History of the structure

The village of Swarzędz was first mentioned as Swarancz or Swanrancz in 1366 as the property of the Górka family of the Łodzia coat of arms. In 1592 the village became the property of Mikołaj from Srebrna Góra, and in the following years it was owned by the Czarnkowski family of the Nałęcz coat of arms. On 28 September 1638 Swarzędz was granted municipal rights as the town of Grzymałów by its then owner Zygmunt Grudziński (of the Grzymała coat of arms), Governor of Inowrocław and Kalisz. The charter based on Magdeburg Law was issued by him at the castle in Kórnik and then confirmed by King Władysław IV. However, the name Grzymałów was not preserved. The town took its name Swarzędz from the neighbouring village.

The original wooden church in Swarzędz was replaced in the 16th century by a brick church built by the Górka family. In 1777 it was rebuilt by Teodor Rożmiński.

 In 1851 the church tower was built. In the years 1894-1896 the church was expanded through the efforts of Father Dean Dambek by adding a transept, sacristy and porch. In 1966, thanks to the efforts of parish priest Bogdan Podhalański, the interior was decorated with polychrome by Łucja and Józef Oźminów made in al fresco technique

Description of the structure

The Parish Church of St. Martin is situated to the north-west of the main square in Swarzędz. It is an oriented church, built of brick arranged in the Gothic bond, with a single nave, a lower and narrower chancel topped with a semi-circular arch closed and a transept, with porches adjoining on the western side and annexes on the eastern side. From the west a three-storey tower is adjacent to the nave, topped with a conical cupola with a sphere and cross on a volute-shaped base. The church is covered with gable roofs, and the arms of the transept with a three-pitched roof.

The interior of the church is closed with a wooden ceiling in the nave and a hemispherical vault over the chancel. The chancel was separated from the nave by a semicircular rood beam. The arms of the transept open towards the nave with semicircular arcades. The church houses the chapels of Our Lady of Częstochowa and St. Joseph, the patron of the town specializing in carpentry.

Visitor access: The church is open to visitors from the outside.

Author of the note: Tomasz Łuczak, 25.09.2017

Bibliography

• Janusz Tomala, Murowana architektura romańska i gotycka w Wielkopolsce, Vol. 1: Architektura sakralna, Kalisz 2007, p. 410.
• Wielkopolska. Słownik krajoznawczy, ed. Łęcki Włodzimierz, Poznań 2002, pp. 346-347.