Lost places, also known as “lost places, “ hold a fascinating allure. In Munich, you’ll find quite a few of them, such as the Floriansmühlbad or the ghost town of Frötmanning. Ghost town is a fitting term, as there are several of them in Bavaria. Some were evacuated due to epidemics, while others had to make way for construction projects. In many cases, only the church remained; this was also the case with St. Clemens near Freising, which formerly belonged to Oberberghausen.
The church in the Weltwald
St. Clemens formed the center of a hamlet consisting of just four farms. As early as the 6th century, a small wooden chapel is said to have stood there, on the site of which the Romanesque St. Clemens Church was later built. It was a gift to the Benedictine Abbey of Weihenstephan in Freising and served as the village church for the Mair, Ochsenhans, Kellhame, and Mesner farms. Each of these farms consisted of three to four buildings, and the entire Oberberghausen area covered 85 hectares.
Toward the end of the 19th century, the idea arose to establish a willow plantation in the Kranzberg Forest. Oberberghausen had to make way, and the former farming village became a deserted settlement. Only St. Clemens was allowed to remain. However , the willow grove did not bring the economic success that had been hoped for, which is why it evolved into the Bavarian State Arboretum. This, in turn, opened its doors to the public in 2011 as the World Forest. St. Clemens Church and its cemetery are located right in the center, surrounded by exotic and native trees from Asia, North America, and Europe.
Services and weddings in the St. Clemens Forest Church
Even though Oberberghausen no longer exists and St. Clemens therefore no longer belongs to any village, the church is still actively used today. Services are still held there occasionally, such as at Easter or Pentecost. If you’d like to get married against a romantic forest backdrop, you can have your wedding at St. Clemens. The Weltwald, with its pavilions and rose garden, offers many beautiful spots for great wedding photos. Of course, you can also simply visit the church and the cemetery with its wrought-iron crosses.
Although St. Clemens is actually a Romanesque church, it underwent a Baroque renovation in the 18th century, and its furnishings also date from this period. To the left and right of the high altar are ornate figures that, thanks to a veneering technique, look as if they were carved. Outside in the cemetery, you’ll find a total of 28 graves lining the church. There are also several benches here where you can sit down and enjoy the peace and quiet of the place. If you can’t get enough of the former ghost villages of Waldkirchen, you should take the opportunity to stop by St. Ulrich’s Chapel in the Würm Valley.
