Stadtpfarrkirche Rapperswil

Geschichte

Stadtpfarrkirche St. Johann (Saint John's parish church) is a Roman Catholic parish church in the city of Rapperswil, canton of St. Gallen, Switzerland.GeographyThe church is located next to Rapperswil Castle on the so-called Herrenberg hill to the northeast of Stadtmuseum Rapperswil. The Catholic city cemetery is situated to the north of the church, some meters to the northwest there is the so-called Liebfrauenkapelle (St. Mary's chappel) situated, built in 1489 on the former ossuary. As of today it's the cemetery's chapel and also popular for weddings thanks to its location overlooking Kempratnerbucht at Kempraten lake shore.HistoryRapperswil Castle, the town walls of the former locus Endingen and the parish church were built by Count Rudolf II and his son Rudolf III of Rapperswil around 1220/29. The former parish church was located at Busskirch on upper Zürichsee lake shore, being one of the oldest churches around the lake area. Even the citizens of Rapperswil had to attend services in Busskirch until Count Rudolf II built his own parish church on he Herrenberg hill next to the castle. Legally, Rapperswil church was subordinated to 1253 the parish of St. Johann Busskirch and thus the Pfäfers abbey. In 1489 the adjacent Liebfrauenkapelle (St. Mary's chappel) was built, the cemetery chapel that still exists.