Church of Saint John- Church of St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist in Vilnius, an architectural monument of the Vilna Baroque, part of the Vilnius University ensemble. It was built in 1738-1749 according to the project of I. K. Glaubitz at the expense of T. F. Oginsky.

It is located at the intersection of Pilies (Castle Street, in Soviet times - Gorkogo Street) and Svento Jono (St. Official address: Švento Jono street, 12 (Šv. Jono g. 12).

The church and the bell tower (included in the complex of buildings of Vilnius University) are included in the Register of Cultural Property of the Republic of Lithuania (temple code 26848, bell towers - 26849), protected by the state as objects of national importance.

Story

main altar

The construction of the church began in 1387 by order of Jogaila immediately after the baptism of Lithuania (according to another version, even before the baptism in 1386). Presumably, the wooden church was erected on the old market square in the center of the then city, apparently on the site of a former pagan sanctuary. It is assumed that a stone cathedral was soon built, consecrated in 1427. The Gothic temple with three naves was repeatedly repaired and rebuilt. In the current temple, individual elements of the Gothic style have been preserved.

St Anne's Chapel

Altar fragment and statue of Gregory the Great

The building underwent the greatest changes during the restoration after the fire of 1737. According to the project of Johann Christoph Glaubitz, new vaults were brought out, organ choirs were installed, a large altar was built, the main facade and the pediment of the presbytery were decorated. Thanks to this reconstruction, the church became an outstanding piece of architecture and baroque art.

Occasionally, concerts are held and solemn ceremonies of the immatriculation of students, the presentation of diplomas of bachelors and masters, the end of the academic year, and other university celebrations take place regularly. On September 5, 1993, a meeting of the intelligentsia with Pope John Paul II took place in the church.

Farewells are held in the church for the deceased, who had outstanding achievements in the field of science and art, for example, with the journalist, writer, literary historian Jonas Bulota in June 2004, the writer Birute Pukeleviciute on September 24, 2007, the singer, actor and TV presenter Vytautas Kernagis on March 16 2008 .

Facade

main facade

The main western façade faces the University's Great Courtyard (the former name was the Skarga Courtyard). It is considered one of the most original works of late Baroque architecture. The architect Glaubitz, without violating the general Gothic character, clothed the facade in a baroque shell. Baroque features are given to the old door and window openings. The basis of the composition of the main facade is the harmonious rhythm of horizontal and vertical elements with the complication of forms from the bottom up.

The main facade is divided into four parts by wide wavy lines of a complex profile. The portal of the main entrance is decorated with two small columns supporting a decorative balcony. The lower, relatively modest tier is sparingly decorated with rustication; a magnificent portal stands out on it and tables installed later in memory of the second rector of the Jesuit Collegium Jakub Vuek and the first rector of the Vilna Jesuit Academy and University Piotr Skarga.

central portal

North facade

The decoration of the second tier of the facade is more magnificent. Three high narrow windows are placed in deep niches. Four groups of pilasters and decorative columns in the piers continue the risalits of the lower tier. Two of them continue in the third, narrower and lower tier, connected by large volutes, which gives the facade harmony and aspiration upwards. Between the columns of the third tier, there are sculptural figures of John the Baptist, John the Evangelist, St. Ignatius and St. Xavier by the sculptor Jan Gödel. In the center of the third tier there is a niche, on the side there are characteristic cochlear-shaped volutes. A niche is also placed in the upper part of the facade. The upper tier is decorated with bas-reliefs, sculptural details, an openwork cross and openwork vases made of forged metal. The two upper tiers form a dynamic contour of plastic forms.

The baroque pediment (facita) of the eastern façade of the church, which belongs to the same period, is solved in a similar way, which is best viewed from the intersection of Piles and Šv. Yono (in Soviet times, Gorky and Sruogos). Like the main façade, it is adorned with copious columns, pilasters, broken cornices, sculptures, cartouches, and metal sculptures. The wavy planes of the walls and the columns and pilasters set at an angle give the pediment even more dynamics. The side facades partly retained Gothic forms and structures.

On the outer wall of the presbytery from Zamkova Street (now Piles) there is a large marble commemorative table of the Khreptovich family, decorated in the Rococo style (). Above it was a crucifix with a gilded figure of the Savior. On the eastern facade of the church there was a large fresco depicting scenes of the plague of the year, painted over in the 19th century.

