Padua.Santa Croce Church
Santa Croce is a Roman Catholic church located on Corso Vittorio Emanuele 178 in Padua, Region of Veneto. The church arose adjacent to the oratory of Sant Croce or “Sala del Redentore”. A chapel at the site, adjacent to a leprosarium was dedicated to the Holy Cross is documented in 1181. The church became a parish in 1308. In 1606, the parish came under the rule of the Somaschi Fathers, who established a school at this site. The commission to build the present Rococo style church was given to a lay brother of the order, Francesco Vecelli (1695 - 1759). Construction began in 1737 and was completed in 1749. Under Napoleonic rule, the Somaschi were expelled and the church came under control of secular clergy. The belltower was built in 1907.