St Kinga's Chapel in Stary Sącz

A few hundred metres from the Poor Clares' convent in Stary Sącz, beside a spring that legend says was found by St Kinga herself, stands a small masonry chapel from 1779. It replaced an older chapel and was built in thanksgiving for healings reported during the princess's beatification process. It is a short but meaningful stop in the town Kinga chose for the last years of her life.

The spring under the lime tree

According to tradition, Kinga discovered a miraculous spring here beneath a lime tree. The water has drawn locals and pilgrims for centuries; the stories of its healing power belong to the religious tradition of the place rather than to medical fact. The beatification process, during which witnesses described graces received, ended in 1690, when the Holy See declared Kinga Blessed. The chapel itself is a modest piece of sacred architecture – brick-built, with a small altar.

Kinga and Stary Sącz

A Hungarian princess of the Árpád dynasty and wife of the Polish duke Bolesław the Chaste, Kinga founded the convent of Poor Clares in Stary Sącz by a charter of 6 July 1280 after her husband's death and joined the order herself. She died here on 24 July 1292; her relics rest in a silver casket in the convent church beneath a Gothic statue from about 1470. On 16 June 1999 Pope John Paul II canonised her at a Mass in Stary Sącz. Since 2019 the whole historic town with the convent has been a Monument of History, Poland's top heritage designation.

Tripto tip

Follow St Kinga's Route (Trakt św. Kingi): from the convent turn just before the tower in the wall, head downhill into Bandurskiego Street, then turn right again below the chapel. The stop itself takes 10–15 minutes, so combine it with the convent church and the market square. You view the chapel from outside; it is a place of prayer, so keep quiet. Don't drink the spring water without checking current advice on its quality.