Świdnica Cathedral

The St. Stanislaus and St. Wenceslaus Cathedral^[2] (Polish: Katedra św. Stanisława i św. Wacława), also called Świdnica Cathedral, is a historical monument and a main Catholic building in Świdnica, Poland.^[3][4]

St. Stanislaus and St. Wenceslaus Cathedral
Katedra św. Stanisława i św. Wacława
50.8411°N 16.4919°E / 50.8411; 16.4919
Location	Świdnica
Country	Poland
Denomination	Roman Catholic Church
Website	www.katedra.swidnica.pl
History
Dedication	St. Stanislaus and Wenceslaus I
Administration
Diocese	Roman Catholic Diocese of Świdnica
Historic Monument of Poland
Designated	2017-03-15
Reference no.	Dz. U. z 2017 r. poz. 655[1]

History

Interior

Construction of the current church began in 1330 at the behest of Duke Bolko II of Świdnica, following a fire that destroyed a wooden building that stood there. The new building, in Gothic style, was designed as a three-aisled basilica with a slender Gothic tower that measures 102 meters, the largest in the region.^[5] Between 1400 and 1410 the building was expanded. In years 1535-1546 the church was renovated after it was greatly damaged in the fire of 1532.^{[citation needed]}

From 1561 to 1629 the church was owned by Protestants^{[citation needed]}. From 1662 it belonged to the Jesuits who in the years 1671-1688 have added to it baroque furniture and decorations that still characterize its interior.^[5] With the gradual expulsion of the Jesuits of Prussian Silesia, the church was secularized in 1772 and the Prussian authorities converted it into a barn.^{[citation needed]}

The church was renovated between 1893 and 1895^[5] but lost many of its original architectural features. On March 25, 2004, with the bull Multos fructus, of Pope John Paul II, established the Catholic Diocese of Świdnica, and the building became the cathedral.^[6]

See also

• Roman Catholicism in Poland
• St. Stanislaus

References

1. Rozporządzenie Prezydenta Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej z dnia 15 marca 2017 r. w sprawie uznania za pomnik historii "Świdnica - katedra pod wezwaniem św. Stanisława Biskupa i Męczennika i św. Wacława Męczennika", Dz. U., 2017, No. 655
2. Cathedral of St. Stanislaus and St. Wenceslaus
3. Czerwiński, Janusz (1989). Wrocław i okolice. Warsaw: Wydawnictwo Sport i Turystyka. ISBN 83-217-2279-2.
4. Dobrzeniecki, Tadeusz (1976). Sztuka sakralna w Polsce na Ziemiach Zachodnich i Północnych. Ars Christiana.
5. "Świdnica – the church of Saint Stanislaus and Saint Wenceslaus". Szlaki Kulturowe. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
6. "Podstawowe informacje". Diecezja świdnicka (in Polish). Retrieved 3 January 2019.