Churches & monasteries

Church of St. Roch and St. John the Baptist in Brochów

Among the fields of western Mazovia, on the edge of the Kampinos Forest, stands the church of St Roch and St John the Baptist — a Renaissance fortress-church and the place of baptism of Fryderyk Chopin. It was built in 1551–1561 funded by Jan Brochowski, wojski (royal officer) of Warsaw and owner of the village.

A stronghold for prayer

The design was made by Jan Baptysta Wenecjanin (Giovanni Battista the Venetian), a master builder also active in Płock, Brok and Pułtusk. The result was a Gothic-Renaissance, three-aisled basilica flanked by three massive cylindrical towers — two at the western corners embracing a wide narthex, and one over the presbytery. Around the church runs a two-storey tunnel gallery with gun loopholes, and the interior is covered by a barrel vault decorated with a network of coffers and rich polychromy.

Chopin's baptism

It was in this church that the composer's parents — Mikołaj Chopin and Justyna Tekla née Krzyżanowska — were married, and in April 1810 the newly born Fryderyk was baptized here. The parish already existed in Brochów in the 12th century, under the rule of Władysław Herman, and from 1304 the village belonged to the Prawdzic family, later the Brochowskis.

Practical information

The church stands in the village of Brochów in Sochaczew county, most easily reached from Sochaczew. As a parish church it is open during services, and the defensive gallery is best admired from the outside, in the shade of the surrounding trees.