Church of St. Gertrude, Kaunas
Encyclopedia
Church of St. Gertrude is located in the Old Town of Kaunas
and is one of the oldest Brick Gothic
churches in Lithuania
. Located just off Laisvės alėja
(Freedom Avenue), the church is somewhat hidden away and can be accessed from Laisves aleja through a gate at a hotel which is located nearby the Court building on Laisves aleja.
The exact date when the church was built is unknown, but it must have been in the 15th century. In 1503 Grand Duke of Lithuania Alexander
designated the church as a parish
church of Kaunas. In the middle of the 16th century a bell tower was attached. The church was damaged in 1655 during the Russo-Polish War (1654–1667)
. It was rebuilt only around 1680. Around 1750 a wooden hospital was attached to the church. In 1782 it was abandoned for a long time, and at the time there were 5 monks from order of St. Roch
residing. In 1796 the church was renovated, organs installed, and living quarters for a parson
established. The church was consecrated in 1794.
In 1812 Kaunas suffered from a major fire, which also damaged the church. The hospital was abandoned, and in 1824 transferred to the sister order of Caritas. The monastery was closed in 1864 after the January Uprising
. The old hospital was demolished in 1880. In 1921 the church was assigned to the Marianites of Holy Cross
and a monastery was built nearby. In 1920 the church was daubed. In 1992 a complex renovation of the church and monastery took place. Since 1991 the Mass is held in the church again, and the Marianites monastery has been returned to the monks.
Kaunas
Kaunas is the second-largest city in Lithuania and has historically been a leading centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the biggest city and the center of a powiat in Trakai Voivodeship of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since 1413. During Russian Empire occupation...
and is one of the oldest Brick Gothic
Brick Gothic
Brick Gothic is a specific style of Gothic architecture common in Northern Europe, especially in Northern Germany and the regions around the Baltic Sea that do not have natural rock resources. The buildings are essentially built from bricks...
churches in Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
. Located just off Laisvės alėja
Laisves aleja
Laisvės Alėja is a prominent pedestrian street in the city of Kaunas, Lithuania. It stretches between the St. Michael the Archangel's Byzantine style church to the Central Post Office and Tadas Ivanauskas Zoological Museum around the Kaunas Old Town, the oldest section of Kaunas...
(Freedom Avenue), the church is somewhat hidden away and can be accessed from Laisves aleja through a gate at a hotel which is located nearby the Court building on Laisves aleja.
The exact date when the church was built is unknown, but it must have been in the 15th century. In 1503 Grand Duke of Lithuania Alexander
Alexander Jagiellon
Alexander of the House of Jagiellon was the Grand Duke of Lithuania and later also King of Poland. He was the fourth son of Casimir IV Jagiellon...
designated the church as a parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
church of Kaunas. In the middle of the 16th century a bell tower was attached. The church was damaged in 1655 during the Russo-Polish War (1654–1667)
Russo-Polish War (1654–1667)
The Russo-Polish War of 1654–1667, also called Thirteen Years' War, First Northern War, War for Ukraine was the last major conflict between Tsardom of Russia and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Between 1655 and 1660, the Second Northern War was also fought in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth,...
. It was rebuilt only around 1680. Around 1750 a wooden hospital was attached to the church. In 1782 it was abandoned for a long time, and at the time there were 5 monks from order of St. Roch
Roch
Saint Roch or Rocco ; lived c.1348 - 15/16 August 1376/79 was a Christian saint, a confessor whose death is commemorated on 16 August; he is specially invoked against the plague...
residing. In 1796 the church was renovated, organs installed, and living quarters for a parson
Parson
In the pre-Reformation church, a parson was the priest of an independent parish church, that is, a parish church not under the control of a larger ecclesiastical or monastic organization...
established. The church was consecrated in 1794.
In 1812 Kaunas suffered from a major fire, which also damaged the church. The hospital was abandoned, and in 1824 transferred to the sister order of Caritas. The monastery was closed in 1864 after the January Uprising
January Uprising
The January Uprising was an uprising in the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth against the Russian Empire...
. The old hospital was demolished in 1880. In 1921 the church was assigned to the Marianites of Holy Cross
Marianites of Holy Cross
The Marianites of Holy Cross is a Roman Catholic congregation of nuns, founded in Le Mans, France, in 1841, by the Blessed Father Basil Anthony-Marie Moreau, CSC...
and a monastery was built nearby. In 1920 the church was daubed. In 1992 a complex renovation of the church and monastery took place. Since 1991 the Mass is held in the church again, and the Marianites monastery has been returned to the monks.