Chiesa russa ortodossa di Sant'Ambrogio

Chiesa russa ortodossa di Sant'Ambrogio stands in Milan as a historic church shaped by several centuries of change. Its earliest construction dates to the twelfth century. After serving as a parish church from the fourteenth century, the building underwent a Baroque renovation in 1621. Cardinal Federico Borromeo commissioned architect Gian Pietro Orobono to lead the work. Corinthian pilasters frame the façade, while Bartolomeo della Rovere designed its 1626 portal.

Inside, a single nave rises beneath a barrel vault, with two side chapels on each side. A rectangular presbytery leads to a small apse. The church lost many paintings after its deconsecration in 1938, including works once attributed to Carlo Francesco Nuvolone and Melchiorre Gherardini. Simone Peterzano painted the Madonna with Saint Margaret and Saint Francis in the late sixteenth century. The Fiammenghini brothers covered the apse vault with stuccoes and frescoes.

The Russian Orthodox Church in Italy received the building in 2007, establishing the parish of Sant'Ambrogio. Orthodox worship now connects this Milanese interior with the Russian Orthodox community. Milan has one other Russian Orthodox parish, dedicated to Saints Sergio, Serafino, and Vincenzo.