S. Antonio di Padova Catholic Church

About S. Antonio di Padova Catholic Church

Church of the Roman Catholic Church in Istanbul

The Church of St Anthony of Padua, known in Turkish as Sent Antuan, is the largest Catholic church in Istanbul and the largest active church in Turkey, standing on İstiklal Avenue in the Beyoğlu district, slightly hidden behind its courtyard portal. Construction began on 23 August 1906 to a neo-Gothic red-brick design by the Istanbul-born Italian architect Giulio Mongeri, and the church opened for worship on 15 February 1912. It is run by Italian priests, and Mass is celebrated in Italian, Turkish, English and Polish on different days of the week. It was one of three Levantine parishes in Beyoğlu, together with St Mary Draperis, also on İstiklal Avenue, and SS Peter and Paul in Galata. The Levantines are Catholics of Italian and French descent whose presence in the city goes back to the Genoese and Venetian merchants of the Middle Ages, and many still live in Istanbul. With its Gothic facade and quiet forecourt amid the bustle of İstiklal Avenue, the church is one of the places that reveal the religious diversity of Ottoman Pera, and offers Muslim visitors an example of European church architecture in the heart of a Muslim city.

Where:

Istanbul, Türkiye