Saint Peter’s Cathedral in Schleswig, Germany 

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2025

St. Peter’s Cathedral; Credit – By Ziko – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=50332912

Saint Peter’s Cathedral in Schleswig, Germany, named for Saint Peter the Apostle, is also called Schleswig Cathedral. The first cathedral in Schleswig was built after the Roman Catholic Diocese of Schleswig was founded in 947. However, neither the size nor the exact location of this cathedral is known. Before the Protestant Reformation, the cathedral was a Roman Catholic church. Now Saint Peter’s Cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of the Schleswig and Holstein Diocese of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Northern Germany. Rulers of the Duchy of Schleswig, the Duchy of Holstein-Gottorp, and the Duchy of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg and their families are buried at Saint Peter’s Cathedral.

Cnut Lavard, son of King Eric I of Denmark, the first Duke of Schleswig; Credit – Wikipedia

The cathedral has connections to Denmark, and some Danish royals are buried in the cathedral. In 1115, King Niels of Denmark created his nephew Cnut Lavard, son of his predecessor King Eric I of Denmark, Earl of Schleswig. Cnut Lavard used the title Earl of Schleswig for only a short time before he began to style himself Duke of Schleswig. In 1544, Adolf of Denmark, his brother Johann of Denmark, and their half-brother King Christian III of Denmark, all sons of King Frederik I of Denmark,  divided and then ruled the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein. Parts of the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein, also known as Ducal Holstein, were ruled for two hundred years by various Dukes of Schleswig and Dukes of Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp, a branch of the elder Danish line of the German House of Oldenburg. Other parts of the duchies were ruled by the Kings of Denmark. In 1721, the Dukes of Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorp lost their power when their land holdings became part of Denmark. After the 1864 Second Schleswig War, Schleswig and Holstein were annexed by the Kingdom of Prussia.

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The Construction of Saint Peter’s Cathedral

Interior of St. Peter’s Cathedral; Credit – By Frank Vincentz – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=30812608

Around 1030, the construction of a new Romanesque cathedral began and would continue over several hundred years. During the reign of Cnut Lavard, the first Duke of Schleswig (reigned 1115 – 1134), the semicircular apse was built and the transept was built 1180 – 1200. During renovations between 1200 and 1500, the Romanesque nave cathedral became a Gothic three-nave hall cathedral. The vaulted cathedral chapter house in the northern aisle was added around 1220 – 1230 and the nave vault around 1230 – 1270. Originally, the cathedral had two towers, but they collapsed in 1275 and were not rebuilt.

The cathedral did not have a tower until German architect and archaeologist Friedrich Adler constructed a 112-meter/368-foot Neo-Gothic tower between 1888 and 1894 at the request of Wilhelm II, German Emperor and King of Prussia.

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Saint Peter’s Portal

Saint Peter’s Portal; Credit – Wikipedia

The cathedral’s main entrance is the 1180 St. Peter’s Portal. It was constructed using granite, red sandstone from Scania, limestone from Gotland, and tuff (a light, porous volcanic rock) from the Rhineland. The tympanum (the semi-circular or triangular decorative wall surface over an entrance, door, or window) depicts Jesus Christ between the evangelists and saints.

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The Sacristy

The sacristy, where the priest and attendants put on their vestments and prepare for services, was built around 1480. It served as the meeting place for the cathedral chapter (the group of clerics formed to advise a bishop) and after 1567, as a lecture hall for the cathedral school. After the Protestant Reformation, it was converted into a burial crypt for the Dukes of Holstein-Gottorp.

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The Choir

The choir is the part of a cathedral between the altar and the nave, the central aisle. The choir of Saint Peter’s Cathedral was expanded and painted at the end of the 13th century. The frescoes depict the Annunciation, the Coronation of Mary, Saint Catherine, Saint Philip, Saint Peter, the Deesis (Christ enthroned holding a book with the Virgin Mary and St. John the Baptist at his sides), and angels. The choir stalls were built at the beginning of the 16th century by an unknown artist using the pseudonym Magister Rusticus.

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The Schwahl

The Schwahl; Credit – By Kirchenfloh – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=116866810

In Danish-Low German, Schwahl means “half-open corridor outside a building.” The Schwahl is located on the north side of the nave and was built from brick 1310 – 1320. It is a corridor leading to the cloisters and a processional corridor leading out of the cathedral and back into the cathedral. Restored frescoes on the wall panels depicting the life of Jesus are from the time of construction. Mythical creatures are depicted on the vaults, the arched ceiling. The Schwahl is not regularly open to the public to protect the frescoes from dirt and condensation.

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The Brüggemann Altar

The Brüggemann Altar; Credit – By W. Bulach – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=75089166

The impressive Brüggemann Altar was made of oak by Hans Brüggemann, a German sculptor and woodcarver, between 1514 and 1521. The huge altar – 12.60 meters/42 feet high – depicts sixteen scenes from Christ’s Passion with a total of more than 400 finely carved unpainted figures. The altar was originally made for Bordesholm Abbey, then in the Duchy of Holstein. After the abbey’s dissolution due to the Protestant Reformation, Christian Albrecht, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, who is buried in St. Peter’s Cathedral,  arranged for the altar’s transfer to St. Peter’s Cathedral in 1666.

Detail from the Brüggemann Altar – Jesus carrying the cross; Credit – By Uli Poppe Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7616563

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Cenotaph of Frederik I, King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Schleswig and Holstein

Cenotaph of Frederik I, King of Denmark and Norway, Duke of Schleswig and Holstein; Credit – Wikipedia by Von Arnoldius

In the north choir nave, there is a cenotaph, an empty tomb, created by Flemish sculptor Cornelis Floris de Vriendt for Frederik I, King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Schleswig and Holstein, and erected in the cathedral in 1552. Frederik I, who died in 1533, was the last Roman Catholic monarch of Denmark. He is buried in St. Peter’s Cathedral but the location of his burial is unknown.

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Burials at St. Peter’s Cathedral

Sarcophagi at St. Peter’s Cathedral; Credit – By Västgöten – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8972859

Burials at St. Peter’s Cathedral include:

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Works Cited

  • Autoren der Wikimedia-Projekte. (2004). Kirchengebäude in Schleswig. Wikipedia.org; Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schleswiger_Dom
  • Autoren der Wikimedia-Projekte. (2007). Wikimedia-Liste. Wikipedia.org; Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liste_von_Grabst%C3%A4tten_europ%C3%A4ischer_Monarchen
  • Bidragsydere til Wikimedia-projekter. (2003). Domkirke i Sydslesvig. Wikipedia.org; Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slesvig_Domkirke
  • Der St. Petri-Dom zu Schleswig. (2025). Mein-Schleswiger-Dom.de. https://www.mein-schleswiger-dom.de/
  • Saint Petri Dom in Schleswig, Schleswig-Holstein – Find a Grave Cemetery. (2025). Findagrave.com. https://www.findagrave.com/cemetery/2161243/saint-petri-dom
  • Wikipedia Contributors. (2025). Schleswig Cathedral. Wikipedia; Wikimedia Foundation.