Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Zawiercie

Five red-brick towers above central Zawiercie are a reminder of the days when the town grew up around a huge cotton mill. The neo-Gothic Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul was built for the workers of the Zawiercie Joint-Stock Company (TAZ), and it was designed by the same architect who built the factory director's villa. Today it is the town's best-known building and, since 2009, a minor basilica.

History: a church for a factory town

Until the end of the 19th century Zawiercie belonged to the parish in nearby Kromołów. The idea of its own church came with the construction of the TAZ workers' estate, and the design was by the Warsaw architect Hugo Kudera (Hugon Kuder in some sources). The foundation stone was blessed on 29 September 1896 by Tomasz Kuliński, Bishop of Kielce. The church was consecrated in 1903, and a separate parish was created in Zawiercie the same year.

The church's story mirrors the town's. An organ was installed in 1909, but during the First World War the German occupiers confiscated its pipes and the bells. Between the wars the roof was covered with copper, a marble altar was built and new bells were hung – which the Germans took again during the Second World War. In 1940 the parish priest, Fr Bolesław Wajzler, was arrested and soon killed. On 27 December 1992 the church became a collegiate church, and a decree of 29 June 2009 made it a minor basilica, formally proclaimed on 18 October 2009.

What to see

• The Latin-cross plan with two tall façade towers, two smaller towers by the chancel and a bell turret over the crossing.
• Brick rose windows with stained glass above the façade portals and in the transept gables.
• The three-aisled interior divided by four pairs of piers, and the marble high altar with an image of the Divine Mercy.
• The statue of the Immaculate Virgin from 1904 in the square in front of the church, and a monument to John Paul II unveiled in 1997.
• The ornamental fence with statues of Saints Peter and Paul by the steps, added to the heritage register in 2022.

Tripto tip

The basilica at ul. Sienkiewicza 4 is a working church, so visit outside Mass times, quietly and suitably dressed; check the current service times with the parish. Allow 20–30 minutes for the exterior and interior. The best view of the whole silhouette with its five towers is from the east, behind the chancel. The Szymański Palace is a few minutes' walk away – combine both with a stroll around the TAZ estate to see how the factory planned the whole town.