Church of Saint Ignatius of Loyola in Jihlava

Church of St. Ignatius of Loyola in Jihlava is an early Baroque Roman Catholic church standing at the edge of the town's main square. Once the church of the local Jesuit community, it now serves as a filial church of the St. James parish.

How did the Jesuits end up building it?

The Jesuits settled in Jihlava in 1625, but for decades they had no church of their own. Short on money - a situation made worse by the Swedish occupation of the town - they held services in a converted inn on Hluboká Street that belonged to a burgher named Samuel Štubik. By around 1670 that makeshift building had deteriorated so badly that using it for worship was no longer practical, pushing the order to plan a proper stone church.

When was the current building constructed?

The foundation stone was ceremonially laid on 31 July 1681, with actual construction starting in 1683. The design and site supervision were entrusted to an Italian builder, Jacopo Brascho, who financed the foundations of the chancel and sacristy himself. Much of the overall cost was covered by Petr Šmilauer, a Jihlava physician and burgher. The first mass in the finished church took place on 31 July 1689 - the feast day of its patron, St. Ignatius of Loyola - though the building was not formally consecrated until 1740.

What does the church look like inside and out?

It is a single-nave building with a monumental facade and three pairs of side chapels flanking the nave, closed off by a flat chancel wall. Inside, a ceiling fresco painted in 1717 by Karel Töpper has survived, along with an illusionistic high altar produced in the workshop of Adam Lauterer together with Josef Kramolín and František Moldinger; its painted architecture visually extends the depth of the chancel. The church forms part of a large former Jesuit college complex, built in stages on the site of 23 older burgher houses right at the edge of Jihlava's main square.

Where exactly is it located?

The church stands in the historic centre of Jihlava, in the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic, at coordinates 49.3966444, 15.5909417 - just a short walk from the main square, making it an easy stop while exploring downtown Jihlava.

Frequently asked questions

Is it still a Jesuit church? No - after the Jesuit order was dissolved, the church lost its original status and today operates as a filial church of the St. James parish in Jihlava.

When was it built? Construction ran from 1683 to 1689, and the church was formally consecrated in 1740.

What's worth seeing inside? Mainly the 1717 ceiling fresco and the illusionistic high altar, painted to make the chancel look deeper than it is.

Where does the church's name come from? It is named after St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Jesuit order that built it.