St Peter's Church (, ) is a 19th-century church of the

Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church The Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church (EELC; Estonian: ''Eesti Evangeelne Luterlik Kirik'', abbreviated EELK) is a Lutheran church in Estonia. The EELC is member of the Lutheran World Federation and belongs to the Community of Protestant Ch ...

located in

Tartu Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 97,759 (as of 2024). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of Riga, Latvia. Tartu lies on the Emajõgi river, which connects the ...

, Estonia.

St Peter's Parish

The parish separated from St Mary's parish on 27 October 1869. The congregation used St. John's Church until the new church was built.

Church building

The cornerstone of St Peter's Church was laid on 31 May 1883. The

Neo-Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...

church was built between 1883 and 1884 on a design by architect Viktor Schröter. It was consecrated on 16 September 1884, and finally completed in 1903, when the church's western tower was completed, a design by

Georg Hellat Georg Hellat (3 March 1870, Puka, Governorate of Livonia – 28 August 1943, Tallinn, Generalbezirk Estland) was an Estonian architect. His best-known masterpiece is the building of the Estonian Students' Society in Tartu Tartu is the secon ...

. The cost of building the church was 110,000 rubles, and most of the money was raised through donations.

Interior

The interior of the church is also predominantly Neo-Gothic. The interior features a remarkable

altarpiece An altarpiece is a painting or sculpture, including relief, of religious subject matter made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting or sculpture, ...

dating from 1900, the work of Gustav Beermann; an altar painting titled ''Kutsuv Kristus'' (The Calling Christ) dating from 1897, the work of

Johann Köler Johann Köler (8 March 1826 – 22 April 1899) was a leader of the Estonian national awakening and a painter. He is considered as the first professional painter of the emerging nation. He distinguished himself primarily by his portraiture and to ...

; the paintings ''Ketsemani aed'' (The Garden of Gethsemane) and ''Colgata'' (Calvary) for the wing decorations of the altar dating from 1925, the work of Arnold Vihvelin; and an organ with 22 pipes made in 1891 by Wilhelm Müllverstedt.Historical Overview
St Peter's Church, retrieved 19 August 2019

Soviet times

In 1948, after St Mary's parish lost their church property, St Peter's was also used by St Mary's congregation as their parish church, which remained in place until 1997. Church membership also declined drastically by the 1980s due to the Soviet state's repression of Christianity, from 22,378 in 1912 to 483 in 1985. Membership started to increase again during the late 1980 and early 1990s, in the last few years of the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

, however.

References

Gallery

Tartu asv2022-04 img57 StPeter Church.jpg, Church tower Tartu asv2022-04 img56 StPeter Church.jpg, Window detail Tartu asv2022-04 img60 StPeter Church.jpg, Interior view Tartu asv2022-04 img59 StPeter Church.jpg, Organ Tartu asv2022-04 img58 StPeter Church.jpg, Altar Tartu Peetri kirik 2012.jpg, The church in 2012 {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Peter's Church, Tartu Gothic Revival church buildings in Estonia Religious organizations established in 1869 Churches completed in 1884 Lutheran churches in Estonia Churches in Tartu