The Church of Saint John the Baptist ( be, Касьцёл Сьвятога Яна Хрысьціцеля) is a Catholic parish church in the village Kamai in the

Pastavy District Pastavy District is a second-level administrative subdivision (raion) of Belarus in the Vitebsk Region. The center is the town of Pastavy Pastavy ( be, Паставы, lt, Pastovys, russian: Поставы, pl, Postawy) is a city in the Vit ...

Vitebsk Region Vitebsk Region or Vitebsk Oblast or Viciebsk Voblasts ( be, Ві́цебская во́бласць, ''Viciebskaja voblasć'', ; rus, Ви́тебская о́бласть, Vitebskaya oblast, ˈvʲitʲɪpskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ) is a region (oblast ...

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...

. The church is one of the fortified churches of the former

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria. The state was founded by Li ...

History

The church in Kamai was founded in 1603 by Jan Rudomin Dusicki and Jan Hajecki. The name of the architect is unknown. Construction took three years so in 1606 the church was opened and was active since then. In 1643 a hospital was founded by the church for the dwellers of the village and nearby area. During the

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

against Russia the church was burnt down by the Russian army, but rebuilt soon afterwards. In the

Great Northern War The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swedi ...

the church got under cannon fire from the Sweden army and was damaged again. During the reconstruction of the building cannonballs were planted inside the walls as a tribute to the tragic war events. In 1778 a

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

and a

crypt A crypt (from Latin ''crypta'' "vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, sarcophagi, or religious relics. Originally, crypts were typically found below the main apse of a chur ...

were built by the southern side of the church. The church was active even in

Soviet times The history of Soviet Russia and the Soviet Union (USSR) reflects a period of change for both Russia and the world. Though the terms "Soviet Russia" and "Soviet Union" often are synonymous in everyday speech (either acknowledging the dominance ...

, which is a rare case as communists persecuted religion and closed or even ruined many churches around the country. In 2010-2011 the church underwent a planned repair.

Architecture

The church is a beautiful example of the defensive

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

architecture once popular in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Only a limited number of fortified churches survived until now so it has a great historical and architectural value. Later

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

elements were added. The church was initially built in a symmetrical way with three naves supported by four columns. After the church was damaged for the first time, the columns were removed and the church became a single-nave. Dimensionally it is close to the square and has an apse and a sacristy. The facade is flanked by two cylindrical towers with rounded embrasures. Both towers are sixteen meters tall and five meters in diameter with the walls over two meters in thickness. The outer side of the church is almost free from the decorative elements except for four niches on the upper frontside. There is an old cross near the church. It was installed about 15th-16th century. The cross is two and a half meters high and was carved of a single granite stone.

World Heritage Status

This site was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List on January 30, 2004, in the Cultural category.Edifices for Worship of Fortress Type in Belarus, Poland and Lithuania - UNESCO World Heritage Centre
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Gallery

Image:Касьцёл Сьвятога Яна Хрысьцiцеля, в. Камаі, foto by futureal.jpg, Frontside Image:Kamaji, kaścioł.jpg, Backside Image:Каменны крыж. в. Камаі, foto by futureal.jpg, Cross near the church Image:Касьцёл Сьвятога Яна Хрысьцiцеля inside, foto by futureal.jpg, Inside Image:Organ in Church of Saint John the Baptist in Kamai, Belarus.jpg, Pipe Organ Image:Касьцёл Сьвятога Яна Хрысьцiцеля каляды 1.JPG, Christmas Eve

References

External links

{{Catholic Church in Belarus Roman Catholic churches in Belarus Churches in Belarus Landmarks in Belarus Fortified church buildings Buildings and structures in Vitebsk Region Brick Gothic Gothic architecture in Belarus Churches completed in 1603 17th-century Roman Catholic church buildings 17th-century churches in Belarus