St. Charles Borromeo Church (Dutch: ''Sint-Carolus Borromeuskerk'') is a
church
Church may refer to:
Religion
* Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities
* Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination
* Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship
* C ...
in central Antwerp, located on the Hendrik Conscience square. It was built in 1615-1621 as the Jesuit church of Antwerp, which was closed in 1773. It was rededicated in 1779 to Saint
Charles Borromeo
Charles Borromeo ( it, Carlo Borromeo; la, Carolus Borromeus; 2 October 1538 – 3 November 1584) was the Archbishop of Milan from 1564 to 1584 and a cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was a leading figure of the Counter-Reformation combat ...
. The church was formerly known for 39 ceiling pieces by Rubens that were lost in a fire when lightning struck the church on 18 July 1718.
History
The church was inspired by the
Church of the Gesu
Church may refer to:
Religion
* Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities
* Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination
* Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship
* Chris ...
, the
mother church
Mother church or matrice is a term depicting the Christian Church as a mother in her functions of nourishing and protecting the believer. It may also refer to the primary church of a Christian denomination or diocese, i.e. a cathedral or a metropo ...
of the
Society of Jesus
, image = Ihs-logo.svg
, image_size = 175px
, caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits
, abbreviation = SJ
, nickname = Jesuits
, formation =
, founders ...
, a
Roman Catholic religious order
In the Catholic Church, a religious order is a community of consecrated life with members that profess solemn vows. They are classed as a type of religious institute.
Subcategories of religious orders are:
* canons regular (canons and canoness ...
Erasmus II Schetz
Erasmus II Schetz sometimes Scets died 1550 was a Flemish nobleman.
Lord of Grobbendonk
He was born as son of Conrad I Schetz who married in 1485 to Maria Crans di Roscara, daughter of Mathieu Roscara. He lived in Maastricht, and came to Antwer ...
.
It was the first church in the world to be dedicated to the Jesuit founder,
Ignatius Loyola
Ignatius of Loyola, S.J. (born Íñigo López de Oñaz y Loyola; eu, Ignazio Loiolakoa; es, Ignacio de Loyola; la, Ignatius de Loyola; – 31 July 1556), venerated as Saint Ignatius of Loyola, was a Spanish Catholic priest and theologian, ...
.
In 1617-1618 Rubens painted two altarpieces. He was also commissioned to paint the ceiling pieces, for which he made the designs while the execution was done mostly by pupils, including Anthony van Dyck.Rubens: A Genius at Work : the Works of Peter Paul Rubens in the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium reconsidered. by Joost Vander Auwera, Sabine van Sprang, Véronique Bücken, Arnout Balis, Nora De Poorter, Nico van Hout, Christine Van Mulders, Michèle Van Kalck and by members of the Rubens project team (Hélène Dubois, Natasja Peeters, Bert Schepers and Tine Meganck). A contract was drawn up in 1620 by Jacobus Tirinus and the paintings were delivered a year later in time for the consecration. Rubens received 7,000 guilders for his works in the church, and though the lavish decorations including sculptures and other artwork were well received, Tirinus was dismissed in 1625 for going beyond his budget.
In 1718 the vault of the nave, including Rubens' ceiling paintings, was destroyed by fire.
Jan Pieter van Baurscheidt the Elder
Jan Peter van Baurscheit the Elder (1669–1728) was a sculptor from the Southern Netherlands.
Elder was born in Wormersdorf as the son of the mayor there, and moved to Antwerp, where he first apprenticed to the nephew of Pieter Verbrugghen the ...
restored the damaged parts according to the original plan, but replaced the original coffers with wide transverse arches. In 1773 the Society of Jesus was suppressed and the building was confiscated. It reopened in 1779, renamed St.-Carolus Borromeuskerk, after
Charles Borromeo
Charles Borromeo ( it, Carlo Borromeo; la, Carolus Borromeus; 2 October 1538 – 3 November 1584) was the Archbishop of Milan from 1564 to 1584 and a cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was a leading figure of the Counter-Reformation combat ...
.
Since 1803 the St.-Carolus Borromeuskerk has been in use as a parish church. During the Dutch reign preceding Belgium's independence in 1830 the baroque interior was sobered to make it a Protestant church.
A restoration campaign in the 1980s brought back the churches baroque splendor. Besides works by Rubens the interior displays paintings by
Daniel Seghers
Daniël Seghers or Daniel Seghers (3 December 1590 – 2 November 1661) was a Flemish Jesuit brother and Flemish Baroque painter, painter who specialized in flower still lifes. He is particularly well known for his contributions to the genre of ...
, and
Cornelis Schut
Cornelis Schut (13 May 1597 – 29 April 1655) was a Flemish painter, draughtsman, engraver and tapestry designer who specialized in religious and mythological scenes. Presumed to have trained under Rubens, he treated Counter-Reformation ...
File:Sebastiaan Vrancx 001.jpg, Painting of the interior by
Sebastiaen Vrancx
Sebastiaen Vrancx, Sebastiaan Vrancx or Sebastian Vranckx (; 22 January 1573 – 19 May 1647) was a Flemish Baroque painter, draughtsman and designer of prints who is mainly known for his battle scenes, a genre that he pioneered in Netherlandish ...
, c. 1630
File:Hieronymus Janssens and Willem von Ehrenberg - Interior of the Saint Carolus-Borromeus Church in Antwerp.jpg, Painting of the interior by
Hieronymus Janssens
Hieronymus Janssens or Jeroom Janssens (nicknamed ''Den danser'') (1624, Antwerp – 1693, Antwerp) was a Flemish genre painter known for his compositions depicting elegant companies engaging in dance, music or play, which were of influence on t ...
and
Wilhelm Schubert van Ehrenberg
Wilhelm Schubert van Ehrenberg or Willem Schubart van Ehrenberg (also: Wilhem Schubert von Ehrenberg or Wilhem Schubert van Ehrenberg ( Antwerp, 1630 or 1637– Antwerp, c. 1676) was a Flemish painter mainly active in Antwerp who specialized i ...
, c. 1660
File:Anton Gunther Gheringh - Façade of the Jesuit Church, Antwerp.jpg, Painting of the façade by Anton Gunther Ghering, c. 1665
File:Jacobus Balthasar Peeters - Interior of the Jesuit Church in Antwerp1.jpg, Interior of the church showing the state before the fire by Jacob Balthasar Peeters, 1721
File:Jacobus Balthasar Peeters - Interior of the Jesuit Church in Antwerp2.jpg, Interior of the church showing the state before the fire by Jacob Balthasar Peeters, 1721
File:Interieur Carolus Borromeuskerk.jpg, Church interior
See also
*
List of Jesuit sites
This list includes past and present buildings, facilities and institutions associated with the Society of Jesus. In each country, sites are listed in chronological order of start of Jesuit association.
Nearly all these sites have bee ...
*
List of Catholic churches in Belgium
This is a list of Catholic churches in Belgium.
Cathedrals
See: List of Catholic cathedrals in Belgium
*Cathedral of Our Lady (Antwerp)
* St. Salvator's Cathedral, Bruges
* Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula, Brussels
*St Bavo's Cathedral ...