The Chapel of Mercy, Kevelaer, Germany

Kevelaer, a municipality in the district of Kleve, in North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. The most-visited Catholic pilgrimage location within north-western Europe, with more than 800, 000 pilgrims visiting every year to honour the Virgin Mary. The shrine of Mary, "Comforter of the Afflicted, " had its origins in the Thirty Years War (1618- 1648), which had devastated the region. In 1642, Heinrich Busman, a merchant, obtained an engraving of Mary pictured in front of the city of Luxembourg, and installed it in a shrine at the crossing of the Cologne-Amsterdam trade route. In 1654, the Chapel of Mercy (pictured on this card), a hexagonal structure, was erected to house the picture (inset top right); the image has remained in that shrine

Hexagonal Mercy Pilgrim Pilgrimage Pilgrims Shrine

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