St. Charles Borromeo Church () is a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...

in central

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

, Belgium, located on the Hendrik Conscienceplein. It was built in 1615–1621 as the

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

church of Antwerp, which was closed in 1773. It was rededicated in 1779 to Saint

Charles Borromeo Charles Borromeo (; ; 2 October 1538 – 3 November 1584) was an Catholic Church in Italy, Italian Catholic prelate who served as Archdiocese of Milan, Archbishop of Milan from 1564 to 1584. He was made a Cardinal (Catholicism), cardinal in 156 ...

. The church was formerly known for 39 ceiling pieces by

Peter Paul Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens ( ; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish painting, Flemish artist and diplomat. He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque painting, Flemish Baroque tradition. Rubens' highly charged comp ...

that were lost in a fire when lightning struck the church on 18 July 1718.

History

The church was inspired by the Church of the Gesu, the

mother church Mother church or matrice is a term depicting the Christian Church as a mother in her functions of nourishing and protecting the believer. It may also refer to the primary church of a Christian denomination or diocese, i.e. a cathedral church, or ...

of the

Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...

, a

Roman Catholic religious order In the Catholic Church, a religious order is a community of consecrated life with members that profess solemn vows. They are classed as a type of religious institute. Subcategories of religious orders are: * canons regular (canons and canon ...

also known as the Jesuits.Sint-Carolus Borromeuskerk, Sodaliteit en Professenhuis
at the Belgian heritage register The church was built next to the ''Huis van Aecken'', bought from the heirs of Erasmus II Schetz. It was the first church in the world to be dedicated to the Jesuit founder, Ignatius Loyola. In 1617–18,

painted two

altarpiece An altarpiece is a painting or sculpture, including relief, of religious subject matter made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting or sculpture, ...

s. He was also commissioned to paint the ceiling pieces, for which he made the designs while the execution was done mostly by pupils, including

Anthony van Dyck Sir Anthony van Dyck (; ; 22 March 1599 – 9 December 1641) was a Flemish Baroque painting, Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England after success in the Spanish Netherlands and Italy. The seventh child of ...

.Rubens: A Genius at Work : the Works of Peter Paul Rubens in the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium reconsidered.
by Joost Vander Auwera, Sabine van Sprang, Véronique Bücken, Arnout Balis, Nora De Poorter, Nico van Hout, Christine Van Mulders, Michèle Van Kalck and by members of the Rubens project team (Hélène Dubois, Natasja Peeters, Bert Schepers and Tine Meganck). A contract was drawn up in 1620 by Jacobus Tirinus and the paintings were delivered a year later in time for the consecration. Rubens received 7,000

guilder Guilder is the English translation of the Dutch and German ''gulden'', originally shortened from Middle High German ''guldin pfenninc'' (" gold penny"). This was the term that became current in the southern and western parts of the Holy Rom ...

s for his works in the church, and though the lavish decorations including sculptures and other artwork were well received, Tirinus was dismissed in 1625 for going beyond his budget. In 1718, the vault of the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

, including Rubens' ceiling paintings, was destroyed by fire. Jan Pieter van Baurscheidt the Elder restored the damaged parts according to the original plan, but replaced the original coffers with wide transverse arches. In 1773, the Society of Jesus was suppressed and the building was confiscated. It reopened in 1779, renamed St. Charles Borromeo Church, after

. Since 1803, St. Charles Borromeo Church has been in use as a

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

. During the Dutch rule preceding Belgium's independence in 1830, the

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

interior was sobered to make it a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

church. A restoration campaign in the 1980s brought back the churche's Baroque splendor. Besides works by Rubens, the interior displays paintings by

Gerard Seghers Gerard SeghersGerard Seghers
at the

, Daniel Seghers, and

Cornelis Schut Cornelis Schut (13 May 1597 – 29 April 1655) was a Flemish painter, drawing, draughtsman, engraver and tapestry designer who specialized in religious and mythological scenes. Presumed to have trained under Rubens, he treated Counter-Refor ...

. On 30 August 2009, a fire broke out again, but none of the important artworks were damaged.Lichtspots oorzaak van brand Carolus Borromeuskerk
(Spotlights cause fire in Carolus Borromeuskerk), www.demorgen.be, September 20, 2009

Gallery

File:Sebastiaan Vrancx 001.jpg, Painting of the interior by Sebastiaen Vrancx, c. 1630 File:Hieronymus Janssens and Willem von Ehrenberg - Interior of the Saint Carolus-Borromeus Church in Antwerp.jpg, Painting of the interior by Hieronymus Janssens and Wilhelm Schubert van Ehrenberg, c. 1660 File:Anton Gunther Gheringh - Façade of the Jesuit Church, Antwerp.jpg, Painting of the façade by Anton Gunther Ghering, c. 1665 File:Jacobus Balthasar Peeters - Interior of the Jesuit Church in Antwerp1.jpg, Interior of the church showing the state before the fire by Jacob Balthasar Peeters, 1721 File:Jacobus Balthasar Peeters - Interior of the Jesuit Church in Antwerp2.jpg, Interior of the church showing the state before the fire by Jacob Balthasar Peeters, 1721 File:Carolus interior 22.9.2023.jpg, Church interior as it appeared in 2023 File:Carolus altar 22.9.2023.jpg, Church altar, including altarpiece by

Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens ( ; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat. He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque tradition. Rubens' highly charged compositions reference erudite aspects of clas ...

File:Carolus pulpit 22.9.2023.jpg, The church's pulpit, carved by Jan Pieter Van Baurscheit the Elder after the 1718 fire File:Carolus angels 22.9.2023.jpg, Wooden carvings of four angels on the left side of the main hall File:Carolus xavier 22.9.2023.jpg, Scenes from the life of St.

Francis Xavier Francis Xavier, Jesuits, SJ (born Francisco de Jasso y Azpilicueta; ; ; ; ; ; 7 April 15063 December 1552), venerated as Saint Francis Xavier, was a Kingdom of Navarre, Navarrese cleric and missionary. He co-founded the Society of Jesus ...

References

External links

* {{Authority control Carol Carol Carol 1625 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1625 establishments in the Spanish Empire 17th-century establishments in the Habsburg Netherlands Jesuit history in Europe Charles Borromeo Baroque church buildings in Belgium

History

Gallery

See also

References

External links