
A Coventry Cross of Nails (in German, ''Nagelkreuz von Coventry'') is a
Christian cross
The Christian cross, seen as representing the crucifixion of Jesus, is a religious symbol, symbol of Christianity. It is related to the crucifix, a cross that includes a ''corpus'' (a representation of Jesus' body, usually three-dimensional) a ...
made from
iron
Iron is a chemical element; it has symbol Fe () and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, forming much of Earth's o ...
nails, employed as a symbol of peace and reconciliation. The original version was made from three large medieval nails salvaged from the
Coventry Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of Saint Michael, commonly known as Coventry Cathedral, is the seat of the Bishop of Coventry and the Diocese of Coventry within the Church of England. The cathedral is located in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midla ...
after the building was severely damaged by German bombs on 14 November 1940, during the Second World War. In the following decades, several hundred crosses have been given as gifts to various organisations, including churches, prisons and schools. The form of the cross echoes the
crucifixion of Christ
The crucifixion of Jesus was the death of Jesus by being nailed to a cross.The instrument of crucifixion is taken to be an upright wooden beam to which was added a transverse wooden beam, thus forming a "cruciform" or T-shaped structure. ...
, and the nails with which Christ was
affixed to the cross according to some accounts.
In Coventry
Coventry Cathedral was severely damaged during the
Coventry Blitz
The Coventry Blitz ( blitz: from the German word ''Blitzkrieg'' meaning "lightning war" ) was bombing that took place on the British city of Coventry. The city was bombed many times during the Second World War by the German Air Force (''Luftw ...
, and its roof was destroyed on 14 November 1940. The idea for the cross came from Rev
Arthur Philip Wales, who was then rector of St Mark's church in Coventry, which was also damaged in the bombing, and later rector at St Michael's church in
Warmington, Warwickshire
Warmington is a village and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district of Warwickshire, England. It is located on the border with Oxfordshire, around 5 miles (8 km) northwest of Banbury. The civil parish had, according to the 2001 Cen ...
. He found several large hand-forged medieval carpenters nails as he walked through the ruins of the cathedral on the morning after the bombing. He used some wire to bind together three nails into the shape of a
Latin cross, with one nail vertical and two head-to-tail as a cross-piece, and presented them to the
Bishop of Coventry
The Bishop of Coventry is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Coventry in the Province of Canterbury. In the Middle Ages, the Bishop of Coventry was a title used by the bishops known today as the Bishop of Lichf ...
,
Mervyn Haigh. The Cathedral's
Provost
Provost may refer to:
Officials
Ecclesiastic
* Provost (religion), a high-ranking church official
* Prince-provost, a high-ranking church official
Government
* Provost (civil), an officer of local government, including the equivalent ...
Richard Howard
Richard Joseph Howard (October 13, 1929 – March 31, 2022), adopted as Richard Joseph Orwitz, was an American poet, literary critic, essayist, teacher, and translator. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and was a graduate of Columbia University, ...
had the words "
Father Forgive" carved into the wall behind the altar of the ruined building, and two charred beams fallen together into the shape of a cross were erected among the rubble. The original charred cross is now displayed in the new cathedral, constructed after the war adjacent to the ruins of the medieval cathedral, with a replica placed in the standing ruins of the old cathedral.
The original cross of nails is also retained by the new cathedral. It made a progress around the churches of the diocese in Lent 1962, returning to the new cathedral on the eve of its consecration on 25 May 1962, and is now often displayed at the
High Altar
An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...
, with the nails now welded into place.
Elsewhere
In September 1947, Richard Howard visited
Kiel
Kiel ( ; ) is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein. With a population of around 250,000, it is Germany's largest city on the Baltic Sea. It is located on the Kieler Förde inlet of the Ba ...
and presented a cross made from medieval nails found in the ruins of Coventry Cathedral to
the church of St Nikolai; in return, Howard was presented with a stone from the ruins of the German church. Over subsequent years, hundreds of nail crosses have been given to various organisations, originally using medieval nails from the old cathedral but more recently using modern replicas. In many places the Coventry Cross of Nails is mounted on a wall, or displayed on an altar.
The recipients of nail crosses from Coventry were brought together in 1974 to form an
ecumenical
Ecumenism ( ; alternatively spelled oecumenism)also called interdenominationalism, or ecumenicalismis the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships ...
"Community of the Cross of Nails", developed by
Bill Williams, Provost at Coventry Cathedral from 1958 to 1981. The network of over 200 organisations in 45 countries shares a commitment to peace, justice and reconciliation. It includes dozens of churches in Germany, including the
Dresden Frauenkirche
The Frauenkirche (, ''Church of Our Lady'') is a Lutheran church in Dresden, the capital of the German state of Saxony. Destroyed during the Allied firebombing of Dresden towards the end of World War II, the church was reconstructed between ...
