Church of St. Catherine, Vilnius

The Church of St. Catherine (Lithuanian: Šv. Kotrynos bažnyčia, Polish: Kościół Św. Katarzyny) is a Roman Catholic church in Vilnius' Old Town.^[2][3][4] It was founded by the Hetman of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Voivode of Vilnius Jan Karol Chodkiewicz in 1618.^[1]

The church is a Baroque-style single-nave church with a Baroque chapel of the Divine Providence on the southwest corner. The main façade, towers and pediments have Rococo ornamentation. Inside there are 9 late Baroque style altars with sculptural Rococo decoration, from the 18th century, a pulpit and a baptistery with Baroque and Rococo sculptures and high reliefs , and a memorial plaque to J. and E. Valavičius (1769).

In 1618, the Grand Hetman of Lithuania Jan Karol Chodkiewicz (Jonas Karolis Chodkevičius) started the construction of a small church for the Benedictine nuns in Vilnius. Consecrated in 1632. In the 1660s, during the war with Russia, the church was burnt down, rebuilt in 1670-94 (a new main facade with lower towers) and consecrated in 1703. However, the Great Fire of Vilnius in 1737 did not spare the Benedictine church and monastery. After the fire, the reconstruction of the church was led by the architect Johann Christoph Glaubitz, who was contracted by the mother superior of the monastery, Joana Sibilė Reitenovaitė. He designed the church's current appearance: the towers were raised (up to 5 storeys), ornate pediments were built, vaulted ceiling was redone, and the chapel was rebuilt. 1752-53 The altar and the chapel were decorated by the artists J. Herdegen, J. Woszczyński, John and Joseph Hedel. In 1759, 15 paintings by Szymon Czechowicz were brought from Kraków to St Catherine's Church and the Benedictine monastery (surviving paintings are housed in the Lithuanian National Museum of Art). The church was severely damaged in 1812 during the French invasion of Russia and later during World War II and many valuable works of art were lost. In 1945, the remaining nuns were deported by the Soviet authorities and a warehouse was set up in the church, which later was transferred to the Vilnius Art Museum. After Lithuania regained independence the church has been under restoration and adapted for cultural activities and since 2002 it was returned to the Curia of the Vilnius Archdiocese.^[5]

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  Church of St. Catherine in the 19th century
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  Church of St. Catherine in 2007
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  Main portal with the Jagiellonian Cross
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  Main altar in 2019
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  Interior fragment in 2019
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  Rear of the church in December 2022

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