Pfarrkirche Hl. Sebastian

The parish church of Hard stands beside the shore road of Lake Constance in the Vorarlberg village of Hard. It is a Roman Catholic church dedicated to Saint Sebastian and protected as a listed monument. The building sits on the site of an earlier chapel first recorded in the early 15th century. The church’s history reflects its growing importance. In 1430 it became a local chaplaincy, in 1646 an independent parish. After the Thirty Years War a new church was built in 1684 by Balthasar Brill, followed by a tower in 1721. The present nave dates from 1876, designed by Leopold von Claricini, and the tower was heightened in 1882. A major restoration in 1980 by architect Hans Purin reorganised the choir into two storeys for worship and meditation. Inside, the neo-Romanesque hall church has a tall central nave flanked by lower aisles. The crossing is marked by a wide arch, now walled up, and the sanctuary ends in a rounded apse. The west gallery rests on columns, and the organ was installed in 1961 by Reinisch-Pirchner. Around the church the cemetery holds a 1930 war memorial by Friol and a 1871 mission cross.