A fortified church is a church that is built to serve a defensive role in times of war. Such churches were specially designed to incorporate military features, such as thick walls,

battlement A battlement, in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at intervals ...

s, and

embrasure An embrasure (or crenel or crenelle; sometimes called gunhole in the domain of Age of Gunpowder, gunpowder-era architecture) is the opening in a battlement between two raised solid portions (merlons). Alternatively, an embrasure can be a sp ...

s. Others, such as the Ávila Cathedral were incorporated into the town wall. Monastic communities, such as Solovki Monastery, are often surrounded by a wall, and some churches, such as St. Arbogast in

Muttenz Muttenz is a municipality with a population of approximately 17,000 in the canton of Basel-Country in Switzerland. It is located in the district of Arlesheim and next to the city of Basel. History Under the Roman Empire a hamlet called Montet ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

, have an outer wall as well. Churches with additional external defences such as curtain walls and wall towers are often referred to more specifically as fortress churches or ''Kirchenburgen'' (literally "church castles"). Most fortified churches date back to time periods in Europe that were plagued by frequent conflict, for example ones in the

Dordogne Dordogne ( , or ; ; ) is a large rural departments of France, department in south west France, with its Prefectures in France, prefecture in Périgueux. Located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region roughly half-way between the Loire Valley and ...

region of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, fought over by

and

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

in medieval times, and in

Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...

, during the Ottoman invasions. Fortified churches were also built in places controlled by

colonial empire A colonial empire is a sovereign state, state engaging in colonization, possibly establishing or maintaining colony, colonies, infused with some form of coloniality and colonialism. Such states can expand contiguous as well as Territory#Overseas ...

s, such as one in the Philippines at the scene of the

siege of Baler The siege of Baler (; ) was a battle of the Philippine Revolution. Filipino revolutionaries laid siege to a fortified church defended by Spanish troops in the town of Baler, Aurora, for 337 days, from 1 July 1898 until 2 June 1899. The Spanish� ...

Belarus

Although many fortified churches in various styles existed in the lands of

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

, only a handful survived until the present. The most famous include Christian Orthodox churches in Muravanka, and Synkavichy, as well as Catholic fortified churches in Kamai and Ishkold'. In addition to Christian churches Belarus also has the ruins of several fortified synagogues, of which the Chief Synagogue in

Bykhaw Bykhaw or Bykhov (, ; ; ; ; ) is a town in Mogilev Region, Belarus. It is located south of Mogilev, and serves as the administrative center of Bykhaw District. In 2009, its population was 17,031. As of 2024, it has a population of 16,349. His ...

is most notable.

France

About 65 fortified churches are found in the

Thiérache The Thiérache (; Picard: ''Quiérache'') is a region of France and Belgium united by similar geography and architecture, including the presence of hedgerows, grassland, hilly terrain, scattered settlements, and traditionally-built stone or brick ...

region of northern France, near the Belgian border. They were built here because it was a major land passage on the border between

Champagne Champagne (; ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, which demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, spe ...

and

Picardy Picardy (; Picard language, Picard and , , ) is a historical and cultural territory and a former regions of France, administrative region located in northern France. The first mentions of this province date back to the Middle Ages: it gained it ...

. As a result, the area was frequently under attack.

Germany

Several fortified churches have been preserved, especially in the German states of

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

and

Hesse Hesse or Hessen ( ), officially the State of Hesse (), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt, which is also the country's principal financial centre. Two other major hist ...

. Examples are the churches of Kleinbreitenbach in

Plaue Plaue is a town in the Ilm-Kreis district, in Thuringia, Germany. It is situated on the river Gera, 11 km north of Ilmenau, and 8 km southwest of Arnstadt Arnstadt () is a town in Ilm-Kreis, Thuringia, Germany, on the river Gera (riv ...

, Kößlarn,

Grafengehaig Grafengehaig is a municipality in the district of Kulmbach in Bavaria in Germany. It is a part of the Franconian Forest View to Döbraberg The Franconian ForestGroßrückerswalde, Mittelsaida, Büchenbach/Erlangen, Kriegenbrunn/Erlangen, Morsbach/Künzelsau, Espendfeld/Arnstadt, Finkenbach-Gersweiler, ''St. Wolfgang'' in Rothenburg, and the fortified church of Wenkbach.

