St George's Basilica in Ziębice

In German the church was called "Münster auf dem Berge", the minster on the hill, and the town itself Münsterberg. St George's Basilica has towered over the town since the second half of the 13th century, with a separate, free-standing bell tower beside it. In 2024 the church was declared a Monument of History, Poland's highest heritage status; since 2008 it has been a minor basilica and a sanctuary of the Passion.

History: church of the dukes of Ziębice

From 1322 to 1521 Ziębice was the seat of a local branch of the Piast dynasty, and this was their parish church. The western body was built around 1270; during restoration in 1898–1900 fragments of an even older Romanesque building from the second quarter of the 13th century were found under the chancel. In the 14th century a sacristy was added on the south, later turned into St George's Chapel. In 1420–1423 Duke John of Ziębice funded the Lady Chapel on the north side, and in the second half of the 15th century the Gothic free-standing bell tower was built. The church was thoroughly restored around 1900. Today it is a two-aisled building with two stepped Romanesque-Gothic portals, a Gothic chancel and the 15th-century Lady Chapel.

What to see

• The north portal from the 13th century – pointed and richly carved. A similar south portal was made around 1900.
• 15th-century frescoes in the chancel (a Biblia Pauperum), preserved in original form behind the high altar, and paintings of 1530 with Passion scenes on the east wall of the nave.
• A Mannerist stone pulpit of about 1595, carried by figures of Moses and angels, with reliefs of the Evangelists and Apostles.
• The epitaph of Duke Charles I of Poděbrady from 1542, a Renaissance panel painting of Christ on the Mount of Olives.
• The high altar of 1703, made for Bardo and sold to Ziębice in 1715 together with paintings by Michael Willmann.
• A Gothic sacrament house, a 15th-century crucifix and a Madonna and Child in the Lady Chapel.
• Six carved tombstones of nobles from the mid-16th century under the organ gallery.

Did you know?

The stained glass was made around 1900 by Alexander Linnemann of Frankfurt am Main. Johannes Otto von Münsterberg, rector of Charles University in Prague in 1398 and the first rector of Leipzig University, came from Ziębice.

Tripto tip

The basilica stands right by the market square, about a hundred metres from the town hall with the town museum. Walk around the outside first to see the north portal and the bell tower, then go in, ideally outside Mass times. Allow 30–45 minutes for the interior. The Paczków Gate and town walls are a few minutes away.