Faschevka - This is a fairly large village in the Shklovsky district, Mogilev region. The first mention of the town in the annals dates back to the 17th century, then it was the possession of Sigismund III Vasa. Unfortunately, the main and most important attraction in Fashchevka has not survived to this day - Church of the Epistle of the Holy Spirit (in some sources the Church of the Virgin Mary). What the baroque church looked like can be seen in the picture Napoleon Orda, as well as on old photographs of the first half of the 20th century.
Jesuit Church in Fashchevka began to build in 1756, on the site of a wooden predecessor temple. The work was hard and took about 12 years, according to rumors, the Jesuit monks at the very end of construction no longer had enough money and they were asked from the Queen of England herself.
В 1768 year the church was solemnly opened, at that time it was one of the highest churches in the territory Belarus.
There is a curious fact: the bricks for the temple were made in the neighboring village of Gorodishche, and in order to deliver the material to the construction site, the workers passed it one to one, lining up in a huge chain.
By its architecture Fashchevskiy church was a prime example of the late Baroque style. It had two four-tiered towers, a complex facade decorated with cornices, arched niches and false columns. On the sides there were high sacristies, which gave the volume of the temple the shape of a cross.
Interestingly, the Jesuit monks from Rome itself even brought to Fashchevka relics of Saint Simplician. Column in memory of this saint, it was installed at the local cemetery.
The church was not closed in the 19th century, even after the uprising of 1863, as was the case with many other Catholic churches, but operated until 1937.
After the end of the Second World War, they tried to convert the temple into a club, but this idea was not well received by the locals. As a result, the building stood in a semi-abandoned form for about 20 years, until the order came to blow it up.
They tried to blow up the church four times, but the walls did not give in. Therefore, specialists from St. Petersburg were called in, who on December 25, 1967, blew up the temple with 150 charges.
Thus ended the history of this monumental structure. A memorial cross was erected on the site where the Church of the Message of the Holy Spirit was located.
If you are in these parts, I recommend that you stop by the city of Shklov, where you can see unique shopping arcade with town hall.