The pilgrimage church Mary, Queen of Peace is widely regarded as Gottfried Böhm’s magnum opus and as a canonic work of twentieth-century architecture. Although the church itself has experienced worldwide reception, less known is that it was conceived as the integral crown of an entire pilgrimage district, designed by Böhm as an urban intervention—with kindergarten, pilgrim house, hostel, and other spaces ascending towards the church along a cascading pilgrimage path. Unlike previous studies, which have focused on the church itself, this is the first in-depth study of the church and the pilgrimage center in their context. Based on previously overlooked archival material, interviews with Böhm and his collaborators, and featuring a new series of photographs taken over a period of several years, this richly illustrated book not only closes gaps in our knowledge of this important work but also is a timely reassessment of Gottfried Böhm’s contributions to architecture.

Steffen Kunkel is a professor of architectural theory, building typology, and design, and works at Mainz University of Applied Sciences and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology. His doctoral thesis is on the pilgrimage church Mary, Queen of Peace in Neviges by Gottfried Böhm (summa cum laude). Together with fellow architect Eleni Zaparta he owns his own  practice, which focuses on social housing and educational building types. From 2004 to 2013 he studied visual arts at the University of Art and Design in Offenbach am Main, as well as architecture and urban planning at the Technical University in Darmstadt. Various works were discussed and shown in various daily newspapers, publications on architecture and were part of various exhibitions. He has held lectures at different museums and universities.