Ireland

Several fortified churches survive from the medieval period, including Hospital Church (

Knights Hospitaller The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), is a Catholic military order. It was founded in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century and had headquarters there ...

Taghmon Church Taghmon Church () is a fortified church and National Monument (Ireland), National Monument in County Westmeath, Ireland. Location Taghmon Church is located east of Crookedwood, southeast of Lough Derravaragh. History A monastery was establis ...

, Old St. Mary's Church, Clonmel and St Finian's Church, Newcastle.

Poland

A rare surviving example of a fortress church used for defensive purposes is the Church of St. Andrew in

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

, one of the oldest and best preserved Romanesque buildings in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

. Located at ul. Grodzka street, it was built by a medieval Polish statesman

Palatine A palatine or palatinus (Latin; : ''palatini''; cf. derivative spellings below) is a high-level official attached to imperial or royal courts in Europe since Roman Empire, Roman times.

Sieciech in 1079–1098. St. Andrew was the only Romanesque church in Kraków to withstand the Mongol attack of 1241.

Portugal

Some medieval fortified churches, monasteries, and cathedrals survive in Portugal. These buildings were built either in Romanesque or Gothic styles. Romanesque examples are the

Lisbon Cathedral The Cathedral of Saint Mary Major ( or ''Sé-Catedral Metropolitana Patriarcal de Santa Maria Maior de Lisboa''), often called Lisbon Cathedral or simply the Sé ('), is a Roman Catholic cathedral located in Lisbon, Portugal. It is the oldest ch ...

and the

Old Cathedral of Coimbra The Old Cathedral of Coimbra () is a Romanesque Roman Catholic building in Portugal. Construction of the Sé Velha began some time after the Battle of Ourique (1139), when Prince Afonso Henriques declared himself King of Portugal and chose Coi ...

. Gothic examples are the Church of Leça do Balio and the

Guarda Cathedral The Cathedral of Guarda () is a Catholic church located in the northeastern city of Guarda, Portugal, Guarda, Portugal. Its construction took from 1390 until the mid 16th century, combining Gothic architecture, Gothic and Manueline architectural st ...

Romania

The southeastern

region in

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

has among the highest numbers of existing fortified churches from the 13th to 16th centuries.Villages with Fortified Churches in Transylvania.
UNESCO World Heritage Centre 1992-2010 More than 150 villages in the area count various types of fortified churches, seven of them being included in the UNESCO

World Heritage World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

under the name of ''

Villages with fortified churches in Transylvania The Transylvania region of Romania has one of the highest concentrations of existing fortified churches from the 13th to 16th centuries. It has more than 150 well preserved fortified churches of a great variety of architectural styles (out of an o ...

''. The northern

Moldavia Moldavia (, or ; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ) is a historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester River. An initially in ...

region also preserves numerous fortified religious buildings as a testimony of the

architectural style An architectural style is a classification of buildings (and nonbuilding structures) based on a set of characteristics and features, including overall appearance, arrangement of the components, method of construction, building materials used, for ...

developed in the

Principality of Moldavia Moldavia (, or ; in Romanian Cyrillic: or ) is a historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester River. An initially independent and later auto ...

. Of these, eight Romanian Orthodox Churches from the 15th to 16th centuries are inscribed by UNESCO on the World Heritage List.

Russia

Medieval limestone churches of Russia sometimes resembled towers and could be used for defensive purposes. At least three churches in the Moscow and Tver regions have been described as purpose-built defensive structures: namely, Kamenskoye Church, Gorodishche Church, and Gorodnya Church.

Slovenia

During the Ottoman-Habsburg Wars from the late 15th to the late 17th century, the

Slovene Lands The Slovene lands or Slovenian lands ( or in short ) is the historical denomination for the territories in Central and Southern Europe where people primarily spoke Slovene. The Slovene lands were part of the Illyrian provinces, the Austrian Empi ...

were subjected to constant Ottoman raids, which reached their peak in the late 15th and early 16th century. During that period, around 300 village churches were fortified in the territory of present-day

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

, with another 50 in the neighboring area of southern

Carinthia Carinthia ( ; ; ) is the southernmost and least densely populated States of Austria, Austrian state, in the Eastern Alps, and is noted for its mountains and lakes. The Lake Wolayer is a mountain lake on the Carinthian side of the Carnic Main ...

