The most beautiful churches cathedrals basilicas and chapels Northeast

The white church and its surprising bell tower which lets you guess its author, Jože Plečnik of course. It is transformed in 1925-1927. The old part of the 14th century with its portal and the capitals are then inserted into the new building. Pillars, altar and pulpit are made of marble from Podpeč. The architect Jože Plečnik has integrated pottery, a traditional local but also universal and millennial know-how. Ceramic plates decorate the oak ceiling while amphoras frame the main altar. An amazing step!

6 km away. Originally, a chapel dedicated to St. Barbara stood on this site on top of the Straža hill. The present building was erected between 1721 and 1725 in response to the many pilgrims who had previously come to pray before the supposedly miraculous representation of St. Francis Xavier. The work therefore deserved its own church. It also contains a gold chalice donated by Empress Maria Theresa of Austria, a silver monstrance donated by Archduchess Maria Anne of Austria, and two chasubles donated by the kings of France and Poland.

A building that does not go unnoticed with its red brick alignments. In a more symbolic way, it characterizes the entry into the pedestrian space of the city. The basilica has the peculiarity of being composed of three different naves. Built at the very end of the 19th century on the site of the former Viennese monastery, it is the work of the Austrian architect Richard Jordan. The interior is more classical and typical of Franciscan churches.

Dedicated to the Baptist of Christ, this cathedral has known all the great artistic periods, becoming in turn Romanesque, Gothic and then Baroque. Inside is the tombstone of Anton Martin Slomšek (1800-1862), the first Slovene to be declared a saint by the Vatican, celebrated as the spiritual hero of the nation. He was beatified in 1999 by Pope John Paul II during his visit to Maribor: stained glass windows recall this extraordinary event.

During the latest restoration, the wooden altars lost their gilding and reverted to their former black color, a reminder of the Pauline monks' veneration for the Black Madonna of their native Poland. The trompe l'oeil fresco on the choir vault is the work of Johannes Ranger, a monk from Tyrol (^18th century). The chapel of St. Francis Xavier was painted in 1760. The organ is remarkable, dating back over 230 years.

Built in 1910, it has a curious feature: a central stained glass window in the choir depicting Luther. This church is marked by lightness, finely decorated with geometric motifs that do not disturb its sobriety. Its construction in the axis of the castle would have displeased the count, catholic, who would have had his room moved. The architect Ernő Gerey is at the origin of this large-scale project: he gives back to the city the grandeur of its Protestant past. The painting of the altar has been entrusted to the artist Jenő Bory.

The 11th century church, partly circular, has a wooden bell tower and a shingled roof. The rotunda will surprise many people because it is absolutely unusual in Slovenia. The frescoes date from the 14th century. Small and simple church that you will not be able to forget so much its architecture surprises by its contemporaneity. One of the oldest religious buildings in the country and certainly one of the most beautiful. Muta was a border toll place in the Middle Ages.

This parish church was built as early as the middle of the 13th century. The baroque period has of course changed its appearance. You will discover paintings by Franz Ignaz Flurer, Anton Lerchinger and Filip Karl Laubmann. Above the altar, the work is signed by the hand of Martin Johan Kremserschmidt. A remarkable church, in many ways, which is clearly worth a little detour: it is so striking from afar as it dominates the town of Slovenska Bistrica.

It was the largest church in Slovenia in the 18th century. Its bell tower dates from 1671 and belonged to the previous church. In fact, a primitive church already existed around the year 1000. The Patriarchate of Aquileia founded a monastery and the Benedictines settled there in 1140, but three centuries later it was dissolved. Both the church and the monastery were destroyed in 1750. The present building was designed by Matija Perski. In the choir there is a fresco depicting the Virgin Mary and the two patron saints, a work by Layers like the Way of the Cross. The altarpiece is by Kumserschmidt.

Built at the end of the 14th century, it has one of the most beautiful works of art in the country, a Mercy carved in a single block of stone (1410-1415). The Virgin shelters under a mantle, unfurled by seven angels, 81 characters. It is a veritable portrait gallery where the Emperor Sigismund and the Counts of Celje can be identified. The old tympanum of the portal, placed above the altar, was commissioned by Bernard III of Ptuj to celebrate the baptism of Elizabeth, daughter of the emperor. The whole, very pure, is very expressive and lively. It was the Prague Speaking Workshop that worked on the building of the church founded by Bernard III. Destroyed by the Turks, it was completed during its renovation with four defence towers, only one of which remains on the south side. In the 16th century the church became Protestant and in 1615 the Jesuits took it over again until 1774. It has been in the hands of the Friars Minor since 1937. The three-nave church, a fine example of Slovenian Gothic, also contains the altar of the Counts of Celje designed in 1400 in the southern apse in the "soft style" and the bas-reliefs depicting the death of the Virgin, the Magi, and the angels with coats of arms. The work The Death of the Virgin was created in 1415 by the author of Mercy, who remained unknown. This church is one of the most beautiful in Slovenia, with an impressively rich interior and documentation that helps to get a better idea of what it means to pilgrims.

Built in the Romanesque style in the middle of the 13th century, this church was later modified to become Gothic and then Baroque. In 1826, following the demolition of an old neighbouring church, Saint-Pierre received a magnificent statue of the Virgin and Child dating from the 14th century. For the record, this work has already been exhibited at the Louvre museum a few years ago. The frescoes are by the artists Jacob Brollo and Osvaldo Bierti respectively.

The nave and two stained glass windows are of Romanesque origin. Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque styles have transformed the oldest building in the city dedicated to the niece of Aquileia's patriarch Berthold, Count of Andech. The pictorial works are by two local Baroque artists, Franc Michael Strauss (1667-1740) and Franc Andrej Strauss (1721-1782). The baroque altar was designed by Janej Jakob Schoy, a sculptor at the court of Graz. Not to be missed!

Its origin dates back to the 11th century. It was first renovated in 1350 and is the resting place of the Counts Szapary. It is one of the best preserved Slovenian testimonies of late Romanesque art. Over the centuries, several modifications and renovations have been imposed on it. In 1910 it was completely rebuilt by the architect László Takács, who gave it three naves instead of the original one. Beautiful stained glass windows inside and a superb pictorial representation of St. Nicholas on the main altar made by Matthias Schiffer in 1797.

Superb Gothic church dating from the 15th century. It was consecrated by the Bishop of Ljubljana Sigismund von Lamberg in 1485. Its bell tower is more recent and would have been added at the very beginning of the 18th century. The main point of interest of this small church is undoubtedly its late Romanesque statue of the Virgin Mary carrying her child. It would probably date back to the late 1200s. Nice view over the whole valley from the religious building.

A little culture moment between two tastings? In the middle of the 17th century, the plague wreaked havoc. Lord Johann Drumpitsch and his wife Salome vow to build a church in Jeruzalem if the plague ceases. When the epidemic subsided, they built a baroque church, completed in 1652. Angels holding the instruments of Christ's torment are standing on the pulpit while an arm points a cross at the faithful. The angel with the dice reminds us of the episode of the tunic of Christ, drawn by lot between the soldiers in charge of its execution.