In autumn 1989, the St. Nicholas Church and the St. Nicholas Church Square were the central starting point of the Peaceful Revolution in the GDR.
Through the prayers for peace, which still take place every Monday at 5 pm, St. Nicholas Church became the starting point of the Peaceful Revolution in 1989 and a symbol of German reunification. The light installation "public light" at the St. Nicholas churchyard consists of 144 coloured glass cubes set into the pavement. It represents a metaphor for the active goodwill of Leipzig's citizens and reflects the process of situational flare-ups of political consciousness. The Nikolai Column, set up in front of the church and crowned with palm fronds, with its classicist column motif from inside the church, is intended as an additional reminder of those participants who were unable to find a seat in the overcrowded Nikolai Church in the autumn of 1989.