Church of Saints Cyril and Methodius

As a result of Brno’s development and the marked increase in its number of inhabitants at the end of the 19th century, in 1910 a society was formed for the construction of a Catholic church in the district of Židenice.

In 1914 the architect Vladimír Fischer produced one of the earliest designs for the church, but his proposals were shelved with the outbreak of the Great War. Following the end of hostilities, architectural tastes underwent rapid change, and preparations for what would have been an Art Nouveau structure were permanently dropped. 

The lack of space to worship continued, however, and on 28 October 1928 the foundation stone of the future church was ceremoniously consecrated, although an architectural competition was not launched until 1930. Nonetheless, not one of the submitted designs was approved by the competition jury. Still engaged in the process, Vladimír Fischer recommended fellow architect Klaudius Madlmayr for the commission. Madlmayr’s design was unanimously approved, and building work began in 1932. On 27 October 1935 the completed church was consecrated.  

Klaudius Madlmayr conceived the structure as a traditional Romanesque basilica, comprising an elevated central nave and two aisles, with an apsidal presbytery and elevated transept, i.e. he laid out a conservative vision much at odds with contemporaneous modernist and functionalist architectural trends. 

In the park beside the church, today you will find an in-depth exhibition on the history of the church and the parish.