. They were known as ''tabors'' (which in modern Slovene means "camp"). A dozen of such churches remain today, the most famous of which are the Holy Trinity Church in Hrastovlje,

Mount Saint Mary Mount Saint Mary (, ''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 115. or ''Kallenberg''), originally known as Holm, is an inselberg in the north o ...

near

Ljubljana {{Infobox settlement , name = Ljubljana , official_name = , settlement_type = Capital city , image_skyline = {{multiple image , border = infobox , perrow = 1/2/2/1 , total_widt ...

, and

Podbrezje Podbrezje (; ''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, pp. 54–55.) is a village in the Municipality of Naklo in the Upper Carniola region of Slo ...

Upper Carniola Upper Carniola ( ; ; ) is a traditional region of Slovenia, the northern mountainous part of the larger Carniola region. The largest town in the region is Kranj, and other urban centers include Kamnik, Jesenice, Jesenice, Jesenice, Domžale and ...

. In some cases, entire villages were fortified. Remaining examples are Šmartno in the

Gorizia Hills The Gorizia Hills ( or ''Collio''; or ''Brda''; ) is a hilly microregion in western Slovenia and northeastern Italy. It lies on the right bank of the Soča (''Isonzo'') River, north of the Italian town of Gorizia, after which it is named. The r ...

, and Štanjel.

Ukraine

In Ukraine fortified churches were mostly constructed in a time period between the late 14th and the late 17th century in the

western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

and central parts of modern Ukraine, most notably Galicia and

Dnieper Ukraine The term Dnieper Ukraine (), usually refers to territory on either side of the middle course of the Dnieper River. The Ukrainian name derives from ''nad‑'' (prefix: "above, over") + ''Dnipró'' ("Dnieper") + ''‑shchyna'' (suffix denoting a g ...

. Some of these churches were constructed atop of existing fortifications and were extensively modified in later years, sometimes losing their sturdy appearance.

United Kingdom

There are several medieval fortified churches near the

Anglo-Scottish border The Anglo-Scottish border runs for between Marshall Meadows Bay on the east coast and the Solway Firth in the west, separating Scotland and England. The Firth of Forth was the border between the Picto- Gaelic Kingdom of Alba and the Angli ...

, where defence was an important consideration until the 17th century, when England and Scotland were united in

personal union A personal union is a combination of two or more monarchical states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, involves the constituent states being to some extent in ...

under King

James VI and I James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and King of Ireland, Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 M ...

. All Saints' Church, Boltongate in

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders the Scottish council areas of Dumfries and Galloway and Scottish Borders to the north, Northumberland and County Durham to the east, North Yorkshire to the south-east, Lancash ...

is a fortified church with a fireproof stone-vaulted roof. Also in Cumbria, St Michael's Church, Burgh by Sands has a defensive tower, and originally had two. The west tower retains its

yett A yett (from the Old English and Scots language word for "gate") is a gate or grille of latticed wrought iron bars used for defensive purposes in castles and tower houses. Unlike a portcullis, which is raised and lowered vertically using mech ...

, a door made of interlocking iron bars to repel attackers. An even more formidable yett can be seen at St Cuthbert's Church,

Great Salkeld Great Salkeld is a small village and civil parish in Westmorland and Furness, Cumbria, England, a few miles to the north east of Penrith and bordering the River Eden. It was in the historic county of Cumberland until local government reorg ...

, where the ground floor of the tower is tunnel-vaulted, and supports a fireplace above, enabling the tower to be habitable as a place of refuge. The tower of St John the Baptist's Church in Newton Arlosh is also tunnel-vaulted with very small windows, and has no outer doorway to the churchyard. Entry was inside at first-floor level. Defensive towers can also be found on the

England–Wales border The England–Wales border, sometimes referred to as the Wales–England border or the Anglo-Welsh border, runs for from the Dee estuary, in the north, to the Severn estuary in the south, separating England and Wales. It has followed broadly ...

