St. Nicholas Church in Chełmża

Between Sądowa and Strzelecka streets, a few steps from the market square of Chełmża, stands the church of St. Nicholas — the oldest sacred monument in town, built before 1248. This Gothic brick building yields in importance only to the co-cathedral by Lake Chełmżyńskie.

A church with a turbulent past

The three-nave, oriented church is crowned by a Teutonic-type tower with a hipped roof and a lantern on top. Damage was repaired after 1422, and in the 19th century the church was remodelled with Neo-Gothic additions. From 1827 to 1945 it belonged to the Protestant community; after 1945 it first served as a school church, between 1950 and 1953 it was temporarily the parish church, and today it is a filial church. Originally it was the town's parish and cemetery church.

Furnishings and memorials

The interior has a pseudo-basilican layout with two chapels, dedicated to St. Lawrence and St. Barbara. Noteworthy are the Mannerist high altar, a medieval granite stoup and tomb slabs from the 17th and 18th centuries set into the walls. Three steel bells from the first half of the 20th century hang in the tower.

In practice

The church stands on Mikołaja Kopernika Street, about 300 metres from the market square and the co-cathedral, so one walk covers the town's two oldest monuments and leads down to the lakeshore. Allow 20–30 minutes for the interior.