For those who have interest in Anglicanism in a non-British context, Dr Stefen Mörz, historian and head of the Municipal archives in Ludwigshafen/Rhine, tells the story of the English Church in Heidelberg, Germany, of which he is a member. He reconstructs the history of this small but lively community from documents from the municipal archives and Heidelberg College together with notes from members of the church and many other sources.
This book divides the history of the English Church Heidelberg into four periods. The first period (1613–1835) begins with the residency of Anglican chaplains at Heidelberg Castle for Elizabeth Stuart, the daughter of King James I of England and Scotland. She married Elector Palatine Friedrich V and moved to Heidelberg in 1613. As the number of English residents at the Castle increased, Anglican rites were introduced – perhaps the most well-known Anglican chaplain in the Castle was John Donne. However, the Thirty Years War (1618–48) and other subsequent wars nearly destroyed Heidelberg completely. In the period of chaos and uncertainty, Anglicans came to the help of Palatine Protestants, contributed to the rebuilding of Heidelberg, and played an active part in its religious, social and political life.
The establishment of the English Church in Heidelberg marks the transition to the second period (1835–1914). As a symbol of the German Romantic Movement in the nineteenth century, Heidelberg attracted not only German artists, poets and students, but also British and American tourists and settlers. At the time, relatively affluent British engineers and retired officers moved to German towns to enjoy a good quality of life with a lower cost of living. The foundation of the English Church in Heidelberg in 1835 was also facilitated by the birth of the English colony in Heidelberg.
The third period (1914–71) is remembered as the darkest time in the history of the church. Because of World War I, the thriving church was forced by the state to close in 1914, and most members had to leave Heidelberg. The expelled chaplain took the Baptismal Register, which he deposited in Rhodes House Library, Oxford, but considerable numbers of documents were lost during this period. The church building was used as a needlework room for the adjacent girls’ school and as a meeting place for varied religious and non-religious groups. Since 1936 it has been used by the Old Catholic congregation.
After World War II, British and American visitors, settlers and academics flowed back to Heidelberg. It was three young English women who played a vital role in opening the fourth period (from 1971). They eagerly wanted English worship in Heidelberg, so they asked a student chaplain from Karlsruhe to lead monthly services and persuaded the Old Catholic priest to share the church building with them. What is more striking is that these women contacted all English-sounding names in the local telephone directory. Their voluntary and earnest endeavour to find a chaplain, place of worship and congregation has borne fruit in an Anglican congregation.
Mörz's account cogently binds the life of the church to wider historical narratives of modern Germany and of British residents in Heidelberg. Moreover, the author's skilful use of the municipal documents offers vivid pictures of how Anglican churches in the previous centuries had to negotiate with the state authorities and to finance themselves in a country where Anglicans were a tiny minority. One thing that is particularly noteworthy is the role of lay leadership, especially that of women, to maintain and support this church, where there has rarely been a full-time chaplain since its reopening. This small, easily digested book will be of interest both to those wishing to gain a greater understanding of the Anglican Communion in Continental Europe, as well as those with a more general interest in the Christian Church in modern Europe.
