Church of St Francis in Rethymnon

Continuing on our tour of the old town of Rethymnon, we come to another historic building, the church of St Francis or Agios Frangiskos, as it is known in Rethymnon.

The church of St Francis was built in the Venetian period as the Franciscan Friary church. It is a single-aisled basilica with a wooden roof and an ornate Renaissance doorway in the Corinthian style. Two chapels are also preserved east of the church.

The Turks converted the building into a poorhouse. They also built a girls’ school next door in 1796 but the original building has been destroyed. The old school visible today – and still used as a primary school – was built in 1890.