The Nikolauskirche in Haar should actually have been razed to the ground for centuries and only exist in the chronicle of the community. Several times their demolition was imminent and was only prevented due to a fortunate circumstance and the initiative of individuals. This weekend, the people of Haar are celebrating the 950th anniversary of the originally Romanesque church building. The planned procession and festival on the “Haarer Anger” just around the corner on Kirchenstrasse gives a little foretaste of the big celebrations planned for the coming year. The municipality of Haar as a whole then wants to celebrate its 950th anniversary. Club representatives and Mayor Andreas Bukowski (CSU) recently came together to coordinate a program for this.
The church, which was founded in 1272 at the request of an abbot in what was then the village of “Harde”, is one of the oldest buildings in the district of Munich. In a begging letter, the abbot of the Rott monastery urged the small village to help the small village build its own church with alms. Less than 50 years later, in 1315, in a chronicle of the diocese of Freising, the first mention of a cemetery at this church can be found. Its existence prevented the church, which had become dilapidated, from being demolished early on.
A legendary innkeeper put a lot of money and work into the reconstruction
As can be read in the church guide to the history of the Nikolauskapelle, the church fell into disrepair during the Thirty Years’ War. According to tradition, at the end of the 17th century the parish vicar of Trudering was instructed to tear down the church and to get the material for the construction of a new church in Gronsdorf. But that was not possible in a church with a burial ground. As a result, the Nikolauskirche was renovated and, like so many churches in Bavaria in the 18th century, given a baroque style.
The narrow Gothic slits were replaced with large windows, a vaulted ceiling was put in, the entrance was redesigned and a new tower was built on the west gable. The church received new altars and a new pulpit. Among other things, the main figures of the altar, Saint Nicholas and the 14 Holy Helpers, have been preserved from earlier times. In 1803, the 730-year patronage of Rott Monastery expired with secularisation. Worship services did not take place in Haar, which consisted of only a few farms. The church building fell into disrepair again and was supposed to give way. This time, the legendary innkeeper Franz Bibinger, who ran a rest stop on the site of the Poststadel and the “Alten Post” on the much-used trunk road from Munich to Wasserburg, protested and put money and work into the reconstruction.
Eventually Haar grew and in 1926 became the main town of the community, whose town hall had been in Salmdorf until then. The Konradkirche was built not far from the Nikolauskirche in the hope of starting a pilgrimage there. Again the Nikolauskirche was neglected until chaplain Rupert Frania rediscovered it in 1971 and drew the citizens’ attention to the poor condition. The parish youth and many Haarers pitched in and renovated the historic building.
The celebrations begin on Saturday, October 16 at 10 a.m. in the Nikolauskirche. A procession then takes place to Konradkirche, where a thanksgiving service is held. From 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. there will be a barbecue on the “Haarer Anger”. There is the picture book cinema for children and families “Nicholas on a secret mission” at 2 p.m. and a church tour at 4 p.m. The festival ends at 5 p.m. with Vespers in the Nikolauskirche.