Court Church Innsbruck

On the edge of the historic district of Innsbruck, between the Museum of Tyrolean Regional Heritage and the Imperial Court, there is the famous Court Church (Hofkirche Innsbruck). On his death-bed, the emperor Maximilian I (1459 - 1519) expressed his wish to be sepulchered in the St. George's Chapel in the Wiener Neustadt Castle. This wish was fulfilled, but the 40 bronze statues which were commissioned for his grave-site came out to be too heavy for this place.

So his grandchild, Ferdinand I, had a separate church with an empty grave (cenotaph) established. The 40 larger than life-sized statues have, however, never been completed and only 28 were finally brought into being. These "Black Men" (Schwarze Mander) flank the grave-site and give the church the by-name "Black Men Church". Nevertheless the expression is not correct, as the bronze statues also comprise women, among them the two wives of Maximilian I.

Today the Court Church is the most significant monument of Tyrol and the most striking emperor's grave-site of Europe. It is an exemplary piece of European court art, as the best artists of those days such as Albrecht Dürer and Peter Vischer the Elder were involved. Also the Tyrolean freedom fighter Andreas Hofer is sepulchered here. A further highlight is the Ebert Organ of the Renaissance period, one of the most striking and ancient organs worldwide that is still in use.