St. Bartholomew's Church () — referred to by locals as the Old Church (, which gave its name to a nearby Ljubljana city bus stop) — is a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

chapel of ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church architecture, church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently, generally due to trav ...

and one of the oldest church buildings in

Ljubljana {{Infobox settlement , name = Ljubljana , official_name = , settlement_type = Capital city , image_skyline = {{multiple image , border = infobox , perrow = 1/2/2/1 , total_widt ...

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

History

The church was first mentioned in 1370, when representatives of the

Doge of Venice The Doge of Venice ( ) – in Italian, was the doge or highest role of authority within the Republic of Venice (697–1797). The word derives from the Latin , meaning 'leader', and Venetian Italian dialect for 'duke', highest official of the ...

and Leopold III and Albert III of

Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...

concluded a peace treaty in front of it on 30 October 1370, in which the Austrians agreed to return the city of

Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...

for the compensation of 75,000 florins. In 1526, its valuables were donated to a fund for improving the city's defenses against Turkish attacks. At the end of the 15th century and beginning of the 16th, it was a venue of

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

liturgy, but during the Slovene

Counter-Reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also sometimes called the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to, and as an alternative to or from similar insights as, the Protestant Reformations at the time. It w ...

in 1618, it was reclaimed as a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

church. In 1825, it was damaged by fire and restored several times.

Architecture

Some elements of the original Romanesque church have been preserved, among them the portal on the northern side. Between 1933 and 1936, the church was redesigned according to plans by

Jože Plečnik Jože Plečnik () (23 January 1872 – 7 January 1957) was a Slovenian architect who had a major impact on the modern architecture of Vienna, Prague and of Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, most notably by designing the iconic Triple Bridge a ...

, and in 2009 it was added to the Slovenian Cultural Heritage List as a cultural monument of national significance under the number 2000.

Events

On the Sunday nearest to St. Bartholomew's Day (24 August)—known as Mosquito Sunday—stalls selling gingerbread, pottery, and basketry and other wickerwork line the main road here. Parades and celebrations, which attracted hundreds of people, were also once held beside this church.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Bartholomew's Church, Ljubljana Roman Catholic churches in Ljubljana 14th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Slovenia Jože Plečnik buildings Stone churches