About the Church
The Church of St Louis in Liudvinavas stands in the small town of Liudvinavas, about 9 kilometres south of Marijampolė. The history of the town and its church goes back to the 18th century, and the parish has long been an important centre of Lithuanian spirit and culture.
The first church was founded in 1715 by Liudvikas Konstantinas Pacas. By the mid-19th century hymns were already sung and sermons preached here in Lithuanian, and the curate Simonas Lapinskas was exiled to Siberia in 1864, suspected of urging the inhabitants to take part in the 1863 uprising. In 1907 a branch of the "Žiburys" society operated in the town, and a library-reading room was established the following year.
In 1915 the church burned down, and after the First World War a modest wooden church was built in the cemetery, which still stands today. The rectangular-plan building with an apse is adorned with two small turrets, and the churchyard is enclosed by a plastered-masonry fence. In 1988 a modern organ was installed, made at the Marijampolė organ workshop to a design by Gracijus Sakalauskas.
The first church was founded in 1715 by Liudvikas Konstantinas Pacas. By the mid-19th century hymns were already sung and sermons preached here in Lithuanian, and the curate Simonas Lapinskas was exiled to Siberia in 1864, suspected of urging the inhabitants to take part in the 1863 uprising. In 1907 a branch of the "Žiburys" society operated in the town, and a library-reading room was established the following year.
In 1915 the church burned down, and after the First World War a modest wooden church was built in the cemetery, which still stands today. The rectangular-plan building with an apse is adorned with two small turrets, and the churchyard is enclosed by a plastered-masonry fence. In 1988 a modern organ was installed, made at the Marijampolė organ workshop to a design by Gracijus Sakalauskas.