| Saints Martin and Sebastian of the Swiss | |
|---|---|
| Santi Martino e Sebastiano degli Svizzeri | |
 View of the façade of the church. | |
 Click on the map for a fullscreen view | |
| 41°54′12.19″N012°27′24.2″E / 41.9033861°N 12.456722°E /41.9033861; 12.456722 | |
| Location | Vatican City,Rome |
| Country | Italy |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Website | www |
| History | |
| Status | Oratory, national church |
| Architecture | |
| Architect | Nanni di Baccio Bigio |
| Architectural type | Church |
| Style | Renaissance |
| Completed | 1568[2] |
| Specifications | |
| Length | 12 metres (39 ft) |
| Width | 9 metres (30 ft) |
| Clergy | |
| Cardinal protector | Alain de Raemy[1] |
TheChurch of Saints Martin and Sebastian of the Swiss (Italian:Santi Martino e Sebastiano degli Svizzeri) is aRoman Catholicoratory inVatican City. The church was built byPope Pius V in 1568 to serve as a private chapel for thePontifical Swiss Guards, whose barracks are located next toPorta San Pellegrino, close to theApostolic Palace.[2] It is considered thenational church ofSwitzerland in Rome.
The chapel is conveniently located on the path taken every day by the Guards from their barracks to Portone di Bronzo. It is accessible for the guards, day and night. Baptisms and marriages of members of the Guard can also be celebrated with the permission of the priest of the parish ofSaint Anne in Vatican.
The Swiss Guards arrived at the service of the Pope in Rome in 1506.Pope Pius V ordered the construction of a chapel strictly reserved for the Guards behind the bastion of Nicholas V. The construction of the building dates back to 1568 under the direction of architectNanni di Baccio Bigio.[1] The church was dedicated toSaint Martin of Tours andSaint Sebastian, both soldiers. (The patron saint of Switzerland, however, isNicholas of Flüe, who was canonized in 1947 byPope Pius XII.) Saint Martin was an officer in the Roman army who withdrew to the ascetic and monastic life after his conversion. Saint Sebastian was appointed as a captain of the Praetorian Guard of Roman emperorsDiocletian andMaximian and was martyred.
Until the 1648Peace of Westphalia, the German-speaking Swiss Guards gathered in the church ofSanta Maria della Pietà in Campo Santo Teutonico, where there was a side altar reserved for them.[3] From 1657 to 1977,[4] the Guards also used the church ofSaint Peregrine in the Vatican (Italian:San Pellegrino in Vaticano) for their religious services.[5][6][7]
The classical façade consists of four largeDoric columns supporting anentablature, but the inscription"Pius V P.M." mentioned by Forcella has disappeared.[8] Thepediment, which does not occupy the entireroofline, is decorated with the arms of Pius V. The doorway is surmounted by a small triangular pediment, surmounted by a largeporthole.[9] In 1999 the building was enlarged with a forum.[1]
The chapel was decorated with frescoes byGiulio Mazzoni, a pupil ofVasari.[10][11] The frescoes were renovated in the years 1727–1728 byCarlo Roncelli and were finally removed in 1967 for conservation purposes and stored in theVatican Museums.[12] The frescoes over the altar representGod the Father, while in the right-hand niche is St. Sebastian, and in the left one St. Martin. The altarpiece represents the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary. On the right wall, near the altar, Jesus Christ is depicted on the cross, surrounded bySt. Peter andSt. John the Evangelist; on the left is the Virgin Mary with St. Anne and the child Jesus. Mazzoni collaborated with stuccoistFerrante Moreschi, who had made part of thestucco of theSala Regia in 1565.[13][14]
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)Chiesina del rione XIV., Borgo, posta presso il quartiere delle guardie svizzere al Vaticano. Essa fu edificata da s. Pio V. nel 1568
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
