Templar Chapelle in Metz, 12th-century religious chapel in Metz, France
The Templar Chapel in Metz is the only surviving part of a Templar commandery. Its octagonal nave, 8.30 m across, has thick walls with shallow niches and narrow round-arched windows; a square choir with a cul-de-four apse adjoins it. Ribbed vaults spring from carved capitals, and the keystone shows the dove of the Holy Spirit.
The building was constructed around 1180 for the Order of Knights Templar and passed to the Knights Hospitaller when that order was dissolved in 1312. It later lost its religious purpose and served as storage from the 1500s onward.
The chapel's name comes from the Knights Templar, whose commandery stood here; the surrounding Arsenal district still recalls the later military use. Inside, a 14th-century fresco in a niche of the south wall shows the Virgin Mary under a trefoil arch, holding a crucifix and pointing at the Saviour; beside it are the wheel of Saint Catherine's martyrdom and a bishop with mitre and crozier. The present wall paintings and windows were made in 1910–1913 by Friedrich Schwarting and Hermann Schaper.
The chapel stands in the Arsenal district, near the church of Saint-Pierre-aux-Nonnains, on the site of the former commandery. It now serves as an exhibition room, so access depends on the programme of the moment rather than on fixed visiting hours. The building is classified as a monument historique.
The main entrance lintel features an original carved cross marking, preserving the connection to the Templar order. This detail is often overlooked by visitors but reveals the strong identity the place held for the knightly community.
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