St. Francis of Assisi Church, Vienna

The Franz-von-Assisi-Kirche stands on Mexikoplatz in Vienna’s Second District, a brick basilica with three red-tiled towers built between 1898 and 1910. Designed by architect Victor Luntz in the Rhenish-Romanese style, it was meant as a garrison church to mark Emperor Franz Joseph I’s fifty years on the throne. The church overlooks the Danube and is now home to the Vienna English Speaking Catholic Community, which has held weekly masses there since 2009. Mexikoplatz itself was renamed to recall Mexico’s protest against Austria’s annexation by Nazi Germany. The church’s towers remain visible several kilometres away across the city. Inside, the Elisabethkapelle honours Empress Elisabeth, known as Sisi, who was assassinated in 1898. The octagonal chapel is modelled on the Palatine Chapel in Aachen and rises 13.5 metres high. It was financed largely by the Red Cross, of which the empress had been the first protector, donating 348,348 crowns. The walls are clad in marble and the vaults covered in gold mosaics designed by Secession artist Carl Ederer. A large mosaic of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary crowns the chancel. The church’s exterior combines brickwork with Romanesque arches and round windows. The interior features marble columns and a spacious nave lit by tall, narrow windows. The Elisabethkapelle’s golden mosaics reflect light from the chancel vault, creating a quiet glow. Outside, Mexikoplatz offers views toward the Danube and the city beyond. The square’s history and the church’s architecture together make it a notable stop in Leopoldstadt.