(The St. Quirinus Chapel or also “Greins Chapel”.)

 

 

 

It is the moving past of the small chapel that we encounter in the valley of our city of Luxembourg. It has known ups and downs, enthusiasm, suffering and ridicule - and in the end it was almost forgotten. It is said that it was once a den of thieves. It survived world wars and freezing winters. Politics and the changing times could not harm the little chapel.

 

 

 

Already the Celts used the natural cave for their religious purposes. Surrounded by the gloomy forest of the Petrus Valley (the name was taken from the Romans), the cave, steeped in history, lies next to a small stream and a water source. The figure of the Roman goddess Trivia and an ancient Celtic matress stone (now the cult of the "Three Virgins" figure) supposedly stood on this very spot. However, the water source was the main reason for the first pagan cult - it gave people hope for a spring miracle.

 

 

 

After Christianisation in the 10th century, the cave was slowly but surely converted into a chapel. Thus it is the oldest place of worship in our town. In this cave, a hollow and a small pit can still be seen today, which supposedly served to drain the sacrificial blood.

 

 

 

According to Joseph Reuter, the cult of St. Quirinus only began in Luxembourg in the 11th century. In an attempt to get rid of the old Roman deities, the Christians decided to replace all Roman gods with saints of their god. This is why there are three of them in this chapel: St Quirinus, St Firminus and St Ferreolus.

 

 

 

In the Middle Ages, the “Greins Chapel” was maintained by the Teutonic Knights, who had lived in “Tilleschgasse” near St. Ulrich's Gate since 1249 and ran a hospice there. Around 1355 they built the Gothic façade, which has survived to this day. It was intended as a reminder of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, which had already been reconquered by the Muslims at that time and was therefore no longer easily accessible. The Teutonic Cross, which was carved above the gate and unfortunately can no longer be seen very well today, also came from them. On the right-hand side is the open sermon seat, which only exists twice in this form: in Oxford and in St. Loo (Normandy).

 

 

 

The roof and bell tower were rebuilt in 1884-1885 by the city architect Charles Arendt. Until 1884, the small tower was low and the roof rounded. Under the bell tower, traces of old fresco paintings with a crucifixion scene were still found. On the outer wall there was an engraved inscription: Anno Domini 1355 ac Inzentiv sexto. Neither the fresco painting nor the inscription have been renovated and are therefore unfortunately no longer recognisable. The cross of the Teutonic Order, which was above the entrance door, was sacrificed in 1884 when the small windows were rebuilt, and now the upper part of this cross is missing.

 

 

 

Inside the chapel there is a double cave, a small sacristy and a niche with an altar. The original figures from the chapel are now in the town museum. In the tower, there is a small bell, which was ordered in 1770 by the Luxembourger Henricus Eisenbach, a town resident, with the inscription: Henricus Eisenbach me fecit Luxemburgi anno Domini 1770.

 

 

 

Until the 1920s, the housing estates in the Petrus valley extended as far as the chapel. After the war of 1939-1945, the town mayor, Professor Lucien König, renovated the chapel and had the flats demolished. Also known as "Siggy vu Lëtzebuerg", the song "Sankt Greinslied" was written by him in honour of the chapel and Saint Quirinus.

 

 

 

Saint Quirinus had been the patron saint of the fortress since the 11th century and of Luxembourg City since 1455. In 1666, he was replaced in this function by the Jesuits with the Comforter in Sorrow.

 

 

 

At the foot of the chapel is the Quirinus spring or “Greinsspring”, whose water was once said to cure skin diseases. Shortly after Easter, a small fair was held on the small square in front of the chapel and in St. Ulrich's Street, where the fountain was blessed. The food was traditionally smoked ham and the "Greinsfladen", a special egg tart in the shape of a moon. An old legend tells that during one of the countless wars the relics of the three saints were hidden in the well. Since then, the water is said to be nonperishable.

 

 

 

The well was first mentioned by Alexander Wiltheim in 1655. During a chemical analysis in 1900 by Charles Arendt, the chemistry professor E. d'Huart determined that the well water consists of 100 percent pure spring water.

 

 

 

Today, the Greinskapelle and the Greinsbrunnen are UNESCO and national monuments and are owned by the City of Luxembourg.