The town of Eguisheim is one of the medieval towns located on the Wine Road near Strasbourg, France. Located in the heart of the town is the Capelle Saint-Leon IX, which is a beautiful church with a colorful interior and interesting stained glass windows. The church is dedicated to Pope Leo IX who came from Eguisheim and was pope from 1049 to 1054. These historic churches are always worth visiting as they as they are a window into life hundreds of years ago.
The Chapelle Saint-Leon IX was built in the neo-Roman style in 1894 providing an excellent example of churches of the era. The chapel has beautiful stained glass windows that date back to 1895 as well as colorfully painted walls and ceilings depicting seven scenes from the life of Pope Leo IX. In addition to the interior, the colorful roof, bell tower, and architecture are also quite wonderful. Since it is located near the main fountain in the town square, there are also several restaurants near the chapel that serve a variety of local food.
It is certainly worth taking time to see the Chapelle Saint-Leon IX when visiting quaint town of Eguisheim. As with most European towns, the church is literally and figuratively the heart of town and a focal point for all celebrations. We visited in the month of November, so there was a wonderful Christmas market located along the walls of the church. The chapel itself will only take about twenty minutes to see, but from there you should wander the narrow streets that spread out from the town square.
This chapel is not the best known of the region’s attractions, it is true that there is little interest in France in late 19th century constructions, copying previous styles, when there are so many monuments dating back to the original period. I also noticed the stork nests on the roofs, typical of the region. Thanks for the post.
We are glad you liked the post. We like finding the less known places when we travel 🙂
It’s good to see some pictures of the inside – we were there on a Saturday and there was one wedding after another going on inside so we only managed to snatch a look over the heads of the wedding parties and couldn’t actually go inside. It’s an interesting pastiche of a gothic or even earlier building and I would have liked to see it.
We have had that happen with various events taking place in a church and we could not go in. Can be disappointing You will have to go back 😉
I love seeing these smaller, less known (at least to me) places with their stunning architecture and paintings. Thanks for the tour!
We completely agree!