St. Mary Queen of Peace

St. Maria Friedenskönigin stands in the centre of Cottbus, a brick church with twin towers framing a stone Christ above the main door. It occupies a quiet site on Adolph-Kolping-Straße, surrounded by modern streets yet shielded from noise by its own forecourt. The building is listed in Brandenburg’s heritage register, recognising its architectural importance. A low hall links the towers, giving shelter to worshippers arriving in rain or sun. Inside, the long nave once led straight to the altar, but later changes created a more flexible space. The church matters because it solved a shortage of pews after the First World War. A citizens’ association raised money, bought land in 1930, and chose Anton Mokroß to design the church. Felix Hertel carved the wooden furnishings, and Bishop Adolf Bertram consecrated the building in 1934. Wartime damage was light, and later restorations kept the fabric sound. A white sculpture of the risen Christ was added in 1963, and in the 1990s a new ring of bells was installed. Visitors enter through three doors beneath the twin towers and pass into a broad central hall. The altar now sits on a cross-axis, letting the congregation gather round it from three sides. Behind the altar a raised chapel, the Josefskapelle, holds a mural and a stained-glass window by Helge Warme. The rebuilt Jehmlich organ, with 1,309 pipes, fills the space with sound during concerts. The medieval bell still rings alongside two cast in 1996, their tones blending over the surrounding rooftops.