Lehningen: Church Art and Village Character

Lehningen has a small, cozy, picturesque village feel. A prominent landmark is the small Catholic Church of St. Ottilien in the center of town. Its architecture and the surviving remnants of a defensive wall give the place a distinctive historical character.

Church of St. Ottilia and Visible Remnants of the Defensive Wall

The small Catholic Church of St. Ottilien is Lehningen’s architectural gem and is located right on the road toward Hausen. Its imposing tower stands out with an unusual diamond-patterned roof made of colorful glazed tiles. Arrow slits in the walls also shape its appearance. The church was built around 1500 as a choir-tower church and serves as a branch church dedicated to St. Ottilia.

Different stages of the building’s history come together inside: after a thorough renovation in 1746, craftsmen from the Allgäu decorated the interior with lavish ceiling stucco and three altars. Visitors interested in church architecture will find both a choir-tower church dating from around 1500 and a richly decorated interior from the 18th century.

Remnants of a defensive wall, demolished in the early 1980s, can also be seen in Lehningen. A boundary stone near Lehningen bears an “L” for Lehningen on the side facing the village. The stone also bears the inscription “HDVG 1565” and the coat of arms of the Lords of Gemmingen. The Lehningen section of the Biet Chapel Trail includes the branch church of St. Ottilia.

Cycling Tour with Two Steep Climbs

The short “Lehningen Loop” cycling tour is suitable for mountain bikes and has two very steep climbs. So its short name alone does not give a full picture of the route: the two climbs are also part of its profile.

Art and Trails in the Wider Destination of Tiefenbronn

The Church of St. Mary Magdalene in the wider destination of Tiefenbronn offers another important art-historical site. Its Gothic choir dates from around 1350 and has a high ribbed vault. The valuable stained-glass windows were made in Strasbourg in 1370 and were supplemented by Emil Wachter in 1976. The church has five late Gothic winged altarpieces. The main altar, created by Hans Schüchlin in 1469, is one of the most important winged altarpieces in southwestern Germany; its large retable, with panels painted on both sides, a predella, and a superstructure, is designed as an altarpiece of the Virgin Mary and the Passion. The Magdalene Altarpiece by Lucas Moser was created in 1431/32 and is dedicated to the themes of remorse, penance, and conversion. The church treasury also includes a Gothic tower monstrance by the Augsburg artist Jörg Seld, dating from 1500, which is considered its most important treasure.

The trails in the wider destination of Tiefenbronn also offer a variety of experiences. The “Path of the Senses” is a relatively short walking trail from the sports field to the cemetery in Tiefenbronn and was designed by Hede Leicht in 2017. The trail’s texts, as well as its trees, shrubs, and flowers, are intended to be noticed mindfully. Those interested in local history can also take a historical walking tour of Tiefenbronn, which provides background information on the Gemmingen castle and other buildings. Historical images on information panels attached to buildings offer glimpses of earlier times.

For the wider travel overview: Tiefenbronn.