Interior

Central nave and altar

The interior retains the solemnity of a Gothic church, exacerbated by baroque splendor. The altar of the church forms an ensemble of ten altars at different levels, in different planes. The main altar is built between two massive columns, which have other altars. The main altar was built at the expense of Marshal Albert Wojciech Radziwill. Sculptures of John Chrysostom, Pope Gregory the Great, St. Anselm and St. Augustine are installed near the columns. The main altar is connected to the altars of Saint Ignatius and Saint Xavier. Behind this group, at the south wall, on a high, is the altar of Mary of Loret, surrounded by a decorative wrought iron fence with a gate. In the side northern and southern naves are located in a semicircle, repeating the shape of the apse, six more altars - St. Josaphat, St. Casimir, Christ Crucified and St. Peter and Paul, St. Nicholas and the Mother of God. The ensemble is considered a masterpiece of art that has no analogues in the world.

Oginsky Chapel

Another thirteen 18th-century Baroque altars were located at the pylons supporting the vaults. They were destroyed during the reconstruction of the interior in the twenties of the XIX century. Instead of altars on consoles, in 1826, sculptures of saints from altars destroyed during reconstruction were installed (according to other doubtful information, the statues were transferred from the former churches of St. Casimir, St. Ignatius and the Franciscan church, confiscated by the Russian authorities. 18 plaster figures were installed, two at each column in the central nave, facing one to the entrance, the other inside the temple.12 of them depict various saints John - John Nepomuk, John of Damascus, John the Baptist, John Chrysostom, John Klimak, John Capistran and others, as well as Saint Bonaventure, Ignatius Loyola, Stanislav Kostka and others.The statues belong to the second half of the 18th century.

The vaults of the central nave were painted with frescoes, painted over during the reconstruction of the 1820s. The church has preserved seven side chapels of different sizes, shapes and styles, which are decorated with sculptures, frescoes, altars, columns and pilasters. Of these, the most interesting is the Chapel of the Body of the Lord, otherwise the chapel-mausoleum of the Oginsky magnates, built in 1768. Its portal is made in the style of classicism. An elegant portal in the rococo style leads to the chapel of St. Anne.

The mechanic Bruner was instructed to dismantle the organ and organize its delivery to Vilna; sent to Polotsk in June 1835, he died there. After that, the delivery of the organ, which required additional expenses (up to 1,000 silver rubles) and related negotiations, was handled by the organ master Anthony Gurinovich. The organ was delivered in February 1836 in 84 boxes and weighed 1264 pounds (20.25 tons). From August 1837 to October 1839, organ masters Theodor Tiedemann and his sons Theodor and Franz Tiedemann were engaged in the installation and restoration of damaged parts, for which they were paid 3,000 silver rubles. The restored organ had 40 voices, or registers, and 2,438 pipes. In December 1839, the Medico-Surgical Academy donated the former organ to the chapel of the Vilna Charitable Society.

Restored after many years of work by July 2000, the current organ with 65 voices and 3600 pipes is the largest in Lithuania. On the organ choirs there is a bust of the composer Stanislav Moniuszko, who lived in Vilna in 1858 and was the organist of the church for several years (annual salary was 100 silver rubles).

Bell tower

Belfry (St. Shv. Yono)

At the end of the 16th-17th centuries, next to the church, a belfry was erected at the expense of the magistrate with a rhythmic division of tiers and the arrangement of openings, characteristic of Renaissance buildings. The cantor of the church lived in the lower floor of the bell tower. The four-tiered bell tower had three bells; in fires and wars, the bells were repeatedly damaged and destroyed, and new ones were cast instead. One was donated by Lev Sapieha after the fire of the year. During the First World War, before the German army entered Vilna, all the bells were taken out. During the restoration of the bell tower in - years, a baroque copper bell of the famous Vilna master Jan Delamars was raised, cast in the year for the church of St. Michael. Bell height 58 cm, diameter 92 cm.

The Church of St. John of Nepomuk is not only a temple and a place of pilgrimage. This is a legend about the saint in whose honor it was erected, encrypted and embodied in stone, the fruit of the ambitions of abbot Václav Veimlów and the genius of the architect Jan Blažej Santini.

Not far from the town of Zdar nad Sázavou (Žďár nad Sázavou), on the forested Green Mountain, is the Pilgrimage Church of St. John of Nepomuk (Poutní kostel Svatého Jana Nepomuckého na Zelené hoře), which is one of the most original Christian church buildings.

Temple history

The first stone was laid in 1719, and in 1722 the church was solemnly consecrated in honor of St. John of Nepomuk. The construction was financed by the Cistercian monastery (led by abbot Vaclav Veimluv), which was located in the town of Zdar nad Sazavou. This is the most famous creation of the architect Jan Blazej Santini Aichl. The church was built specifically for the veneration of St. John of Nepomuk, which determined the originality of its architecture.

