Church of Saint John the Baptist, Kamai, Belarus

Church of Saint John the Baptist is one of the fortified churches of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania. It was founded in 1603 by Jan Rudomin Dusicki and Jan Hajecki. The name of the architect is unknown. Construction took three years so in 1606 the church was opened and was active since then. In 1643 a hospital was founded by the church for the dwellers of the village and nearby area.

During the war against Russia the church was burnt down by the Russian army, but rebuilt soon afterwards. In the Great Northern War the church got under cannon fire from the Sweden army and was damaged again. During the reconstruction of the building cannonballs were planted inside the walls as a tribute to the tragic war events. In 1778 a chapel and a crypt were built by the southern side of the church.

The church was active even in Soviet times, which is a rare case as communists persecuted religion and closed or even ruined many churches around the country. In 2010-2011 the church underwent a planned repair.

Architecture

The church is a beautiful example of the defensive Gothic architecture once popular in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Only a limited number of fortified churches survived until now so it has a great historical and architectural value. Later Renaissance elements were added.

The church was initially built in a symmetrical way with three naves supported by four columns. After the church was damaged for the first time, the columns were removed and the church became a single-nave. Dimensionally it is close to the square and has an apse and a sacristy. The facade is flanked by two cylindrical towers with rounded embrasures. Both towers are sixteen meters tall and five meters in diameter with the walls over two meters in thickness.

The outer side of the church is almost free from the decorative elements except for four niches on the upper frontside.

There is an old cross near the church. It was installed about 15th-16th century. The cross is two and a half meters high and was carved of a single granite stone.

References:

Wikipedia

Religious sites in Belarus

Address

улица Гагарина, Kamai, Belarus

See all sites in Kamai

Details

Founded: 1603
Category: Religious sites in Belarus

Rating

4.8/5 (based on Google user reviews)

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User Reviews

Инна Шамина (4 years ago)
A defensive Catholic church in Kamai, built in 1603, austere Renaissance, without decorations on the outside, but smart on the inside. The ancient organ, the painting "Jesus and the Orphan" by Romer, the old altar, beautiful icons and paintings - and in the basement with a vaulted ceiling there is a crypt with partially preserved burials. You can climb the tower up the steep, squeaky wooden steps made of natural oak - lovers of romantic antiquity have something to see! Near the temple, among the greenery, there is an ancient stone cross with a memorial sign - also an interesting artifact.

Pavlo K (4 years ago)
An interesting 400-year-old temple of the defensive type. One of the oldest in Belarus. In front of the temple is a stone cross, which is even older - it is over 500 years old

Сергей Васильев (5 years ago)
Very beautiful church.

Елена Тумилович (5 years ago)
I was lucky to meet the priest! Very interesting person, listened to him with admiration. He gave us a tour of the whole church.

Petr Kacherha (5 years ago)
A very beautiful church, early 1600, both inside and outside, from the outside it somewhat resembles a church with loopholes in Synkovichi (1407). An organ has been installed inside since 1906. The church is functioning, but very often the gates are closed and you cannot get inside

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Church of Saint John the Baptist