Connections

The surprising connection between Prague and Rome

Posted on Author Antoine P Borg
A photo of the Church of St Francis - Prague, Czechia

Architectural connections between cities show how influences affect architects visions. The connection alone tells a story about how something came to be. In this article I look at the connection between the church of St Francis in Prague and two Roman churches.

I knew of a connection between these churches but I soon found that what I thought was true was not. I’ve laid out my research for you here. You can decide if my conclusions are correct or not.

The church of St Francis of Assisi

A photo of the Church of St Francis - Prague, Czechia
The Church of St Francis – Prague, Czechia

In Prague, the Old Town Tower guards the entrance to the Charles Bridge. Behind it lies the Square of the Knights of the Red Cross (Křižovnické náměstí), named after the convent, on the square’s north side.

It is one of the smallest squares in Prague and yet also one of the most visited because of the Charles Bridge. It also forms part of Prague’s Royal route and Prague’s development as a city.

I’ve written about the Royal route and how it weaves through Prague. The square was unrecognisable when King Charles IV created the route in the 14th century.

St Agnes of Bohemia built the hospital and its church1. She laid the foundation stone on 21 May 12522. A huge fire damaged it and a new Baroque temple3 took its place in the 17th century4 which is the building we see today.

As a result, the foundation of the current church is the original one from St Agnes’ time3. The architect who designed it was Jean B. Mathey5 6.

A picture showing the square of the Knights of the Red Cross in the 17th century
The square as it was in the 17th century
Autor: Vopok – Vlastní dílo, CC BY-SA 4.0, Odkaz

This church marks the beginning of Bohemian Baroque6 and is a critical Czech monument.

One key external feature is the huge dome on the church3. Best seen from the Charles Bridge it is almost 41m high3 4 and was a feat of engineering at the time of construction. Inside, the unique oval floor plan provides incredible acoustics4. The Church boasts the second oldest organ in Prague which dates back to 17024. Both Mozart and Dvorak played it.

A painting of St Francis' church and the Klementinum before the definition of the road for vehicular traffic
A painting of St Francis’ church and the Klementinum before the definition of the road for vehicular traffic

Prague’s Archbishop Jan Bedřich of Valdštejn consecrated the new church in 16583. 

Inspiration

Jean Baptiste Mathey was a French architect from Dijon. He studied for 12 years in Rome7 under Carlo Rainaldi6, one of the leading architects in 17th century Rome8. Rainaldi is the architect who designed the twin churches on Rome’s Piazza del Popolo6.

All this explains why Mathey’s work is more Italian than French.  A 2017 exhibition I attended in Prague’s Troja Chateau stated that Mathay copied Rainaldi’s ideas from his twin churches6.

In fact, the timing is all wrong.

A photo of Rome's twin churches
The twin churches – Rome, Italy

Mathay finished the church of St Francis by 16583. According to the Roman State archives, Rainaldi designed the twin churches in 16619. To be precise, the Pope sanctioned the designs for the whole Piazza del Popolo on 16 November 16619!

It is possible Rainaldi had some designs or ideas which the young Mathay used first in Prague. It is possible Rainaldi designed the churches long before the Pope saw them. There is no documentary evidence to suggest either of these hypothesis.

It’s also possible Rainaldi relied on his students, like many artists did. Again, there is no evidence to suggest this so these 3 suggestions of mine carry equal weight.

Comparison

Take a look at the pictures of the churches here.

The columns in Prague give the impression of three-dimensionality. Since the square is small, Mathey recessed the columns into the facade. Had there been space, the church could have had a portico.

A photo of the Church of St Francis - Prague, Czechia
The Church of St Francis – Prague, Czechia

Rainaldi’s original designs called for recessed columns too9. The portico and the columns we see today in Rome are a later change. In other words, Rainaldi’s first design was almost identical to Mathey’s church.

Between the recessed columns and the shape of the facade, you can see the similarities in the design.

Conclusion

The Church of St Francis was Mathey’s first work in Prague. It matches the Baroque work popular in Rome at the time and must have been a revelation in Prague.

My opinion is that Mathay stayed in touch with Rainaldi and shared these designs with him. Rainaldi used them to great effect in the Piazza del Popolo.

Sometimes the connections you find are not the ones you expected.

Please share this with someone who loves architecture

  1. Saint Agnes – Princess and nun; Radio Prague; 2012-01-13 (Article in German) [↩]
  2. The convent; Krizovnici.eu; (Retrieved 2019-09-24) [↩]
  3. Church of St Francis of Assisi; Prague City Line; (Retrieved 2019-09-24) [↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩]
  4. Church of St Francis; Prague.EU; (Retrieved 2019-09-24) [↩][↩][↩][↩]
  5. St Francis of Assisi church; Organ concerts.cz; (Retrieved 2019-09-24) [↩]
  6. Exhibition at Troja Chateau; As witnessed by author on 2017-05-19[↩][↩][↩][↩][↩]
  7. Jean Baptist Mathey; Santini.CZ; (Retrieved 2019-09-24) [↩]
  8. Carlo Rainaldi; Encyclopedia Britannica; 2019-01-01[↩]
  9. Carlo Rainaldi and the Roman Architecture of the Full Baroque; Jstor.org; 1937-06[↩][↩][↩]