THE ENSEMBLE OF
ST. ANNE’S CHURCH AND THE BERNARDINE MONASTERY
Vilnius, LITHUANIA
St. Anne's Church, along with
the neighbouring Bernardine Church, comprises the most famous gothic ensemble
in Lithuania.
St. Anne's Church is one of
the city’s most famous landmarks. It is
one of the most beautiful and probably the most famous buildings in Vilnius.
This is a late Gothic masterpiece, distinguished by its unique architecture and
composition.
St. Anne’s has a history that
starts with the alleged construction in the 14th century of a wooden house of
worship on this spot in honour of Ona, wife of Vytautas the Great. The
first historical records of a church here date from 1394, but the current
Gothic masterpiece is believed to have been built between 1495 and 1500 to a
design by the Bohemian architect Benedikt Rejt (1453-1534), who is most
famous for designing parts of Prague Castle.
Bernardine Church and
Monastery are some of the largest and most magnificent gothic sacral buildings
in Vilnius, although in the 17th and 18th centuries they
acquired the Renaissance and Baroque features. They are opposite to St. Anne's
Church: they have different style, and are much larger and more spacious.
