Maltese Church

The Catholic Church of the Order of Malta is located in the Inner City of Vienna on Kerntnerstrasse 37. Nearby is the Austrian Grand Priory of the Order of Malta. The history of the Maltese Church dates back to 1217. Then, on this site, a small Gothic church was originally built in honor of St. John the Baptist. From the middle of the XV century it was rebuilt.

The present building of the temple was erected in the XVIII century in the Baroque style, pilasters and a small tower appeared, an organ was installed. The central place is occupied by the main gilded altar with a mural, the creation of the famous architect Johann Georg Schmidt in 1730. On the sides of the altar are statues of Saints Peter and Paul, above the altar figure of angels. The magnificent stained glass windows of the Maltese Church have been adorning it since 1857.

In 1933, due to financial difficulties, the Order of Malta sold the church building to the Diocese of Vienna. Since 1960, the Maltese Church was bought back and an active restoration of the facade of the temple, the interior, the main altar began, which lasted until 1998.

In the Maltese church is buried Jean Parisot de La Valette, a Maltese hero who distinguished himself in the war with the Turks.