 1879. The porcelain epitaphs inside are endangered by rust and damp, so keep a respectful distance.

The tower was added in 1695, and three bells hang in it: the largest was cast by Andreas Herold of Dresden, the middle one dates from the 13th century, and the smallest was made by Michael Weinhold in 1702.