Cathedral of St. Peter and Paul

The Cathedral of St. Peter and Paul is one of the dominating features of the city of Brno. The origins of the church on Petrov dates back to the 1170s. In the Gothic period the church was rebuilt several times. In one of the reconstructions, around 1500, the original consecration to St. Peter was added to by the consecration to St. Paul. In 1296 a collegiate chapter was established at the church. During the Thirty Years’ War the church burnt down and was newly built in two Baroque periods, 1651-52 and 1743-46. When Pope Pius VI confirmed the establishing of the Brno diocese in 1777, the Church of St. Peter and Paul was promoted to a cathedral.

The cathedral had 21 altars at the end of the 15th century. The cathedral was damaged in the year 1643 during the Swedish siege, and was burned down. Between 1743 and 1748 the aisle was re-designed into the shape which it has today, according to the design of Mořic Grimm. The chancel was re-gothicized at the end of the 19th century. The overall reconstruction was finished by Viennese architect August Kirstein in the year 1909, when the cathedral received two towers, and other civil adjustments were implemented. Among the decorations inside the church, you cannot overlook the statue of Madonna and child which dates from around the 1300’s, a late Gothic pieta, Baroque altars and a rostrum.

Apart from the cathedral interior visitors may see the Romanesque-Gothic crypt with foundations of the original church. In the treasury room there is an exhibition of vestments, monstrances and other liturgical articles. Visitors also like to climb the cathedral steeples to have a view of the city. The diocese museum houses an interesting exhibition of Vita Christi (Christ’s life).

References:

• Brno Tourism

Address

Petrov 6, Brno, Czech Republic

Details

Founded: 1170s/1743
Category: Religious sites in Czech Republic