Church of Ascension in Vilnius

About

Church of the Ascension (Lithuanian: Viešpaties Dangun Žengimo bažnyčia) is a Roman Catholic church in the Vilnius Old Town. Its construction began in 1695, but due to the lack of funding it was completed only after 35 years in 1730 and in the same year was it was consecrated as Church of the Ascension. The missionary priests arrived in the Commonwealth from France.

They primarily focused on educating the clergy. Their monastery in Vilnius was established through the foundation of the military figure from Inflanty, Teofil Plater, and his wife, Aleksandra. In 1695, the missionary priests began constructing a church dedicated to the Ascension of the Lord on the Mount of Salvation.

In 1706, the church's roof was destroyed by fire. The construction was temporarily halted in 1708 due to an invasion by the Swedish army during the Great Northern War. The completion of the large brick church was made possible by the generosity of donors supported by the founder, including the Grand Marshal of Lithuania, Antoni Nowosielski, it was from his funds that, in 1722, two towers and the facade of the church were built, among other things.

The construction continued until 1730. Neither the architect...