St. Michael's Church (), colloquially called Michel (), is one of Hamburg's five Lutheran main churches (Hauptkirchen) and one of the most famous churches in the city. St. Michaelis is a landmark of the city and it is considered to be one of the finest Hanseatic Protestant baroque churches. The church was purposely built Protestant unlike many other Hamburg churches which were originally built by Roman Catholics and were converted to Protestantism during the Reformation. It is dedicated to the Archangel Michael. A large bronze statue, standing above the portal of the church shows the archangel conquering the devil. The 132-meter high Baroque spire totally covered with copper is a prominent feature of Hamburg's skyline and has always been a landfall mark for ships sailing up the river Elbe. History The present church building is the third one at this site. The first one was built from 1647 to 1669. It became the church of the new town (Neustadt), which was created in 1625 inside the new city walls, and which grew steadily since. In 1687, the Michel became the fifth chapter church (Hauptkirche), as the new town (Neustadt) became a parish. That church was destroyed on March 10, 1750, by a lightning strike. The original church has been replicated and built in 9 different cities around the world. In 1786, a new construction following the design of and was completed. This is the church as we know it today. In 1802, the astronomer Johann Benzenberg attempted to confirm Earth's rotation by dropping metal balls inside the church tower and measuring their eastward deviation from the vertical. The composer and pianist Johannes Brahms was baptized on May 26, 1833 in this church and confirmed at the age of fifteen by Pastor von Ahlsen, who had married Brahms's parents. The church was reconstructed twice in the 20th century: after catching fire in 1906 during construction work and after the bombings of 1944 and 1945. After the 1906 fire, the photos of Wilhelm Weimar were used to help recreate the church. Since 1983, renovation is ongoing: first the spire and then the roof. Architecture Offering 2,500 seats, the Michel is the largest church in Hamburg. The church has a Latin cross plan with 44 m width, 52 m length and 27 m height. The clock tower is a significant feature of the city skyline and was a navigation aid for ships sailing