St. Michael the Archangel Church - Kaunas, Lithuania
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Torgut
N 54° 53.808 E 023° 55.278
34U E 687323 N 6087215
This church is located by the end of the most important avenue in Kaunas, the Freedom Boulevard.
Waymark Code: WMEPX7
Location: Lithuania
Date Posted: 06/24/2012
Views: 12
From Wikipedia:
St. Michael the Archangel's Church or the Garrison Church is a Roman Catholic church in the city of Kaunas, Lithuania, closing the perspective of the Laisves aleja, the main pedestrian street. It was built between 1891 and 1895 when Kaunas was part of the Russian empire, in Neo-Byzantine style largely for the use of the Russian Orthodox garrison of Kaunas Fortress.
The construction of "military" or "garrison" Orthodox churches by the Russian government in former Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth lands had started after the suppression of the January Uprising of 1831, and peaked during the reign of emperor Alexander III of Russia. Initially the site of this church had been intended to be used for a Catholic church, but these plans had been abandoned after the Uprising.
The church was designed as an Orthodox cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul in 1890 by K. H. Lymarenko; it was authorized for construction on November 10 that year. Official groundbreaking was celebrated on 29 June 1891. The cathedral was completed in four years (unusually quickly for its size), and was inaugurated on 17 September 1895. Later Lymarenko's plan was modified by David Grimm from St. Petersburg. The church's decorative scheme was outlined by Griaznov and implemented by craftsman from Vilnius. Most of the construction was carried out by workers from Chernigov Governorate, and its art-work was implemented by craftsmen from St. Petersburg.
As usual for military churches of the period, the construction of Kaunas cathedral was financed equally by the Military Ministry and by donations from army servicemen. Completion of the church finalized the administrative building complex of the Kaunas Fortress; it symbolized less the presence of Orthodox Christians than the imperial authority of the Russian government. It was also believed that the church would reduce interdenominational frictions.
After the fall of the Kaunas Fortress during World War I the Germans cut down the church bells and transported them to Germany. The church stayed closed until 1919.
In the interwar period the cathedral became a Roman Catholic church of the Lithuanian garrison of Kaunas. There were voices urging the demolition of the church as it was labeled as without architectural value.
During the Soviet occupation, it was used as an art gallery. Nowadays it serves as a Roman Catholic church. The other popular name of the church is Soboras.
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