kostel svatého Jiljí (Komárov) Church

You will find the Church of Saint Egidius in the Komárov district of Brno, on the territory of the Brno-South city section in Černovická street. It belongs to the oldest buildings in Brno that still serve their original purpose today, and it is protected as a cultural monument.

The original Romanesque church was built at the end of the twelfth century in the village of Luh, as the present-day Komárov was called back then. It was constructed on the site of an older chapel dedicated to Saint Egidius. The church belonged to the Benedictines, who added a residential tower to its western façade by the year twelve twenty. It was part of a monastery that bore the name Porta Dei, meaning the Gate of God. The monastery was located in the area of today's gardens between the church and Lužná street. It was founded in the twelfth century and disappeared in fifteen twenty-seven. Its remains were uncovered by archaeologists from the Brno City Museum. During an investigation in nineteen seventy-six, the remains of the original chapel were also discovered, which were then covered up again.

Over the centuries, the building underwent significant changes. After thirteen fifty, the eastern wall was torn down and the church received a Gothic choir with a presbytery. After the Thirty Years' War, the Romanesque nave was given a Baroque vault and large windows were cut into the walls as they are today. The only preserved Romanesque window is in the northern wall. The tower dates from the end of the eighteenth century, when the Komárov parish was established and the church underwent further modifications. In eighteen fifty-four, a sacristy was added, which today serves as the chapel of the sacrament of reconciliation. During the nineteenth century, the church was further modified in the Neo-Gothic style.

Between nineteen ninety-seven and two thousand and four, the church underwent major reconstruction. The building was structurally secured and dried out. It received new roof trusses, roof coverings for the towers, new façades and electrical installation, and stone elements were restored both inside and outside. The furnishings were also restored to match the liturgical and artistic standards of the beginning of the third millennium.

An interesting tradition is also connected with the church. During the Baroque period, pilgrims would depart from the Komárov meadow heading to Mariazell. While they were on their way, the Komárov parishioners would gather for prayers. On the day of Saint Egidius, they would welcome the returning pilgrims with bread and pastries, and from this comes the name Pastry Festival. In eighteen thirty-four, Emperor Francis the Second and his wife attended it on the eve of the festival. The celebration was revived in modified form in nineteen ninety-six.

At Christmas, a nativity scene with plaster figurines by an unknown author is displayed in the main nave on the left side of the presbytery.