Protestant Church of Peace, Potsdam

Protestant Church of Peace, Potsdam

The Protestant Church of Peace is tucked into Sanssouci Park’s tranquil gardens. King Frederick William IV commissioned the church and Ludwig Persius designed it. After Persus’ death, Friedrich August Stüler continued the construction work. The cornerstone was laid in 1845, and the building was completed in 1854.

The church is reminiscent of a Medieval Italian monastery and is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Palaces and Parks of Potsdam and Berlin. King Frederick William IV made the original design sketches and wanted the church to resemble Rome’s Basilica di San Clemente.

The king also wanted the church to display a 13th-century mosaic he had purchased from a Venetian church. This mosaic decorates the church’s apse and features religious figures and a Latin inscription.

The altar canopy was a gift from the king’s brother-in-law, Russia’s Tsar Nicholas I. The canopy was installed in 1842 and features Siberian jasper columns. The church’s floor features an intricate design of interleaved ribbon that represents eternity.

Frederick William IV and his wife are interred in the church’s royal crypt. At the end of the 19th century, the Kaiser Friedrich Mausoleum was added to the church’s north side. Emperor Friedrich III and his wife, Empress Victoria, are interred in a marble sarcophagus. The mausoleum also houses Soldier-King Frederick William I’s coffin.

The church’s 42-meter high (138-foot) belltower was inspired by the design of Rome’s Santa Maria in Cosmedin. The tower has seven open-air floors.

Want to visit this sight? Check out these Self-Guided Walking Tours in Potsdam. Alternatively, you can download the mobile app "GPSmyCity: Walks in 1K+ Cities" from Apple App Store or Google Play Store. The app turns your mobile device to a personal tour guide and it works offline, so no data plan is needed when traveling abroad.

Download The GPSmyCity App

Protestant Church of Peace on Map

Sight Name: Protestant Church of Peace
Sight Location: Potsdam, Germany (See walking tours in Potsdam)
Sight Type: Religious
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:

Walking Tours in Potsdam, Germany

Create Your Own Walk in Potsdam

Create Your Own Walk in Potsdam

Creating your own self-guided walk in Potsdam is easy and fun. Choose the city attractions that you want to see and a walk route map will be created just for you. You can even set your hotel as the start point of the walk.
Sanssouci Park Walking Tour

Sanssouci Park Walking Tour

Sanssouci Park is a unique Potsdam landmark that occupies 290 hectares in the heart of the city. The Park is named after the Sanssouci Palace that it surrounds, which in turn takes its name from the French phrase "sans souci", which means carefree, and implies that the palace was designated as a place of fun, rather than a seat of power.

Indeed, the Sanssouci Palace was built in 1747...  view more

Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 3.9 Km or 2.4 Miles
Neuer Garten Walking Tour

Neuer Garten Walking Tour

Laid out at the behest of Friedrich William II in 1787, Potsdam's Neuer Garten (New Garden) was indeed "new" compared to the already in place Sanssouci Park.

Between 1816 and 1828, the area was modified further as an English-style, open landscape garden, with an aim to reproduce nature – trees and plants were left to grow naturally, unshaped and untrimmed. Rural life was also...  view more

Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 2.8 Km or 1.7 Miles
Potsdam Introduction Walking Tour

Potsdam Introduction Walking Tour

Potsdam was likely founded during the seventh century by the Hevelli tribe. The town was mentioned by the name of Poztupimi in a document from Emperor Otto III. The name likely came from an old Western Slavonic term roughly meaning "beneath the oaks."

By the early 1300s, a small town had formed with a town charter. By 1573 the town had around 2,000 people living there. Potsdam rose to...  view more

Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 3.8 Km or 2.4 Miles