It is a testimony of the rich history of the Roman Catholic Church in the town. It has retained its original medieval structure, which makes it one of the oldest wooden churches in the region. The wooden 18th-century bell tower is a relic of the original Kłodawa church of St. Giles, which was erected in the 11th century as a votive offering by Prince Władysław Herman.

History of the structure

The area around Kłodawa has been inhabited since prehistory. The first traces of settlement in the area of Kłodawa date back to 4000 B.C. and are connected with the Danube culture. The next phases of the settlement are connected with the Bronze Age and the early Iron Age and the Przeworsk culture. In addition, a cemetery of the Lusatian culture was discovered in the so-called Old Kłodawa (in the vicinity of Witanowskiego and 11 Listopada Streets). In the early Middle Ages, settlement in the area became more intense. In 1383, Kłodawa was mentioned in documents as a town. At that time it was the property of Bartosz Wezenborg granted by the Prince of Masovia Siemowit IV. After the political defeat of Siemowit, who aspired to the Polish crown, and the coronation of Jadwiga Andegaweńska, Kłodawa became a royal town and the seat of a non-town starosty. Kłodawa was granted municipal rights under Magdeburg Law by King Władysław Jagiełło in 1430. In the following decades the town developed thanks to the kindness of Polish kings. In 1455 Kazimierz Jagiellończyk freed Kłodawa from customs duties and market fees, and after the plague of 1464 and the fire of 1465 he helped to rebuild the town and built a hospital there. The town especially gained during the reign of Sigismund I the Old, thanks to further concessions introduced by him, whereas his wife, Queen Bona Sforza, brought clothiers to Kłodawa. During the Swedish Deluge Kłodawa was burnt down by Swedish troops, which led to an almost complete depopulation of the town.

The original church of St. Giles, according to tradition erected by Władysław Herman in 1085 as a votive offering for the birth of his son, survived until 1819, when it was demolished. It was located to the southwest of the present market square, in the area of the present park. Written confirmation of its existence comes only from 1332. In 1429, after the Canons Regular of the Lateran were brought to Kłodawa, the church was raised to the rank of a monastic collegiate church. In the years 1516-1762 the collegiate church school had the status of a branch of the Krakow Academy. The church itself was demolished in 1818. The Canons Regular of the Lateran administered the parish until 1810, when the congregation was abolished. Bricks obtained from the demolition of the collegiate church were then used to build the town hall. In 1623, a monastery of the Carmelites was erected in Kłodawa, founded by Franciszek Krzykowski of the Junosza coat of arms. The monastery church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary was built in the second half of the 18th century. The wooden bell tower was moved to the parish cemetery next to the church of St. Fabian and St. Sebastian. In 1867 Kłodawa was deprived of its municipal rights by the Russian partitioning authorities.

The church of St. Fabian and St. Sebastian was erected in the parish cemetery in 1557. It belonged to the Corpus Christi hospital provost until 1593, subordinated to the parish provost. In the 3rd quarter of the 18th century the roof truss and the structure of the western gable of the main nave were replaced. During the renovation carried out in 1846-1847, thanks to the efforts of Fr Alberski, a porch with a vestibule and a ridge turret were added to the main nave from the west. The temple served as a parish church from 1846 to 1879. In 1972-1976, the church underwent a full-scale renovation, during which the foundations were rebuilt, the roof trusses and ceilings were completed, wooden shingles were put on the roof, new floors were laid in the interiors, and the interior polychrome was restored. The bell tower was erected in the 18th century at the parish church of St. Giles. After its demolition in 1818, it was moved to its present location in the parish cemetery. It was renovated in 1976, at which time the wall boarding was replaced and shingles were put on the roof.

Description of the structure

The St. Sebastian cemetery church complex is located in the southwestern part of the town on the grounds of the Roman Catholic cemetery. The oriented church was built of larch wood in a log construction on a stone foundation. The single nave is joined to the east by a narrower and lower triangularly closed chancel, and to the west by a lower, impressive porch built on a rectangular floor plan with a small annex on the north side. Adjoining the chancel from the north is a lower, probably 16th century sacristy. The gable roof of the nave, the pent roof of the chancel, the triple-pitched roof of the porch and the shed roof of the sacristy are covered with shingles. At the western end of the nave roof rises a wooden cuboidal ridge turret topped with a lantern with a bulbous cupola and a cross. The walls of the church are boarded with vertical planking. Contemporary woodwork was installed in the rectangular window and door openings. The interior of the church is covered with a flat ceiling, common for the nave and the chancel. The chancel is separated from the nave by a chamfered rood beam with a Rococo crucifix. In the western part of the nave there is a choir gallery supported on two pillars with a simple window sill and a balustrade. The furnishings include a Rococo main altar and 19th century side altars.

A wooden bell tower of pillar construction was erected on a rectangular floor plan northeast of the church by the entrance gate to the cemetery. Reinforced in the ground floor with diagonal posts and boarded with vertical planking, the walls are covered with a shingle tented roof topped with a small cross. Double rectangular windows with horizontal blinds are located in the upper part of the building.

Visitor access: The church and bell tower are open to visitors from the outside.

Author of the note: Tomasz Łuczak, 19.03.2018

Bibliography

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