Jesuit Church

The Jesuit Church of Molsheim, located on the Alsace wine route about twenty kilometers from Strasbourg, is a major symbol of the Counter-Reformation in Alsace. Its history dates back to 1580, when Bishop Jean de Manderscheid welcomed the Jesuits and assigned them a chapel and hospital premises dating from 1316. Quickly, their college attracted students from the entire region, including Strasbourg, but the premises soon became insufficient. In 1608, Archduke Leopold of Habsburg, brother of Emperor Ferdinand II, ordered the construction of a new college and an imposing church, intended to assert the power of Catholicism against Strasbourg Protestantism. The work, led by Christophe Wambser and Jean Isfording, began in February 1615 and was completed two years and nine months later. In 1765, upon the dissolution of the Jesuit order, the college came under the authority of the secular clergy until 1791, when the church became a parish church under the patronage of Saint George. With its 61.50 meters in length, 21.50 meters in width, and 20 meters in height under the nave, it is among the largest churches in Alsace. Its current sobriety contrasts with the Baroque decorations of the transept chapels, illuminated by three rows of pointed arch windows filled with quails, symbolizing divine light for the Jesuits. Inside, the south chapel, or Chapel of the Virgin, preserves paintings and frescoes from 1648, stuccos from 1630, and an original keystone from 1316. The north chapel, dedicated to Saint Ignatius, features paintings depicting the saint's life, baptismal fonts from 1624, and ancient tombstones. The choir, separated from the nave by a triumphal arch supported by four lions, houses a neo-Gothic main altar and large stained glass windows, including a 1865 stained glass depicting Saint Odile and other Alsatian saints. The organ, built in 1781 by Jean André Silbermann, is the only one in Alsace to have a complete echo keyboard. Outside, the Carthusian Cross, transferred in 1598, and the Mount of Olives, originating from the Charterhouse in the 16th century, complete this heritage. Visits to the church are possible by reservation through the Tourist Office.