by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2025
Morizkirche (Saint Maurice’s Church), also known as Stadtkirche St. Moriz, originally a Roman Catholic church, now an Evangelical Lutheran church, is in Coburg, formerly in the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, now in the German state of Bavaria. The church was named for Saint Maurice (also Moritz, Morris, Maurits, or Mauritius), an Egyptian military leader who led the Theban Legion of Rome in the 3rd century and was martyred circa 287.
The first church in Coburg was probably built in the 11th century. In 1189, a church was mentioned for the first time, which was replaced by a Romanesque basilica around 1250. The existing church dates from the 14th century, with construction beginning around 1310. In the 15th century, the west portal with its two towers was replaced by the current structure with its two dissimilar towers.
Morizkirche was used by the Benedictines of Saint Peter and Saint Paul Monastery until the dissolution of the monastery during the Protestant Reformation, which reached the Morizkirche in 1518, when Balthasar Düring (link in German) preached there. Morizkirche then became a Lutheran church, and Balthasar Düring became the vicar on February 6, 1520. With the Reformation, ownership of the church passed to the town, which took on the cost of operation. During the Easter week of 1530, Martin Luther gave several sermons at the Morizkirche.
Interior of the Morizkirche; Credit – Wikipedia by Erwin Meier
In 1520, the nave was replaced with a late Gothic three-aisled hall. Between 1740 and 1742, Franz Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld commissioned master builder Johann David Steingruber (link in German) to redesign the interior of the church into a gallery hall with a Baroque preacher’s pulpit. During this renovation, many components of the old Gothic church disappeared, including the pulpit from which Martin Luther had preached. Most of what is visible of the interior today dates from this renovation. Since then, the church has remained unchanged, except for maintenance work and the windows.
Tomb of Johann Friedrich, Duke II of Saxony and Elisabeth of the Palatinate; Credit – Wikipedia by Störfix
From 1594 to 1598, Johann Casimir, Duke of Saxe-Coburg had a 13.66-meter/45-feet-high and 6.55-meter/21-feet-wide alabaster tomb built for his parents, Johann Friedrich, Duke II of Saxony and Elisabeth of the Palatinate. The tomb was designed and made by the sculptor Nikolaus Bergner and is considered one of the most beautiful Renaissance tombs in Germany. The praying group of figures shows Johann Friedrich kneeling in the middle. Opposite him are his first wife, Agnes of Hesse, and his second wife, Elisabeth of the Palatinate. Behind Johann Friedrich are his two eldest sons, Johann Friedrich and Friedrich Heinrich, who died in infancy, as well as Johann Casimir and his younger brother, Johann Ernst, Duke of Saxe-Eisenach, as adults.
In recent memory, two royal weddings have been held at Morizkirche. On October 20, 1932, Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden and Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha were married at Morizkirche. (Photo above.) The eldest son of the future King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden and Princess Margaret of Connaught, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria, Prince Gustaf Adolf of Sweden was the father of King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden and would have himself become King of Sweden had he not died tragically in an airplane crash at the age of 40. Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, was the daughter of Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, a grandson of Queen Victoria. On July 7, 2018, Princess Stephanie of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the only daughter of Andreas, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, married Jan Stahl, an engineer with BMW. Also, in the photo above is a partial view of the entrance to the crypt.
The coffin of Andreas, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha leaves Morizkirche following his funeral; Credit – The Royal Watcher
On April 24, 2025, the funeral of Andreas, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha took place at the Morizkirche. Andreas died on April 3, 2025, at the age of 82. He was the pretender to the former ducal throne and Head of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha from 1998 until his death. Andreas was a first cousin and close friend of King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden and was the godfather of the King’s younger daughter, Princess Madeleine. Members of the Swedish royal family attended the funeral along with several other current royals and members of former reigning royal families.
Although there were previous burials in the Morizkirche, in 1687, Albrecht V, Duke of Saxe-Coburg commissioned the construction of a crypt in the choir. By the mid-1800s, there was no space for further burials in the Morizkirche, so Ernst II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha commissioned a mausoleum in the newly established Glockenberg Cemetery (link in German), also in Coburg, to serve as the burial site for the ducal family of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Construction began in 1853, with financial support from the royal houses of Belgium and the United Kingdom, both having connections to the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The Ducal Mausoleum (link in German) was dedicated in November 1860, and the remains of Ernst I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and his first wife, Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, were moved there from the Morizkirche.
Burials at the Morizkirche
Note: This may not be a complete list.
- Johann Ernst, Duke of Saxe-Coburg (1521 – 1563)
- Elisabeth of the Palatinate (1540 – 1594), wife of Johann Friedrich II, Duke of Saxony
- Johann Friedrich, Duke II of Saxony (1529 – 1595)
- Johann Casimir, Duke of Saxe-Coburg (1564 – 1633)
- Marie Elisabeth of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (1638 – 1687), wife of Albrecht II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg
- Albrecht V, Duke of Saxe-Coburg (1648 – 1699)
- Anna Sophie of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (1727 – 1728), daughter of Franz Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
- Friederike Magdalene of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (1733 – 1734), daughter of Franz Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
- Friederike Juliane of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (born and died 1752), daughter of Ernst Friedrich, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
- Heinrich Ferdinand August of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (1756 – 1758), son of Ernst Friedrich, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
- Karl Wilhelm Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (1751 – 1757), son of Ernst Friedrich, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
- Friedrich of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (born and died 1758), son of Ernst Friedrich, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
- Franz Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (1697 – 1764)
- Anna Sophie of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (1700 – 1780, wife of Franz Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
- Ernst Friedrich, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (1724 – 1800)
- Sophie Antonia of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (1724 – 1802), wife of Ernst Friedrich, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
- Friedrich Josias of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (1737 – 1815), son of Franz Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
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Works Cited
- Autoren der Wikimedia-Projekte. (2005). Kirchengebäude in Coburg. Wikipedia.org; Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morizkirche_(Coburg)
- Mehl, S. and Flantzer, S. (2017). Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld/Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Royal Burial Sites. Unofficial Royalty. https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/former-monarchies/german-royals/duchy-of-saxe-coburg-and-gotha/saxe-coburg-and-gotha-royal-burial-sites/
- Morizkirche in Coburg. (2025). Evangelisch-Gemeinsam.de. https://www.evangelisch-gemeinsam.de/morizkirche-coburg
- Morizkirche in Coburg, Bavaria – Find a Grave Cemetery. (2021). Findagrave.com. https://www.findagrave.com/cemetery/2308739/morizkirche
- Wikipedia Contributors. (2023). Morizkirche (Coburg). Wikipedia; Wikimedia Foundation.
