Original scientific paper
Valpovo’s parish church and the court chapel from 1722 to 1736
Ljerka Perči
Abstract
After 34 years under Chamber management, the Valpovo Manor was given to Court and Chamber Advisor Baron Peter Anton Hilleprand von Prandau on New Year’s Eve of 1721. The new owner was initiated into the Manor in the spring of 1722. The Baron, at the time a trained lawyer with twenty years of service in imperial bodies behind him and with the knowhow of a financial specialist, was 46 years old, married, and the father of three daughters of different ages. He was faced with the task of renovating mills, bakeries, and inns in various parts of the manor. He supervised his subjects, took their well-being and safety to heart, maintained the roads and two crossings over the river Drava, and was in charge of lumber and firewood shipping.
It had been clear since the Baron’s first stay at the Manor that he had a vision of renovating the medieval fort and building a castle with a court chapel dedicated to the Holy Trinity. He chose the Throne of Mercy as the topic of the altar painting. Dividing the construction of the castle’s south façade and the two lateral wings into several phases, he demonstrated his extraordinary organization skills, and further proved them in his organization of the administration subordinated to him. Continuous written reports always kept him knowledgeable about everything that was going on in between his visits to the Manor in the spring and in the autumn. The Baron’s patronage of the parish churches and chapels on the entire Manor obligated him to help keep the buildings in good repair. The first alms reports and church vessel inventory lists date from 1724/25, informing us, among other things, that he helped build and equip the parish church in Valpovo over a period of five years by donating half of the required funds. The altar was delivered in 1737. He cooperated with the Franciscans from the monastery in Našice, who performed the parish priest duties at the Manor, and built a rectory for them in Valpovo. The Baron also personally defined the architectural interventions on the Church in Valpovo.
The paper analyzes parts of archival materials from the HR-DAOS 476 fund, pertaining to the first fifteen years, in which period the new owner of the Valpovo Manor, Baron P. A. Hilleprand von Prandau, started, among other things, extensive architectural modifications of the medieval fort. Noting the present level to which this enormous fund was researched in the aforementioned period, the author describes and analyzes new sources that indicate very clearly that the Baron had played the key role in every stage of castle and chapel remodeling. Using his acquaintanceships and connections in Vienna, he ordered plans and subjected them to various controls. The Baron sought recognized experts in other provinces and
hired them for various tasks at the Manor. Various luxury goods and valuable church vestments were often delivered from Vienna.
Keywords
Valpovo; feudal manor; Baron P. A. Hilleprand von Prandau; court chapel; parish church in Valpovo; Franciscans of Našice
Hrčak ID:
61446
URI
Publication date:
1.10.2009.
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