Exalted Place

For centuries, the 170-meter high rock spur above the Lahn estuary has been a prominent location with a magnificent view of the Lahn and Rhine valleys. Presumably, there has been a cult site at this extraordinary location since prehistoric times.

In 1671, the early priest Johann Philipp Trabach built a chapel here "in honor of the Most Holy Trinity, the Virgin Mary, and all saints". Since then, the hill has been called Allerheiligenberg. It quickly develops into a popular pilgrimage site. To care for the numerous pilgrims, an hermitage is established on the west side of the chapel.

Starting from the old cemetery in Niederlahnstein, a pilgrimage path of about 1200 m is built between 1854 and 1886, leading up to the Allerheiligenberg, accompanied by several rosary chapels.

After the Franco-German War of 1870/71, a new church is to be erected in memory of the fallen. The impressive hall building in the late Gothic style of the Rhine is constructed between 1895 and 1901 according to plans by the Freiburg architect Max Meckel. Inside this church, alongside numerous ecclesiastical depictions, there is a rosary altar and a war memorial altar by the Lahnstein sculptor Caspar Weis. Of particular importance is the baroque grace image of the Madonna in the Rosary, which dates back to the old pilgrimage chapel and is the last station of the pilgrimage path. On the west side of the church, a crucifixion group is created by Caspar Weis. Below it, there is a rock cave with a depiction of the burial of Christ by the same artist.

In 1919, the Mission Society of the Oblates of the Immaculate Virgin Mary built a monastery on the Allerheiligenberg; the religious community subsequently uses the old chapel as a monastery chapel until the monastery is abandoned in 2012.

After an extensive renovation at the end of the 20th century, the church now adorns the Allerheiligenberg with fresh brilliance. It is maintained by the Catholic parish of Lahnstein. Many couples enter into the bond of life here.