The Trinitarian Church or Trinity Church, full name Church of Saint John of Matha and Saint Felix of Valois ( sk, Kostol trinitárov, or or ; incorrectly Holy Trinity Church (''Kostol Najsvätejšej Trojice'')), is a Baroque-style church in Bratislava's Old Town borough, on the Župné námestie square. The church was built on the site of the older Church of St. Michael, which was demolished in 1529, along with the settlement of St. Michael, during the

Ottoman wars A series of military conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and various European states took place from the Late Middle Ages up through the early 20th century. The earliest conflicts began during the Byzantine–Ottoman wars, waged in Anatolia in ...

, along with other suburbs, so as to see better the attacking Turks. The

Trinitarian Order The Trinitarians, formally known as the Order of the Most Holy Trinity and of the Captives ( la, Ordo Sanctissimae Trinitatis et Captivorum; abbreviated OSsT), is a mendicant order of the Catholic Church for men founded in Cerfroid, outside Pari ...

started construction of the church in 1717 and it was sanctified in 1727, although work in the interior continued into the first half of the 18th century.

Description

The design is thought to be copied from the St. Peter's Church in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

. The arch is dominated by a

cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, most often dome-like, tall structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome. The word derives, via Italian, fro ...

with

trompe-l'œil ''Trompe-l'œil'' ( , ; ) is an artistic term for the highly realistic optical illusion of three-dimensional space and objects on a two-dimensional surface. ''Trompe l'oeil'', which is most often associated with painting, tricks the viewer into ...

fresco from Italian Baroque painter Antonio Galli Bibiena. The massive main

altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paga ...

of the church was presumably built by A. G. Bussi. Its main work of art is an altarpiece depicting St.

John of Matha John of Matha (1160–1213) was a Christian saint of the 12th century and founder of the Order of the Most Holy Trinity, dedicated to ransoming Christians who had been captured by marauders from North Africa (cf. Barbary corsairs). Background Be ...

and St.

Felix of Valois Felix of Valois (french: Félix de Valois; April 16, 1127 – November 4, 1212) was a Cistercian hermit and a co-founder (with John of Matha) of the Trinitarian Order. Life Butler says that Felix was born in 1127. He was surnamed Valois because ...

ransoming prisoners from Turkish capture. Statues of St. Agnes and St. Catherine situated at the rear of the main altar are attributed to the Bavarian sculptor

Johann Baptist Straub Johann Baptist Straub (1 June 1704 (baptism) – 15 July 1784) was a German Rococo sculptor. Biography Straub was born in Wiesensteig, into a family of sculptors. His father Johann George Straub and his brothers Philipp Jakob, Joseph, and ...

. The rear altar of the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...

was built in 1736 on the order of the Count

Zichy Zichy is a surname. Notable people with the name include: * Mihály Zichy (1827–1906), Hungarian painter and graphic artist * Maria Anna Stubenberg Zichy (1821-1912), composer * Eleonóra Zichy (1867–1945), Hungarian noblewoman * Géza Zichy ( ...

. This altar has a copy of the Regensburg painting of the Madonna. The main portal is richly decorated in

Rococo Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...

style, celebrating the Holy Trinity.

History

At the time of the consecration of the church, a

Trinitarian The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the Fa ...

monastery was built on the site of a nearby cemetery. However, the Trinitarian Order was closed by

Joseph II Joseph II (German: Josef Benedikt Anton Michael Adam; English: ''Joseph Benedict Anthony Michael Adam''; 13 March 1741 – 20 February 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from August 1765 and sole ruler of the Habsburg lands from November 29, 1780 un ...

in 1782 and the comitatus (county) office took possession of the building. However, it did not suit its needs and was almost wholly demolished; the "County House/Building" (Slovak: ''Župný dom'', Hungarian: ''Vármegyeháza'') was built in 1844 in its place and became the administrative seat of the Pressburg county. Concerts by various composers, for example by Franz Liszt or Johannes Brahms, took place in the Great Hall of the building. From 1939 to 1994 Slovak National Councils (since 1992

National Council of the Slovak Republic The National Council of the Slovak Republic ( sk, Národná rada Slovenskej republiky), abbreviated to ''NR SR'', is the national parliament of Slovakia. It is unicameral and consists of 150 members, who are elected by universal suffrage under ...

) were housed in the building until the seat was moved into a new parliamentary building next to

Bratislava Castle Bratislava Castle ( sk, Bratislavský hrad, ; german: Pressburger Burg; hu, Pozsonyi vár) is the main castle of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. The massive rectangular building with four corner towers stands on an isolated rocky hill ...

. Some of the notable political events that took place here included Tiso's government declaration of independent Slovakia on 14 March 1939 and the passing of the independence declaration on 17 July 1992.Lacika, "Bratislava", p. 139 From 2003 to 2009, the church was the cathedral of the Military Ordinariate of Slovakia.

Notes

References

* {{Churches in Bratislava Roman Catholic cathedrals in Slovakia Roman Catholic churches in Bratislava 18th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Slovakia Churches completed in 1727 Trinitarian Order Cathedrals of military ordinariates

Description

History

See also

Notes

References