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Why did Johann Wolfgang von Goethe admire Strasbourg Cathedral?

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Johann Wolfgang von Goethe admired Strasbourg Cathedral because he viewed it as an architectural masterpiece and a profound expression of the German spirit.12

During his time in Strasbourg, Goethe was influenced by the Sturm und Drang movement, which invested Gothic architecture with "sublime and exalted" qualities, seeing it as a reflection of nature, the divine, and the infinite. Although he mistakenly believed the cathedral's Gothic style was more German than French, his enthusiasm led him to write a 16-page pamphlet titled Von deutscher Baukunst (1772; "On German Architecture"), in which he praised the building and its architect, Erwin von Steinbach. This work became a significant inspiration for future revivalists, cementing the cathedral's symbolic importance in the history of the Gothic Revival.12