Church of St. Francis Seraphicus / Kostel Sv. Františka Serafimského (Prague)
N 50° 05.179 E 014° 24.853
33U E 458094 N 5548392
Every day, thousands of tourists stream across Charles Bridge with barely a glance at the church on the Old Town side - a Baroque pearl in a City replete with Baroque treasures. Superbly designed, the copper-domed church dates from 1680s...
Waymark Code: WM68K3
Location: Hlavní město Praha, Czechia
Date Posted: 04/23/2009
Views: 223
The Baroque church by the Old Town Bridge Tower is the St. Francis Seraphicus Church. It belongs to the Order of the Knights of the Cross with with Red Star – the only order of the knights founded in Bohemia. It has an interesting gallery where exhibitions take place and you can attend a concert of organ music there.
Church of the Knights of the Cross with Red Star
The order was founded by St. Agnes of Bohemia in 1233. They built a Gothic church, a monastery and a hospital by the Judith Bridge, the predecessor of the present Charles Bridge. They maintained the bridge and collected customs and usage charges there. Their main activities were charitable – they took care of ill and poor people. That´s why their monastery was one of the few not destroyed by Protestant Hussites in the 15th century: Hussites appreciated their helpfulness in the society.
The original church was rebuilt in Baroque style in the 17th century. The plans were made by French architect Jean Baptiste Mathey, who was probably inspired by the St. Peter´s Cathedral in Rome. St. Francis Seraphicus Church has a large dome and a nave with a ground plan in the shape of a cross.
Underground chapel
Remains of the original Gothic church are preserved in the underground chapel, called "bottom church". It is decorated with extraordinary artificial stalactites. There are tombstones of important personalities of the order and some fragments of the former church. You can see statues of Bohemian saints on the facade of the church. The interior is interesting as well, the most important artists of the era participated on its decoration. The whole cupola is covered with a fresco painting "The Last Judgement" by Václav V. Reiner.