, the
Garrison Church in Potsdam, and
Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church
The Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church (), mostly known simply as the Memorial Church (German: ''Gedächtniskirche'' ) is a Protestant church affiliated with the Evangelical Church in Berlin, Brandenburg and Silesian Upper Lusatia, a regional body ...
and
Chapel of Reconciliation
The Chapel of Reconciliation () is a place of worship in Berlin, Germany. It stands on the site of the old Church of Reconciliation ( de) (), on Bernauer Strasse in the Mitte district.
Church of Reconciliation
The church was completed in 189 ...
(Kapelle der Versöhnung) in Berlin, and in other cities in the UK and elsewhere. At many, the Coventry Litany of Reconciliation is recited each Friday; the short prayer was written by Canon Joseph Poole in 1958.
A Coventry Cross of Nails was on board the
Type 42 destroyer
The Type 42 or ''Sheffield'' class was a class of fourteen guided-missile destroyers that served in the Royal Navy.Marriott, Leo: ''Royal Navy Destroyers since 1945'', , Ian Allan Ltd, 1989 A further two ships of this class were built for and ...
during the
Falklands War
The Falklands War () was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British Overseas Territories, British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and Falkland Islands Dependenci ...
, sunk with the ship and later salvaged by
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
divers. It was returned to Coventry Cathedral, kept by the next , a
Type 22 frigate
The Type 22 frigate also known as the ''Broadsword'' class was a ship class, class of frigates built for the British Royal Navy. Fourteen were built in total, with production divided into three batches.
Initially intended to be anti-submarine ...
, from 1988 until she was decommissioned in 2002, and later presented to the
Type 45 destroyer
The Type 45 destroyer, also known as the D or ''Daring'' class, is a class of six guided-missile destroyers built for the United Kingdom's Royal Navy in the early 21st century. The class is primarily designed for anti-aircraft and anti-missile ...
, which is affiliated to Coventry.
Gallery
File:Air Raid Damage in the United Kingdom 1939-1945 H5603.jpg, Ruins of Coventry Cathedral on 16 November 1940
File:2015-03-19 Berlin Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche 10 anagoria.JPG, At the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church
The Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church (), mostly known simply as the Memorial Church (German: ''Gedächtniskirche'' ) is a Protestant church affiliated with the Evangelical Church in Berlin, Brandenburg and Silesian Upper Lusatia, a regional body ...
, Berlin
File:Berlin .Gendarmenmarkt .Deutscher Dom 005.jpg, At the Neue Kirche, Berlin
File:Antoniterkirche (Köln) Nagelkreuz von Coventry.JPG, At the , Cologne
File:DD-Frauenkirche-Altar-2.jpg, At the Frauenkirche, Dresden
The Frauenkirche (, ''Church of Our Lady'') is a Lutheran church in Dresden, the capital of the German state of Saxony. Destroyed during the Allied firebombing of Dresden towards the end of World War II, the church was reconstructed between ...
File:Mellon Bay cross of nails - South Nave Bay H - National Cathedral - DC.JPG, At Washington National Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul in the City and Episcopal Diocese of Washington, commonly known as Washington National Cathedral or National Cathedral, is a cathedral of the Episcopal Church. The cathedral is located in Wa ...
, Washington, D.C.
File:The Charred Cross - Coventry Cathedral.jpg, Charred cross in Coventry Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of Saint Michael, commonly known as Coventry Cathedral, is the seat of the Bishop of Coventry and the Diocese of Coventry within the Church of England. The cathedral is located in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midla ...
File:Nagelkreuz-Würzburg.jpg, One of the four Coventry Crosses of Nails in Würzburg
Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is, after Nuremberg and Fürth, the Franconia#Towns and cities, third-largest city in Franconia located in the north of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. It sp ...
, placed in St. Kilian's Cathedral in a tomb from 1945 next to the Pietà, where the dead were laid to rest after the destruction of Würzburg in 1945[https://cesty.in/nemecko#wuerzburg]
See also
*
References
The Cross of Nails: Joining in God's mission of reconciliation Oliver Schuegraf, p. 35-52
Read our story The Community of the Cross of Nails, Coventry Cathedral
The Community of the Cross of Nails Coventry Cathedral
Our History Community of the Cross of Nails (CCN) North America
Introduction to our reconciliation ministry Coventry Cathedral
Coventry Cross of Nails at St Anne's Belfast Cathedral
New Chapel of Reconciliation and Coventry Cross of Nails Christchurch Cathedral
The Coventry Cross of Nails Frauenkirche Dresden
HMS Diamond and her crew were honoured with the Freedom of Entry to the City of Coventry Coventry Freemens Guild
The story of the Cross of Nails The Archbishop of Canterbury
The Cross of Nails from Coventry to Dresden Crosskeys, 11 December 2015
The Coventry Litany of Reconciliation
{{Christian crosses
Christian crosses
Iron sculptures in the United Kingdom
Coventry Cathedral
Nail (fastener)
1940 sculptures
Peace symbols
Aftermath of World War II in the United Kingdom
Reconciliation