A Baroque church built by the Society of Jesus in Trento, near Piazza Duomo, and considered the major expression of religious Baroque architecture in the city.
At a glance
The church stands at Via Roma 57, close to the cathedral square in Trento’s historic centre. It was built by the Society of Jesus and is noted in local visitor information as an important testimony to the spread of Jesuit spirituality in the city.
Key facts
- Where: Via Roma 57, Trento
- What: Church
- When: 1708–1711, according to the Comune di Trento; the tourist office gives 1621–1634
- GPS: 46.0699, 11.1212 · Open in Google Maps
History
The Comune di Trento states that the church was built by the Society of Jesus between 1708 and 1711, applying the architectural concepts of the Trentine treatise writer Andrea Pozzo. The builders used a medieval walled house, traces of which are still visible in the facade, while the old Costede tower was reused as the bell tower. The church and its adjoining convent, of thirteenth-century foundation, have few traces of their earlier history today. The complex was the seat of the Conventual Franciscans, stood outside the walls at Porta Nuova, and was suppressed and used as a military hospital in the Napoleonic period. From 1827 it was entrusted to the Canossian Sisters, who now run a school there. During the Council, the main delegates of the Order of Conventual Franciscans lived in the convent. The tourist office gives a different construction period of 1621 to 1634, also on a project of the Jesuit fathers.
What you see
The photograph shows a cobbled street in Trento’s historic centre, with painted building facades on both sides. At the end of the street is the church facade, with a large central window, a portal surmounted by a broken pediment, and statues of Jesuit saints. The Comune di Trento describes the decoration as one of the highest outcomes of Baroque art in the city. The interior, not visible in this photograph, is a single-nave hall with a luminous layout and works of art including seventeenth-century Italian paintings, according to the tourist office.
Do you know more about this place?
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Nearby
- Grand Hotel Trento — a short walk from the church, in the same historic centre
- Mart – Civic Gallery of Trento — nearby civic gallery in Trento
- Aula del Simonino — close to the church, in the historic centre
- Tridentum – S.A.S.S. Sas Underground Archaeological Space — underground archaeological site near the church
Sources
- Comune di Trento, Chiesa di San Francesco Saverio: construction dates 1708–1711, Andrea Pozzo’s architectural concepts, reuse of medieval house and Costede tower, later history of the convent, facade description, address and access details.
- Visit Trento, Chiesa di San Francesco Saverio – TRENTO: location near Piazza Duomo, alternative construction dates 1621–1634, description of the single-nave interior and seventeenth-century paintings, use as a venue for sacred music concerts.
- Trentino Cultura, Andrea Pozzo a Trento e la chiesa di S. Francesco Saverio: the church is considered the major expression of religious Baroque architecture in Trento; Andrea Pozzo was born in Trento in 1642.
- OpenStreetMap, Chiesa di San Francesco Saverio, Via Giannantonio Manci, Trento: coordinates and address.
- Stefano Vigolo, photographs and notes to the editorial staff (2026): identification of the subject and the view along Via Rodolfo Belenzani. Not a published source.
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