Temple de Garnison Tower

The Garnison temple is a religious building located square du Luxembourg, rue Belle-Isle in Metz in Moselle. It is one of the tallest monuments in the city, its bell tower measuring almost a hundred meters.

During the annexation, Metz was transformed under the action of the German authorities who decided to make its town planning a showcase of the Wilhelmine empire. Architectural eclecticism is reflected in the appearance of numerous neo-Romanesque style buildings such as the central post office, the Protestant temple or a new railway station; in neo-Gothic style such as the cathedral portal and the Garrison temple, or in neo-Renaissance style such as the Governor's palace.

The Garrison Church in Metz (French: Temple de Garrison) is located in Metz on the Square du Luxembourg (formerly French: Place du Saulcy; formerly German: Weidenplatz) on the large Moselle island. The neo-Gothic nave was blown up after a fire in 1946, but the tower remained. The church, together with the Mathildenstift (today Hôpital Belle Isle), which was built between 1886 and 1889, formed an architectural ensemble in the neo-Gothic style.[1] The tower has been a listed building since 1972.

After the annexation of the city of Metz during the Franco-Prussian War, the city became an important stationing location for numerous military personnel. The garrison had a strength of over 7,000 soldiers.[2] Even before the first German barracks were built, the Military Construction Directorate built a Protestant garrison church on the western glacis field of Metz between 1875 and 1881. With 2,400 seats, it was one of the largest of its time. 400 places were reserved for civilians. The construction was necessary because the Protestant military had no access to the Catholic cathedral in Metz and most of the other churches in the city were Catholic. The small Protestant church in the Trinitarian Oratory building only held a little over 300 people. Until the garrison church was built, the military service temporarily took place in a riding arena, which had been converted into a prayer room.

The ruins of the Garrison Temple are a Protestant church built by the Germans in the 19th century for their soldiers, but it was destroyed by bombing and fires in the 20th century. Only the tower remains, with a height of 91 meters, one meter more than the cathedral tower. You can admire the neo-Gothic architecture and Jaumont stone, a traditional material from Metz. The temple is located near the Ice Rink and the Pont des Morts, from where you can also enjoy the view of the Moselle and the city.