Church of Sts Peter and Paul in Krotoszyn

On the Small Market Square in Krotoszyn stands the Baroque Church of the Apostles Peter and Paul – the former church of the Trinitarians, an order that ransomed Christian captives. The brick church was funded in the 1760s by Ludwika Potocka née Mniszech, and its most surprising feature is a boat-shaped pulpit complete with mast, billowing sail, oars, anchor and nets. Next door stands the former monastery, now home to the Regional Museum.

History: from wooden parish church to Trinitarian church

The first, wooden church of this dedication was founded in 1419 by the town's founder, Wierzbięta of the Łodzia coat of arms, together with Krotoszyn's first parish school. St Peter's keys in the town's coat of arms recall the church's early importance. In 1601 the parish moved to another church, and in the 17th century the fire-damaged wooden church fell into decline.

In 1731 the owner of Krotoszyn, the Voivode of Kyiv Józef Potocki, brought in the Trinitarians and gave them the wooden church; two years later he funded a monastery building. The Krotoszyn house was the order's westernmost in the Polish lands. In 1766 Potocki's widow had the wooden church pulled down and a brick one built; construction took seven years and the design is attributed to the architect Karol Marcin Frantz. After the Prussian authorities dissolved the order in 1819, the church served German Catholics and the garrison, among others, and in 1921–1939 it was the garrison church of the 56th Greater Poland Infantry Regiment. A parish was established here in 1925.

What to see

The single-nave church, with its varied massing and rounded corners, has a two-bay nave and a chancel closed by a semicircular apse, and to the west a tower topped by a cupola with a lantern. The uniform late-Baroque interior dates from 1772–1775. Besides the boat pulpit, look for the image of Our Lady of Krotoszyn from the early 16th century – the oldest surviving painting in town, dating from the time of the first church.

Did you know?

The former monastery of around 1733 has a remarkable biography. From 1836 to 1881 it housed a secondary school that grew into Krotoszyn's grammar school and a girls' high school – Marian Langiewicz, later dictator of the January Uprising, studied here, and his bust stands nearby. The building later became barracks, and since 1969 it has housed the Regional Museum.

Tripto tips

The church and the museum stand side by side on the Small Market Square in the town centre, so both visits combine easily. The church interior takes 15–20 minutes. It is an active parish church, so plan your visit outside Mass times.