L'Eglise Saint Etienne

The parish church dedicated to St. Stephen stands on a promontory overlooking the lower Rhine valley. It is almost certain that it occupied a strategic position, both for the Celts and the Romans. A Roman deity (Vulcan), found in this place, is still embedded in the outer wall of the northern chapel.
Seltz was part of the Holy Roman Empire and had the special status of an abbey founded by Empress Adelaide in the 10th century. This church replaced the first one, built in the plain on the banks of the Sauer, which had just been washed away by a flood. In 1357, the Emperor raised Seltz to the level of an Imperial City.
On April 18, 1674, the King's dragoons set fire to the church. However, the outer walls remained standing, allowing a restoration in 1683.
A new pulpit and high altar in the Baroque style were installed around 1709. A new belfry was built on the north side outside the nave. It was given an onion bulb roof, which was characteristic of the time In 1898, it was demolished and replaced by a neo-Gothic bell tower (62m) placed in the axis of the nave, which was extended by one bay The height of the bell tower was fatal. On 28 May 1940, a German army hit caused it to collapse onto the nave. The roofs of the nave and the aisles, the organs and the pulpit were completely burnt. Only the side altars and the choir were spared.
A temporary place of worship was built near the present bridge over the Seltzbach, which in turn was damaged by shells. Reconstruction work began in 1953
On June 21, 1964, the church received its final consecration. In September 1968 Schwenkedel installed a new organ. It replaced the one built by Stiehr-Mockers (famous organ builders from Seltz) which had been destroyed in 1940
In 2006, the DRAC (Direction régionale Arts et Culture) listed the entire building as a historical monument