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The fact is that, according to legend, when the martyr John of Nepomuk was drowned, a crown of five stars appeared over his body. That is why there are stars in the interior decoration of the church. The six-pointed ones are a symbol of Christ (Stars of Bethlehem), the five-pointed ones are a reminder of John of Nepomuk, the eight-pointed ones are one of the symbols of the Cistercian order. But there is another version that the six-pointed stars are a tribute to Veimluva and Santini's passion for Kabbalah.

Architecture and interior

The architectural solution of the church dedicated to John of Nepomuk is unusual: the church in the Baroque Gothic style has the shape of a five-pointed star. The number five is used everywhere in this church: the church has five exits, the altar has five niches, in the center there are twice five chapels.

The main altar is decorated with five angels and five stars on the globe, representing the five continents where Christianity spread. The saint is depicted standing on the globe. Three small angels are visible above his head: one holds a key in his hand, and the second a seal, a symbol of the saint's silence.

On the side altars are depicted the holy apostles-evangelists: John is depicted with an eagle, Luke with a bull, Mark with a lion and Matthew with a book. The church of St. John of Nepomuk surrounds the cemetery, which is also made in the form of a ten-pointed star.

In 1994, the Pilgrimage Church of St. John of Nepomuk on Zelena Gora was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Church opening hours

April, October: Sat-Sun 09:00-17:00;
May - September: Mon-Sun and holidays 09:00-17:00.

Entrance to the church of St. John of Nepomuk is only possible with a guide. Tour duration 45 min.

The cost of entrance tickets

Adult - 110 kroons;
with a discount (children 6-18 years old, students, pensioners) - 60 kroons.

How to get there

The Pilgrimage Church of St. John of Nepomuk on Green Mountain can be reached from the station by bus 1A, 1B, 1C, 2A, 5, 6, stop Bezručova, u pily. Then you need to walk 500 meters before turning right onto the street. Sychrova and climb it to the church. Along the way, you will have beautiful views of the city and the Convent Pond, the nearby forest and Ždiar Castle.

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The center of science and culture, business and industry in Poland is Warsaw, the capital of the state. Warsaw is the largest city in the country in terms of population, the first mention of which dates back to the 14th century. For several centuries, the most beautiful houses, palaces, sculptures and monuments were built in Warsaw, but during World War II, many of them were destroyed. But the city practically rose from the ashes: architects, restorers, builders and sculptors did a great job restoring the city from old photographs, paintings and drawings. Thanks to them, the center of Warsaw, which can be seen now, looks almost identical to how the townspeople saw it in the 16th-17th centuries.

Sightseeing in Warsaw usually begins with the most majestic symbol of historical heritage - the Royal Castle. Next to it is the Old Town, which attracts with its narrow streets and beautiful buildings located around the central Rynok Square. From the Castle Square, the tourist route called the "Royal Route" begins its journey, it stretches through the street. Krakow suburb, st. New World, st. Uyazdovskie Alleys, the Botanical Garden and leads to the most beautiful palace and park ensemble of the city - Lazienki.

The construction of the Royal Castle was carried out on the site of a wooden fortress in 1598-1618, when King Sigismund III Vasa ruled the country. On the square in front of the castle there is a monument in his honor - the column of Sigismund. In 1644 it was installed by the son of Sigismund III, King Vladislav IV. The bronze sculpture, standing on a 30-meter column, depicts a king wearing knightly armor. The king's right hand holds a sword, while the left hand rests on a large cross.

The castle received the status of an official royal residence when it was decided to move the capital of Poland from Krakow to Warsaw, and has witnessed many historical events. It was in the Royal Castle that the Constitution was adopted on May 3, 1791. Since 1918, the Presidents of Poland and temporary heads of state have worked here.

Restoration work of the Royal Castle was carried out on its surviving fragments until 1988. The architectural decoration of the castle is a magnificent clock tower, from which you can hear a melody performed by a trumpeter every day. Fortunately, during the war, many works of art were saved, which are now exhibited in the museum located in the Castle. Here you can see Rembrandt's "Scientist at the music stand" and "Girl in a hat", Jan Matejko's "Stefan Batory near Pskov" and old views of Warsaw performed by the Italian artist Bernardo Bellotto. The Royal Castle also houses an urn with the ashes of Poland's national hero Tadeusz Kosciuszko.

