Wasserkirche

The Wasserkirche, in Zurich

The Wasserkirche, the 'water church', is a Gothic church of Zurich formerly built on a small island of the river Limmat, today attached to the quay. The Zurich audio-guided tour stops here, with respect, to evoke this place of memory linked to the martyrdom of the patron saints of the city, Felix and Regula, executed here according to tradition in the Roman era.

The island of the martyrdom of Felix and Regula

The church you have in front of you is the Wasserkirche, that can be translated as the church of the water. This mysterious name comes from the fact that the first church, of which this one is a later reconstruction, was built on a small island of the river Limmat. Do not look for it: you are on it, for it disappeared with the works of raising of the quays. This former island is an important place of the Zurich popular culture, that it is fitting to evoke with respect and gravity. According to legend, it is here that the Romans executed, on a large stone, the martyrs Felix and Regula, today patron saints of the city. Decapitated then thrown into the river, they are said, tradition has it, to have come out of the water, their head between their hands, and to have walked to the top of the hill, there where they were then buried and where the Grossmünster would later rise. Around the year one thousand, a small Romanesque church was built on the island, the Ecclesia Aquatica Turicensis, replaced by the current Gothic building at the end of the fifteenth century. Inside, to be discovered in contemplation, you admire fine stained-glass windows and the stone of the martyrdom, kept under the church. A place of memory and faith, the Wasserkirche testifies to the Christian origins of Zurich. A Gothic church and a place of martyrdom, the Wasserkirche is discovered with respect.

What to see

Here you discover, with respect, a Gothic church formerly built on an island of the Limmat, today attached to the quay; according to tradition, it is here that the Romans executed the martyrs Felix and Regula, patron saints of Zurich, who are said to have walked to the hill of the Grossmünster, their head between their hands. Inside, stained-glass windows and the stone of the martyrdom. The Wasserkirche is a place of memory of Zurich. It is a stop to be discovered with respect.

Practical information

The Wasserkirche stands on the Limmatquai, at the edge of the river, in the old town of Zurich, reachable on foot or by tram. A place of worship and memory, it can be visited with respect; entry and hours follow the conditions in force, which vary. It is best to enquire before coming and to respect the sacred character of the place.

Why is the Wasserkirche of Zurich a place of memory?

Because, according to tradition, it is on this former island of the Limmat that the Romans executed the martyrs Felix and Regula, patron saints of Zurich, decapitated then thrown into the river, who are said to have walked their head between their hands to the hill of the Grossmünster; the current Gothic church, heir of a sanctuary of the year one thousand, keeps the stone of the martyrdom, to be discovered with respect.

Where is the Wasserkirche in Zurich?

On the Limmatquai, at the edge of the river Limmat, in the old town of Zurich, in Switzerland.