Dom St. Peter zu Worms

St. Peter’s Cathedral is a Roman Catholic church located in Worms, Germany. It ceased to be a cathedral in 1802 when the bishopric was secularized during German mediatisation. It had the title of minor basilica bestowed on it in 1925 by Pope Pius XI.

Construction started on the current building in 1130 under Bishop Burchard II and by 1144 the eastern apse, crossing with cupola and transept with its towers were completed. Between 1160 and 1181, the nave and the western choir and its towers were completed under Burchard’s successors Conrad I and Conrad II. The cathedral was consecrated on 2nd May, 1181 by Conrad II. The architecture is of the Late Romanesque style however, the timing of construction was identical of the first phase of the Gothic style known as Primary Gothic.

Over the centuries, the cathedral has been renovated many times with a major restoration occurring in 1698 following a major fire during the Nine Years War. This resulted in some Baroque elements including Balthasar Neumann’s High Altar. A further full renovation was begun in 1886 and lasted until 1935. The cathedral was damaged during World War II by a bomb in early 1945 which resulted in the roof burning but the vaults remained intact.