Franciscan Monastery in Łódź-Łagiewniki

Long before Łódź became an industrial city, pilgrims were already heading to the shrine of St Anthony in Łagiewniki on its northern edge. This Baroque Franciscan complex, with a brick church consecrated in 1726, began with a wooden votive chapel and a story about a carpenter who saw the saint. Blessed Rafał Chyliński is buried here, and Łagiewniki Forest starts just beyond the wall.

History: from a votive chapel to a shrine

The first wooden chapel of St Anthony was built in 1676 at the initiative of the estate owner, Samuel Żeleski. According to tradition he had two reasons: a cattle plague, during which a relative advised him to seek St Anthony's help, and the saint's appearance to Jerzy, a carpenter who was building a mill for him. The official foundation date is 18 March 1681, when the papal nuncio declared Łagiewniki a miraculous place and entrusted it to the Franciscans. The wooden church was blessed on 29 August 1683.

The foundation stone of the brick church was laid in 1701, and construction lasted until 1723. On 16 May 1726 Primate Teodor Potocki consecrated it to St Anthony. The brick monastery was built in 1733–1748 with pilgrims' donations. Łagiewniki was one of the best-known shrines of St Anthony in the Kingdom of Poland, drawing the faithful from Pomerania, Silesia and even Bohemia and Moravia.

Suppression, war and return

After the January Uprising against Russian rule, the monastery was dissolved on 8 November 1864. One of the friars, Józef Sawicki, was executed for taking part in the uprising. The Franciscans returned in December 1918, but it took years to recover the building. During the Second World War the Germans used the church as a warehouse and set up car and tank repair workshops in the monastery; several nearby chapels were also pulled down. Since 1978 the Franciscan seminary has operated here.

What to look for

• The miraculous painting of St Anthony, almost entirely covered by an 18th-century silver cover; its original appearance is no longer known.
• The chapel of Blessed Rafał Chyliński on the north-east side, with the relics of the friar who lived here in 1728–1736 and 1738–1741. John Paul II beatified him in Warsaw on 9 June 1991.
• The original chapel "by the pond", moved about 800 m from the church, deep into Łagiewniki Forest.

Tripto tip

This is a working parish church and shrine, so visit outside services; the monastery posts current Mass times on its website. Allow 45–60 minutes for the church and grounds, or about 2 hours if you add a walk to the forest chapel. It pairs well with a walk in Łagiewniki Forest, which begins right behind the monastery.