Basilika St. Lambertus

At first sight, the church of Saint Lambertus in the center of Düsseldorf looks typical for Germany: the high building without a dome, made of red bricks, standard form – nothing special.

But looking to the building attentively it can be noticed that the spire, covered with black tile, is rather crooked. The citizens consider this defect as the merit and are proud of it.

The basilica is the oldest building in a city. In the 8th century on the place, where Düssel runs into Rhein, Saint Willeick established a small belltower. But later the building was destroyed because of fires and ravages. In the 13th century, the church was built in this area. Düssel became a city and that church – the center of the main place. The church was strengthened, enlarged and turned into the cathedral. In 1805 it was sanctified in honor of St Lambertus.

Nowadays it is a functioning cathedral and storage of artworks: the pictures of Our Lady, the statue of The Virgin Mary, made in the 12th century, and a wooden sculpture of Saint Lambertus, created in the 15th century. Also, visitors can see medieval icons of the 11th-13th centuries, the gravestone of William 5, the sarcophagus of Saint Apollinarius. The basilica was so popular, that guilds sponsored it willingly – tailors, jewelers, and carpenters paid their money for the altars’ installing. Each of them is unique and decorated with jewels.