The Protestant Münster, as the people of Bern call the Cathedral, is the largest church not only in the city, but in the whole of Switzerland. The late Gothic building was begun in 1421 on the site of a small chapel belonging to the Teutonic Knights. The city of Bern and the Teutonic Order paid for the building materials and the work of the craftsmen. Later, wealthy citizens and the craftsmen themselves, who worked on the construction site, allocated considerable sums of money for the construction of the Bern cathedral. The church, like the chapel on whose site it was built, was consecrated in honour of St Vincent of Zaragoza, a martyr of the 4th century.
Construction of the Cathedral continued until the 19th century, when the tower topping was completed. The height of the bell tower is 100.5 metres, making it the tallest church tower in Switzerland. There are 9 bells in the tower, the heaviest of which weighs over 10 tonnes. Since the 15th century, the bell tower has been home to a watchman, whose job was to keep watch over the houses below and to warn of fires.
After the Reformation, the church of Münster became Protestant. It remains so to this day.
When visiting the cathedral, the church is the most important part of the church.
When visiting the cathedral, it is worth paying attention to the portal, which is decorated with a bas-relief made of sandstone. In front of us is a scene of the Last Judgement involving 234 characters. Late Gothic stained glass windows 12 metres high have been preserved in the interior. By some miracle the ancient church furniture has survived, for example, the local pulpit dates back to 1470. Of particular note is the 16th-century font, which was designed by Albrecht, who came from Nuremberg.
