About the Church
The church's history began as far back as the beginning of the 17th century. In 1612 land was donated to the church in Tirkšliai, and only four years later the Grand Duke of Lithuania, Sigismund Vasa, urged the elder of Tirkšliai, Emanuelis Fitingas, to build a church. This was the beginning of a long and rich history.
In 1766 a new church was built, but its fate was not an easy one. After the uprising of 1863, the parish priest of Tirkšliai, Petras Lukauskis, was exiled to Tobolsk, and later moved to live in Kazan. On 1 July 1936 the church, together with the bell tower and bells, burned down. Fortunately, some paintings of saints, statues, crucifixes and part of the old parish archive were saved from the fire and moved to the cemetery chapel.
The present masonry church was built in 1937–1939. It was designed by the well-known architect Vaclovas Michnevičius, with technical supervision by the engineer Stasys Bukovskis. The building works were carefully overseen by the priest Antanas Kiela, who himself had experienced the hardships of exile in Russia. The new church was consecrated in 1939 by Bishop Justinas Staugaitis.
The church is marked by a Gothic Revival style, which gives it particular beauty and grandeur. It has a rectangular plan, a single tower and an apse, which further emphasises its architectural distinctiveness. In the church's tower hangs an impressive bell weighing 1,297 kilograms, cast in Liepāja in 1939.
Today the Tirkšliai Church of Christ the King is not only a religious centre but also a cultural heritage site, reflecting the rich history of the area. In 2020 intensive repair works began, aiming to renew the church's interior, lay heated flooring and carry out other necessary works, so that this historic place remains attractive to visitors and pilgrims.
The parish also includes the Tirkšliai cemetery chapel, the Geidžiai Chapel of St Anne and the Lėlaičiai Chapel of St Roch. Each of them has its own history and contributes to the overall spiritual life of the parish.
Visit the Tirkšliai Church of Christ the King and feel the spirit of this unique sacred site and the breath of its history.
Gallery and Resources
Archive captions are shown in Lithuanian.
Atmintinė naujai statomai bažnyčiai Tirkšliuose (Mažeikių r. sav.) aukomis paremti, išleista Bažnyčios statybos komiteto pirmininko, Tirkšlių klebono iniciatyva. Spausdinimo vieta nenustatyta. Lietuva, 1936 m. Vertikalios kompozicijos, spausdinta juodais poligrafiniais dažais abiejose balto popieriaus lapo pusėse. Priekinėje pusėje yra naujos bažnyčios piešinys, po kuriuo eina tekstas: „Naujai statomoji bažnyčia / Tirkšliuose / maloniai prašau ją aukomis paremti“. Nugarinėje pusėje išspausdintas Tirkšlių parapijos klebono prašymas paremti aukomis naujos bažnyčios statybą.
Senoji medinė Tirkšlių Kristaus Karaliaus bažnyčia sudegė 1936 m. liepos 1 d. Tais pačiais metais buvo įkurtas Bažnyčios statybos Komitetas, kurio pirmininku tapo parapijos klebonas kunigas Antanas Kiela (1899–1983). Jam vadovaujant 1937–1939 m. iškilo neogotikinė mūrinė vienbokštė bažnyčia.