The main Catholic church in Warsaw is located in the Old Town - this is the Church of St. John (John) the Baptist, built in 1390. The church was erected in the brick Gothic style, and the interior decoration at the beginning of the 17th century. was decorated in the Baroque style. The temple was thoroughly destroyed by tanks entering it during the war, so in 1963 it was restored.

In the Church of St. Yana were crowned in 1705 by Stanislav Leshchinsky and in 1764 by Stanislav August Poniatowski. In addition to the ashes of the princes of Mazovia, the Polish writer, Nobel Prize winner in literature Henryk Sienkiewicz, as well as the first President of Poland Gabriel Narutowicz are also buried here. In the Church of St. Yana was preached by Piotr Skarga, General Romuald Traugutt and Tadeusz Kosciuszko prayed here, and in 1935 a memorial service for Marshal Jozef Pilsudski was held here.

Next to the Church of St. Jan there is a Jesuit church, or the Church of the Merciful Mother of God - a temple built in the style of Polish mannerism in 1609-1626. After construction, the church was constantly decorated, inside there was rich baroque furniture and altars made of marble and even silver. However, in 1944 the building was destroyed and restored already in 1950-1973. in the most approximate, but still simplified architectural style. Inside the church are stored: a wooden crucifix of 1383; restored fragments of the monument to Marshal Jan Tarlo; an icon depicting the Grace of God - a gift from Pope Innocent X, made in 1651; stone sculpture depicting a lying bear, mid-18th century. and restored epitaphs by Jan Kilinski, Matej Sarbiewski, Stanislav Konarski and Onufry Kopchinsky.

The center of the Old Town and the heart of Warsaw is Rynok Square, four sides of which are named after politicians of Poland: the northern side is Jan Dekert, the eastern side is Frantisek Bars, the western side is Hugo Callantay, and the southern side is Ignacy Zakrzewski. In 1953, a unique reconstruction of Rynok Square was completed, which was carried out according to pre-war images. Many of the houses on the Market Square have different names (for example, "Under St. Anne", "Under the Basilisk", "Under the Negro") and each of them has its own fascinating legend or story. And the main sights worth visiting in the Market (apart from many souvenir shops and cafes) are the Museum of Literature. A. Mickiewicz, Warsaw Historical Museum and the House of Culture of the Old Town.

Also on Rynok Square is a monument to the Warsaw Mermaid, designed in 1855, which is a symbol of the city and depicted on its coat of arms. On the embankment of the Vistula River there is also a second monument to the mermaid, created in 1939.

Barbican

Warsaw Barbican - a semicircular bastion designed to protect the city - was erected in 1540. It was designed by the architect from Venice, Giovanni Battista. The width of the walls of the barbican was 14 m, and the height was 15 m. Like most other buildings in the Old City, the barbican did not escape destruction during World War II. It was restored in 1952-1954. according to the surviving drawings of the XVII century. In modern Warsaw, the fortress walls and the barbican are a favorite place for tourists, street performers perform here, musicians play and artists put up their canvases for sale.

Krakow suburb

One of the most beautiful streets in Warsaw, where many of the sights of the city are located, is the Krakow Suburb. There is something to see here:

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  The church was built at the Bernardine monastery in 1454, reconstructed in 1946-1962. and is a mixture of different architectural styles: from the late Gothic to the Neo-Renaissance.



The initiator of the construction of the monument was Henryk Sienkiewicz. The monument was erected on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the poet's birth in 1898 with money raised by the poet's compatriots.

• The biggest palace

  

  Warsaw has several names: the Radziwill Palace, the Koniecpolski Palace, the Lubomirski Palace and the Viceroy's Palace. The Presidential Palace was built in the 17th century. and hardly suffered during the war. The palace has a chapel, a winter garden, and various halls: knight's, picture, blue, white, columned, hetman's and rococo halls. On the square in front of the palace there is a monument to Prince Jozef Poniatowski.

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  In the 17th century the building was the summer royal palace, and in 1816 the University of Warsaw was opened here - one of the largest and most prestigious universities in modern Poland.

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  This church with a rococo facade was built in 1728-1765. Now it is in almost unchanged condition and is one of the few sights of Warsaw that survived during the war. In 1825-1826. the great Polish composer Frederic Chopin played the organ in this church, and since 1960 the priest and poet Jan Twardowski has served as rector here.

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  The church was built in the Baroque style in 1679-1696. The relics of St. Felicissima and urns with the hearts of Frederic Chopin and Wladyslaw Reymont, a Polish writer and Nobel Prize winner in literature, are kept here. In front of the basilica is the famous statue of Jesus Christ carrying the cross.

