Santi Pietro e Paolo dei Greci ( el, Άγιοι Πέτρος και Παύλος των Ελλήνων, Ágioi Pétros kai Pávlos ton Ellínon, Saints Peter and Paul of the Greeks) is a church at the ''

Campania Campania (, also , , , ) is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islands and the i ...

'', the historic center of Naples, in Via San Tommaso d'Aquino 51. It was the center of the Scuola dei Greci in Naples and the Confraternity of the Greeks in Naples. Around this period there was a similar church in Venice called

San Giorgio dei Greci San Giorgio dei Greci ( el, Ἅγιος Γεώργιος τῶν Ἑλλήνων, ´Agios Geórgios ton Ellínon, Saint George of the Greeks) is a church in the ''sestiere'' (neighborhood) of Castello, Venice, northern Italy. It was the center of ...

. There was also a Greek Brotherhood of Venice. A prominent member of the Greek Brotherhood was famous painter Belisario Corenzio. The church was initially dedicated to the Twelve Apostles. They began building the church at the request of one of the descendants of the Byzantine Empire

Thomas Asen Palaiologos Thomas Asen Palaiologos ( la, Thomas Assanus Paleologus, gr, Θωμάς Ασάνης Παλαιολόγος; 15th century–1523?) was a prominent Byzantine exile in the Kingdom of Naples in the early 16th century. A descendant of two imperial d ...

. The church currently belongs to the Greek State.

History

The initial structure was dedicated to the Twelve Apostles, the church was built in 1518 at the behest of the Knight

, a descendant of the last Byzantine imperial dynasty. The church officiated the liturgy for exiled populations of

Epirus sq, Epiri rup, Epiru , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Historical region , image_map = Epirus antiquus tabula.jpg , map_alt = , map_caption = Map of ancient Epirus by Heinri ...

and the

Morea The Morea ( el, Μορέας or ) was the name of the Peloponnese peninsula in southern Greece during the Middle Ages and the early modern period. The name was used for the Byzantine province known as the Despotate of the Morea, by the Ottom ...

. The institution followed the Byzantine Rite. After the

Battle of Lepanto The Battle of Lepanto was a naval engagement that took place on 7 October 1571 when a fleet of the Holy League, a coalition of Catholic states (comprising Spain and its Italian territories, several independent Italian states, and the Soverei ...

in 1571, the church served one of the largest Greek communities on Italian soil. Thomas Asen Palaiologos sponsored the building of the church and he also founded a chapel within the Roman Catholic church of San Giovanni Maggiore, Naples. In 1544, the Church of the Twelve Apostles was dedicated to the Greek Orthodox faith and the Byzantine Rite. By 1617, there was not enough room for the parishioners. The famous Greek painter Belisario Corenzio was a member of the church confraternity and painted frescoes for it. During Corenzio's time, an academy for Greek girls was added to the church. In 1634, the church was re-dedicated to Saints Peter and Paul. According to the Neapolitan historian Vincenzo Meola, Corenzio had the merit of transferring the church from its "native obscurity to its nobility". Famous Italian painter

Paolo de Matteis Paolo de Matteis (also known as ''Paolo de' Matteis''; 9 February 1662 – 26 January 1728) was an Italian painter. Biography He was born in Piano Vetrale, a hamlet of Orria, in the current Province of Salerno, and died in Naples. He trained wit ...

also completed some work for the church. Towards the end of the 18th century, another famous Greek painter,

Efstathios Karousos Efstathios Karousos ( el, Ευστάθιος Καρούσος; 1735/38 – 1818) also known as Eustathios Karousos, Efstathio Karousou ( el, Ευστάθιο Καρουσου, Eustacchio Caruso and Eustachio Caruso. He was a Greek painter and ...

, completed more artwork for the church. He painted different themes that brought fusions of the Heptanese School and Neopolitan painting. Thirty-eight of his works have survived in the church. During the period from 1656 to 1721, the Greek Church and Confraternity engaged in a hard struggle to preserve their unique identity and the Greek character of the institution and the Eastern dogma. During the early 19th century the church was forbidden from following the Greek Orthodox rituals or the Greek Rite.

Greek Catholic The term Greek Catholic Church can refer to a number of Eastern Catholic Churches following the Byzantine (Greek) liturgy, considered collectively or individually. The terms Greek Catholic, Greek Catholic church or Byzantine Catholic, Byzantine Ca ...

priests were instituted. For half a century the church was not permitted to follow the Greek rite and Greek Orthodox rituals. By May 1866, the court of Naples returned the Church to the Orthodox Greeks and the Byzantine Rite. Archimandrite N. Katramis worked hard to restore the ancient status. By the end of the 19th century the church became the property of the Greek state and the Greek Orthodox Church. In October 2007, the church received the visit of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew.

Gallery

References

{{reflist Religious buildings and structures completed in 1544 Churches in Naples 16th-century Eastern Orthodox church buildings Greek Orthodox cathedrals in Europe Cathedrals in Italy Greek Orthodox churches in Italy Establishments in the Kingdom of Naples