History
The Church of St Peter is the oldest parish church in Zurich. The first Reformist pastor at St Peter was Leo Jud (1523 to 1542), a friend of the Zurich reformer Huldrych Zwingli.
During the Middle Ages St Peter was the centre of a large parish. The deaconry of St Peter was part of the diocese of Constance and comprised estates stretching from the source of the River Linth to the point at which the River Limmat flows into the River Aare. This parish was first downsized during the Reformation and also subsequently, reaching its present size in 1882. The church is located near the former Roman fort of Lindenhof and dates back to the time of the Romans.
Rudolf Brun, first mayor of Zurich
In the year 857, King Louis II “the German” (a grandson of Emperor Charlemagne) bestowed the parish and its surrounding grounds upon his daughters Hildegard and Berta, the first abbesses of the Fraumünster, to found the abbey. In 1345 Rudolf Brun, creator of the Zurich Constitution of Guilds and Zurich’s first lord mayor, purchased the obligations and rights to St Peter. Rudolf Brun was buried in the choir of the church on his death in 1360. Today his grave is located under the commemorative plaque in front of the tower staircase.
Leo Jud, first Reformist pastor
The first Reformist pastor was Leo Jud (1523 to 1542) from Alsace. He was a friend of Zwingli and worked on the first Zurich translation of the Bible. From 1778 to 1801 J.C. Lavater (author, physiognomist and friend of Goethe as a young man) was the pastor here. His gravestone is located at the church wall.
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