, for instance St Michael's Church, in

Garway Garway is a civil parish in south-west Herefordshire, England. The population of the civil parish was 430 at the 2011 census. It is set on a hillside above the River Monnow about 6 1/4 miles (10 km) northwest of Monmouth. It is a sparsel ...

, Herefordshire.Resources, www.users.globalnet.co.uk
/ref>

Gallery

File:St. Arbogast 2.jpg, Fortified church in

File:Hrastovlie-Cerkev.jpg, Holy Trinity Church in Hrastovlje,

File:Fort eglise rudelle.jpg, Castle-church of

Rudelle Rudelle (; ) is a commune in the Lot department in south-western France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana ...

File:Krakow kosciol 20071229 1246.jpg, St. Andrew's Church,

File:Boltongate Church - geograph.org.uk - 65430.jpg, All Saints Church, Boltongate, England, with defensive

parapet A parapet is a barrier that is an upward extension of a wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian ''parapetto'' (''parare'' 'to cover/defend' and ''petto'' 'chest/brea ...

File:St angel eglise.jpg, Fortified church in Saint-Angel, Corrèze, France. File:Prejmer Fortified Church I.jpg, Prejmer fortified church,

File:Biertan church with protecting walls.jpg, Biertan fortified church, Romania File:Mosna Fortified Church - side view.jpg, Moşna fortified church, Romania File:Dealu Frumos Fortified Church I.jpg, Dealu Frumos fortified church, Romania File:Østerlars Church, Bornholm.jpg, Østerlars Church in

Bornholm Bornholm () is a List of islands of Denmark, Danish island in the Baltic Sea, to the east of the rest of Denmark, south of Sweden, northeast of Germany and north of Poland. Strategically located, Bornholm has been fought over for centuries. I ...

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

File:Solna kyrka 2012.jpg,

Solna Church Solna Church () is a so-called round church in Solna Municipality near Stockholm, Sweden. It is part of Solna Parish in the Diocese of Stockholm. The church is located on the headland between Brunnsviken and Ulvsundasjön, at the southern end of ...

close to

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

File:Munso kyrka 02.JPG, Munsö Church,

File:Grafengehaig Kirche 3.JPG, Fortified Church of

Grafengehaig Grafengehaig is a municipality in the district of Kulmbach in Bavaria in Germany. It is a part of the Franconian Forest View to Döbraberg The Franconian Forest Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

File:Eglise_fortifiee_Prejmer_cour.jpg, Courtyard of the fortified church of Prejmer, Romania File:Murovanka_Church_1.jpg, Fortified church in Muravanka, Belarus File:Сынковичи_Церковь_Святого_Михаила_02.jpg, Fortified church in Synkovichi, Belarus File:Mosteiro Leca Balio (Matosinhos).jpg, Fortified church of Leça do Balio,

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

File:Se de Lisboa Frente.JPG, Fortified

, Portugal File:Coimbra Old Cathedral - Sé Velha de Coimbra.jpg, Fortified

, Portugal File:Morsbach Wehrkirche St. Alban und St. Wendelin 01.jpg, The fortified church of St. Alban and St. Wendelin, Germany File:Kirche Kleinbreitenbach.JPG, Fortified church in Kleinbreitenbach, Germany File:Flor da Rosa.jpg, Flor da Rosa fortified church, Portugal File:Baler, Aurora - Saint Louis Church.jpg, Fortified church of St. Louis in

Baler A baler or hay baler is a piece of farm machinery used to compress a cut and raked crop (such as hay, cotton, flax straw, salt marsh hay, or silage) into compact bales that are easy to handle, transport, and store. Often, bales are config ...

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. File:St. Munnas Church Taghmon County Westmeath.JPG,

, Ireland File:Saint Thaddeus Monastery, Iran, northwestern view.jpg, Monastery of Saint Thaddeus, Iran File:Tranebjerg kirkeC3Turm.jpg, Tranebjerg church, fortified church tower, Denmark

Notes and references

{{Authority control Types of church buildings