Chiesa del Gesu (Church of Jesus), Lecce

The Church of Jesus is situated in the historical center of Lecce. It served as the headquarters for the Society of Jesus for many centuries. Construction of the church began in 1575 to accommodate the Jesuits who arrived in the city. The religious edifice, designed by Giovanni De Rosis, a Jesuit from Como, opened for worship in 1577.

The architecture of the building was inspired by the Church of Jesus in Rome, which is considered the main church of the Jesuit order. The facade is simple and linear, divided into two sections with volutes connecting them. It features double rows of pilasters interrupted by a projecting entablature.

The interior follows a Latin cross plan with a short transept and four interconnected chapels on each side of the central nave. The wooden coffered ceiling is adorned with canvases depicting the Glories of the Society of Jesus by Giuseppe da Brindisi.

Inside the church, valuable paintings and sculptures are dating from the late 16th century to the early 19th century. The left side of the church contains the altars of Madonna di Loreto with a 17th-century statue of Madonna, San Girolamo with a canvas by painter Girolamo Imparato, San Michele Arcangelo (1746), and the Annunciation with a canvas dating back to 1596.

The presbytery area houses the impressive main altar made of Lecce stone, constructed in 1699 and attributed to sculptor Giuseppe Cino. At the base of the altar, there is an 18th-century walnut wooden choir added by the Benedictines of Montescaglioso, who took over the church after the suppression of the Jesuits.