Ujazdowski alleys, along which the most beautiful houses, villas and palaces of Warsaw are located, lead to the famous Lazienki palace and park complex, laid out on 76 hectares of land. Not far from the main entrance to the park rises the Belvedere Palace, which is now one of the residences of the President of Poland. The palace got its name from the Italian expression "belle vedere" - a beautiful view. And the view of the Royal Lazienki is really beautiful and romantic.

The park has been developing in the classical style since the 18th century, when it was acquired by King Stanislav August Poniatowski and began to develop it. The word "lazenki" means "baths, baths", and a bathing pavilion was indeed located in the park. During World War II, many buildings in the park were damaged by fires, but still better preserved than the houses in the Old City. The reconstruction of the buildings ended a few years after the end of the war. The sights of the park include the following buildings: the Palace on the Water, the Roman Theatre, the White House, the Myslevice Palace, the Temple of the Sibyl, the Egyptian Castle, the Watershed, the Old and New Orangeries.

Nowadays, Lazienki Park is a special place where you can walk, breathe fresh air, admire the beauty of nature, listen to birdsong and enjoy the contemplation of beautiful architectural masterpieces.

If you go south from Charles Square right along Vysehradska Street, you can go to the majestic building - the Church of St. John of Nepomuk. The church is rightfully considered the best creation of the architect Kilian Ignaz Dientzenhofer. Many experts in the field of architecture and art noted the successful decisions of the creator, and the church itself was recognized as the pinnacle of the Prague Baroque.

A bit of history

John of Nepomuk, whose name the church is named after, became a saint and martyr for the Czech people in the 15th century, almost immediately after a terrible death on the orders of King Wenceslas IV. John of Nepomuk was officially canonized in 1729. It was then that it was decided to rebuild a spacious church in his honor. There was no need to choose a place, since there was a cramped and small chapel near Charles Square under the name of John of Nepomuk. Instead of it, already incapable of accommodating new parishioners by that time, it was decided to build a new majestic church. The first stone was laid in 1730 and construction was completed eight years later.

Exterior

The Church of St. John of Nepomuk was built in the Baroque style. Its richly decorated façade faces Vyshegradsky Prospekt, from where it can be seen that a wide open staircase, built in 1776, leads to its main entrance. Initially, the stairs were not decorated with sculptures of saints, they were added later. The façade itself is marked by two towers, slightly turned towards each other. They are decorated with unique concave and convex stucco elements finished in marble. The height of the towers reaches 35 meters, and on their tops the domes are marked with decorative gilded crosses. In the towers, baroque spiral staircases stretch up to the bell tower.

Interior

The interior of the church is not inferior to the external beauty. In the large hall, the vaults of the church are decorated with a fresco, the plot of which is dedicated to the legend of St. John of Nepomuk. The fresco was created by the hands of the artist Karl Kovař in 1748. The main altar is interesting for the wooden statue of St. John of Nepomuk, which was made by Jan Brokoff. The statue soon became the model from which its famous bronze "sister" was created. It stands on the Charles Bridge, attracting crowds of tourists.

Captivating in its appearance, the Church of St. John of Nepomuk is an excellent example of the Prague Baroque, and its history may seem interesting for those who wish to get to know the Czech capital better.

St. John's Church is a Gothic church located in Gdansk. One of the most important monuments in the city.

The first mention of a small wooden chapel of St. Nicholas dates back to 1358. In 1360, the construction of a new three-aisled church began on the site of the former one. The work was completed at the beginning of the 15th century, but the builders left room for a tower, which was planned to be built in the future. In 1415 a new altar was created. In 1456, Bishop John MacArthur divided the city into six parishes, St. John's Church became a parish church. In 1465, St. John's Church received the vaults of the stars. In 1543 the bell tower was destroyed by fire.

In the 15th and 16th centuries, patrons financed the construction of a total of 13 altars in the church. In 1612, the most beautiful stone altar by Abraham van der Block was built, which has survived to this day.

During World War II, the church burned down. In the post-war years, St. John's Church was not included in the list of buildings in need of planned reconstruction. Most of the surviving things were transferred to the Church of St. Mary in Gdansk. The reconstruction of the facades of the church began in the late 1960s, inside the church remained in a ruined state.

In 1991, the church was transferred to the Catholic diocese, after which Sunday and holiday services began to be held here. In 1996, a thorough reconstruction of the church began: repair and strengthening of the external walls, internal work, as well as archaeological excavations. In December 2012, baroque epitaphs by Lawrence Fabritius, Johann Hutzing and Ultrich Kantzler returned to their places from St. Mary's Church.