Last day in Leipzig so a whizz around town. St Thomas Church is more than 800 years old. When the reformation came the cantor resigned his post to take up printing to aid the reformation. It is said, when Martin Luther introduced the reformation here in 1539, local people put up ladders against the windows and smashed them so they could hear what was preached. Adopting the reformation meant that the new style of liturgy, congregational singing and preaching took hold, which, in turn, led to changes in church architecture. Pews!

For 27 years, up to 1750, Bach was Cantor here. His duties included writing and publishing new pieces for regular use by the choir and congregation, 270 in total, plus many other special works.
He also taught the boys choir & lectured at the university. He is buried in the chancel, the inscription faces the altar and is separated by the font where 11 of his children were baptised. This was his family church.

In the War of the Nations the church was stripped of pews and served first as storage for arms, and then as a hospital. There were as many as 1500 injured and dying men at any one time.

For this church the relationship between the throne and the altar has always been tricky with the church itself saying it hasn't always got the balance right, erring on the side of self-preservation.

This church is very different from that of St Nikolai but it remains a parish church, a centre of excellence in musical scholarship and Bach's family church. So within a couple of hundred metres you have a centre for spiritual, social well-being and a centre of excellence in sacred music.

So today we took the train to Spinnerai, the old, huge cotton works now inhabited by artists, architects, potters & bookbinders. This artsy quarter is fantastic. And I felt old!

Pictures today of the huge train station, Spinnerai & around Leipzig. And Bach's resting place.