The Armenian Church of Saint Stephen is an ancient temple of the Armenians of Lutsk, located at 12 Halshka Hulevychivna Street in Old Lutsk. According to various sources, it was built in 1427 or in the 16th century. Today, the building is hard to recognize as a church: after fires and rebuilds, it is an apartment building. However, it is the main landmark of the Armenian community that lived in Lutsk for centuries.
Armenians in Lutsk
Armenians settled in Lutsk back in the times of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. They were merchants and artisans, had their own iurydyka — a separate part of the city with its own self-government — and their own church. The community was prominent in the commercial life of Volyn, and the Church of Saint Stephen was its spiritual center.
Decline of the Community
In the 18th century, the Armenian community declined: at the beginning of the century, only 11 Armenian families lived in the city, and in 1789, the Armenian iurydyka was built over with gentry courtyards. After 1795, Volyn became part of the Russian Empire. Around 1820, there were probably no Armenians left in the city, and the church was seized and turned into a military warehouse. In 1845, during a major city fire, the warehouse burned down, and the ruins remained in private hands for a long time.
The Building Today
In 1954, the ruins were rebuilt into housing. It is a rectangular building up to 11 meters wide and 22.25 meters long, with a height of up to 14 meters to the ridge of the roof, and walls 1.38 meters thick. The apse of the central altar is visible as a small protrusion on the eastern wall. Interestingly, the masonry uses two types of brick: the same kind as in the 15th-century Chortoryisky Tower, and the kind used in the early 17th-century Jesuit Collegium.
How to Find It
The building stands in the old town, a few minutes' walk from Lutsk Castle and the Great Synagogue. The building is residential, so it can only be viewed from the outside. More details can be found in the article Lutsk.
