Mariae Himmelfahrt Church

Carolingian graves beneath the current church building attest to an early foundation. Little is known about the appearance of the first church and a successor building from the early 12th century, but the freestanding bell tower from that period is preserved. In 1194, Emperor Henry VI gifted the predecessor building to Archbishop Johann I of Trier. Just four years later, in 1198, during a conflict between Otto IV and Philip of Swabia, who conquered and plundered Andernach, the church was largely destroyed by fire. Archbishop Johann I then had the current St. Mary's Church built as a three-aisled gallery basilica by approximately 1220, integrating the old bell tower as the northeast tower. By the mid-13th century, the western towers were completed. In the early 18th century, the church was in a ruinous state. A 1739 report even suggested the demolition of towers and side aisles, but the commitment of Andernach's citizens prevented this.