Church of St. James of Levoča

The St. James Parish Church is one of the most beautiful medieval churches in historical Hungary and the largest in the Spiš region. The three-nave church began to be built in the Romanesque style in 1245. It was built for nearly 100 years, and in the meantime it was gradually rebuilt into a Gothic-style pseudo-basilic layout. In the first half of the 14th century, two chapels were added, and at the end of the 15th century, a vestibule was added. It burned down in 1550 and 1599, and its tower also collapsed in the former fire. Its current tower was built in 1858. In 1626, the Protestants had its organ made. In the 16th and 17th centuries, floors were added to the chapels. In the first half of the 19th century, its roof burned down, it was covered in 1849, and its tower was repaired at the end of the 19th century. Its altars are among the most beautiful works of medieval wood sculpture. Its main altar (St. James Altar) was created by master Pál Levoča in 1502, and with its height of 18.62 m, it is one of the most beautiful and largest Gothic altars in the world. In addition to the main altar, there are 10 more late Gothic (St. Nicholas, St. Catherine, Three Kings, St. Anna, Vir Dolorum, St. John, St. Peter and Paul, Our Lady of the Snows, St. Nicholas, St. Elizabeth) and 3 Baroque (14 saints, Good Shepherd, Birth of the Child) altars decorating the square. ; Its original frescoes (the 7 mercies, the 7 deadly sins, the legend of St. Dorothy) were restored by Ferenc Storno in the second half of the 19th century. Since the church windows were in very poor condition, György Császka, then Bishop of Spiš, also initiated their renovation. He ordered three windows from the Tyrolean Glasmalerei und Cathedralen-Glashütte company in Innsbruck. The windows were delivered in 1876 and installed that year and the following year. The windows depict Saint Stephen and Saint Ladislaus, while the third has only a coffered inlay. The other windows were made by glass artist Ede Kratzmann. The windows depict Saint George, Saint Martin, the Immaculate Virgin, Saint James, Saint Joseph, and Saint John the Evangelist. In the baptismal chapel, Saint Francis Xavier and the Divine Heart can be seen behind the altar of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Havas. ; The Thurzó Chapel contains the tombs of the Thurzós. The only child of Imre Thököly and Ilona Zrínyi was also buried here. ; The church is now Roman Catholic, but between 1544 and 1674 it was used by the Lutheran population of Levant. The pulpit and the organ were also built at that time. In 1626, the Transylvanian prince Gábor Bethlen spent Christmas in Levant. At that time, in the spirit of the Reformation, a service was held in Hungarian. For the solemn occasion, a separate gallery was built opposite the pulpit for Gábor Bethlen and his entourage.