Pfarrkirche Sankt Paul, Passau

The city parish church of St. Paul is the oldest parish church in Passau.

The first church was dedicated to St. Paul already around 1050. After the destruction by fires in 1512 and 1662, the present building was erected in 1678.

At St. Paul's Arch, the northern gate to the old town, a flight of steps leads up to the single-towered church, decorated in cream and pink. The master builder is Carlo Antonio Carlone. The original very flat spire of the 17th/18th century was replaced in the second half of the 19th century by a high pointed spire. This was taken down in 1950 because of alleged dilapidation and rebuilt with only about a third of its height. Since then, the tower is only the second highest church tower in Passau after the cathedral. In the interior, the black, gilded altars and the similarly colored pulpit stand out against the light-colored walls. The large high altar from around 1700 bears a painting by Franz Werner Tamm depicting the beheading of the apostle Paul. The side altars and the pulpit were made between 1678 and 1689, and the painting Beweinung Christi is by Johann Michael Rottmayr. The sparse stucco was not installed until 1909.