Church of Saint Charles Borromeo, Gothic Revival church in Varnsdorf, Czech Republic
The Church of Saint Charles Borromeo is a Neo-Gothic Roman Catholic church near the Saxon border in Varnsdorf. It is a three-aisled building 50 m long and 24 m wide, its interior divided by eight sandstone columns. Its main tower was never finished, so locally it is called the "church without a tower".
Fundraising for the church began in 1901, when a society was founded in Karlsdorf, then part of Warnsdorf. City architect Anton Möller drew up the designs, while builder Franz Rott from Warnsdorf carried out the work. The foundation stone was laid on 23 May 1904, and the church was consecrated on 3 September 1911. After World War I the unfinished tower was left without a roof or spire.
The church is also called Karlskirche or Borromäuskirche and is known locally as the "church without a tower" because its main tower was never completed. Regular services are no longer held here. The parish building, erected after the First Republic, later served as a kindergarten.
The church stands near the border with Saxony in the Varnsdorf district of Děčín, in the Karlsdorf quarter. No regular services are held, so visits depend on occasional events such as the Night of Churches. The unfinished tower has no roof or spire, and the garden's western edge holds a ten-pillar Way of the Cross by builder Franz Eger.
The structure holds heritage designation number 26839/5-4042 in the Czech Monument Catalogue, ensuring its preservation for future generations.
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