Yanzhou Catholic Church

Yanzhou Catholic Church

Yanzhou Catholic Church is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Yanzhou Catholic Church is located on the east side of West Yüqiao South Road in the urban area of Yanzhou City.

Yanzhou Catholic Church has a massive dome and towering spires, embodying the contemporary popular German Gothic architectural style. Father Scherzer described the church’s architecture in his book *In the Country of Confucius* as follows: “...this church is... a Gothic structure, ...”

...The construction of the church was described as follows: “...this church is... a Gothic building, 53 meters long and 18 meters wide. Both the design and construction were undertaken by Father Ehrenberg... The church reaches a height of 14 meters to the keystone. Twenty stone pillars (each 5 meters high) run from top to bottom, with carved bases (1.8 meters) adorned with floral designs. With the help of a monastery worker, the priest also produced colored glazed bricks himself, decorating the cornices and ribs with green, red, and yellow glazed tiles. The roof tiles and drip edges were all coated with red glaze. A large arched crypt was built beneath the altar...”

Historical Background

During the Kangxi era of the Qing Dynasty, missionaries such as Johann Adam Schall von Bell and Ferdinand Verbiest built small churches for preaching within the region, but these were short-lived and soon discontinued. In 1891, German missionaries entered Yanzhou, and construction of Yanzhou Catholic Church began in 1897. The main church, known as the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit, was completed in 1899, standing 21 meters tall. The entire complex stretches 386 meters from north to south and 216.7 meters from east to west, covering a total area of 83,646.2 square meters. It ranks among the most notable Catholic churches in China, renowned for its exquisite architecture and grand scale.

Unfortunately, the main structures of Yanzhou Catholic Church were destroyed in the early stages of the Cultural Revolution in 1966 — yet another victim of ignorance and impulsiveness. The path of China’s opening up to the world and modernization has been so tortuous and fraught with setbacks. Such history is indeed worth deep reflection.

In May 2013, the State Council issued the *Notice on the Approval and Announcement of the Seventh Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units*, in which Yanzhou Catholic Church was included.

Further Reading:

· Third Batch of Shandong Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units

· Third Batch of Jining Municipal Cultural Relics Protection Units

· Seventh Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units