Viešpaties Dangun Žengimo bažnycia / Ascension of the Lord Church - Vilnius (Lithuania) - Baroque Architecture on Waymarking.com

Church of the Ascension of the Lord (Viešpaties Dangun Žengimo bažnycia), work of the leading architect of Vilnius' Baroque era Johann Christoph Glaubitz, is one of lesser known valuable Baroque churches in Lithuanian capital.

Ascension of the Lord Church, also known as the Church of the Missionaries (Vilniaus Misionieriu bažnycia) is a part of former monastic complex (estabilished by French missionaries), which construction started in 1695 behind the Vilnius city wall next to the Subacius Gate. Due to various obstacles (lack of funds, city fire, epidemic of plague) it took 35 years, and the church was finally finished only with the financial help of the Vilius aristocracy. In the middle of the 18th century a famous Vilnius’s architect Johann Christoph Glaubitz made some amendments to the original project - church towers were built higher, pediments and a porch were added. Since then the Church is notable for its two lean five stored towers and elegant proportions. Twelve room cellars beneath the Church were used for burials. The church is embellished with numerous Baroque elements (sculptures, ornaments), however the interior is very modest in comparison to the exterior of the church. There were only seven altars inside, when at the same time the Church of St. John contained 22. The Church and the chapels are embellished with the episodes of the Saints’ lives, and the portraits of the Saints related to the missionaries’ activities. The Church and the monastery were closed by the order of the Czar authorities in 1844. The service was resumed in 1862. The Church was closed again during the Soviet times, and was returned into hands of Roman Catholic believers in 1993.