Church of St. James (Brno)

Saint James` church is a late Gothic three-nave church situated in James' square (Jakubské náměstí) in the centre of Brno, in Czech Republic. Its history starts in the beginning of the 13th century. The church was categorized as a national monument in 1995.

The church was founded for German inhabitants who lived in this part of the town in the 13th century. There is visible the painted heraldry of mother superior from Oslavany Cistercian monastery with the date 1220 on the vault of the presbytery. This date recalls the consecration of the smaller Romanesque church that once stood here before this late Gothic St. James's church and it used to serve Flemish and German colonists. There are no remains of this church. There was a cemetery documented around the church in the 14th century, which was extended bit by bit in the following years.

During 1368–1405, some chapels were built around the church and these chapels created a unique urbanistic complex. The oldest one was Saint Morris's chapel from the year 1352, and among others were the chapel of Christ's body (1369), Saint Ursuline's chapel and the Assumption of the Virgin chapel (1413), and the so-called New chapel from the year 1428, Saint Trinity chapel (1463) and Saint Dorothy's chapel, which is in the cemetery (1465). The chapel of Christ's body was marked as being connected to the church. Brno citizens made gifts and bequests to these chapels. They also used to give contributions for building costs; however, the main burden of cost was borne by the Cistercian monastery in Oslavany.

This hall church is characterized by a presbytery with an inner polygon, which is obviously the oldest part. There is a big tower standing at the western part of building. The tower has a main entrance door. The antechapel was constructed on the northern side.

Late Gothic construction of the parish church started with building up the choir in 1446. The builder in the late 1450s was probably Hans from Brno according to scientific research. The main problem is surely to find out the date when construction began, i.e. the date of establishing the East-oriented presbytery. There is a document about a gift for the construction of the chancel from the year 1469 and the latest research comes with differing opinions as to when construction on the presbytery began. It should date according to documents from the half of the 15th century. This year probably prefers to the finishing of the construction of the chancel. Another opinion puts forth the idea about the earlier construction of the oldest part of the presbytery. This idea is supported by some architectonic details, for example the axial placing of the buttress which recalls Petr Parléř's construction at the Southern hall in Saint Vitus cathedral in Prague and in the presbytery of Saint Bartholomew's in Kolín upon Elbe. Also the structure of the wall profile between the windows and the shape of the window tracery repeats some of Parléř's characteristic motifs and possibly floral ornaments and beautiful gargoyles at the top of the buttresses which are close to work from Parléř's area. It could be hardly made as special kind of historicism in the half of the 15th century. It is possible to consider the origin of the presbytery and so the project of the new church at the end of the 14th century. Norbert Nussbaum pointed out to details of the shaft work, which passes through the windows jambs and the compound piers. It shows knowledge of the forms, which were used in the lodge at the Cathedral of St. Stephan in Vienna, when there was a master Lorenz Spenning.

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