St. Ludwig

St Ludwig is the round church in the middle of Darmstadt, known to almost everyone as the Kuppelkirche. The grand ducal architect Georg Moller designed it and it was built between 1822 and 1827, in the clearest classicist geometry available: a plain cylinder with pilasters, closed by a wide dome with a lantern on top. Moller took his model from the Pantheon in Rome, which is why the interior is one undivided room rather than a nave with aisles. The building was also a statement. St Ludwig was the first large Catholic church in this residence city since the Reformation, put up in a mostly Protestant town, and its size and central position were part of the message. From outside, the green copper dome sits above the roofs and marks the spot from several streets away. Inside, the light falls from the lantern and travels around the circle through the day, which is the effect the whole design was built for. It makes an easy stop on a short walk through the centre. Luisenplatz, the column and St Ludwig are all a few minutes apart.

People in Darmstadt call it the Käsglock, the cheese dome, which is affectionate rather than rude. When it was finished in 1827 the round plan was a genuine oddity, since churches at the time were built lengthwise, and Moller's choice was a deliberate nod to the ancient rotunda that classicism admired. Stand at Luisenplatz and the Langer Ludwig on his column appears to be looking straight across at his namesake.