The church ruins on the Katharinenberg
In the summit area are the ruins of the former pilgrimage church, the oldest building in Wunsiedel, which was dedicated to St. Catherine of Alexandria. The time of its origin is unknown, in a letter of indulgence sealed by 14 archbishops and bishops from October 1, 1364 it was first mentioned. The former mountain chapel contained a widely famous miraculous image of St. Catherine, which attracted many pilgrims. The letter granted 40 days of pardon from the church's penalties for sins to all who came to the chapel on certain specified days and supported it with donations. In 1384 an early mass was instituted, which was held by a Wunsiedel priest. The villages of Rügersgrün and Holzmühl had to make annual maintenance payments from their income. In 1444, a lay brother was named who, as a hermit, provided sacristan and guard services.
In the city archives of Wunsiedel there is a report written shortly after 1500 about miraculous healings by St. Catherine. People from the "Pehemer Land" (Bohemia) and from places "zwu Meil behind Nuremberg" made the pilgrimage to the oldest pilgrimage to the Katharinenberg. There were lame, blind, half-drowned and suffocated people, also war-disabled, who had "vowed themselves to the dear Junckfrau Sant Katharina ufm Berg". This martyr was considered the greatest saint among the Fourteen Holy Helpers. The pilgrimage destination, which was sought after until the Reformation, was a marble statue of the martyr believed to work miracles.
Extension to the church:
From 1452 the construction of the western tower began. According to the Wartordnung of 1498, it also served as an observation and signaling station. After the introduction of the Reformation, the church fell into disrepair down to its foundations. The base of the well-preserved tower is rounded off by a carefully worked granite cornice, and on the upper floor there are four pointed-arched granite sound windows. The inscription on a granite plaque on the north side of the tower commemorates the victorious defense of Wunsiedel in 1430 against the Hussites and in 1462 against the Bohemians.
Source: Wikipedia