During World War II the church was the place of assistance, shelter and salvation for numerous Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto.

History

A rapidly increasing number of residents of the Grzybów jurisdiction in the 19th century caused the resumption of the plans devised in the 17th century to erect a temple within its limits. A plot and funds for the construction of the church were donated by Countess Gabriela Zabiełło nee Gutakowska. The church design was prepared by Henryk Marconi and its construction began on 8 June 1861. The parish of All Saints at the constructed church was established in 1865. A year later the first service was celebrated in the lower church. The consecration took place in 1883; however, the construction was completed only ten years later.

The church and Grzybowski Square were witnesses of the evolution brought about by the early 20th century. In 1904 pacification of persons protesting against the military mobilization of the Poles to the Russian army took place. For some of them the temple became a shelter and a hospital.

The church was badly damaged during the September Campaign of 1939. During the occupation the temple found itself within the Ghetto. Rev. Marceli Godlewski was the parish priest during World War II. The prelate involved himself in providing assistance to the Jews. Plenty of Jewish families found shelter in the rectory, among others, Prof. Ludwik Hirszfeld, a physician. During the Warsaw Uprising the church building suffered further damage, including, among others, fire of the roof, collapse of the ceilings into the basement and destruction of the east tower. Valuable fixtures and fittings were destroyed along with the building. The church was rebuilt in the years 1945-1979 under the supervision of Beata Trylińska and Stanisław Marzyński. In June 1987 the inauguration of the 2nd Eucharistic Congress took place, which hosted Pope John Paul II.

Description

The church is located in Grzybowski Square in Śródmieście Północne district of Warsaw. It adjoins perpendicularly to a green square on the southern side.

The temple design is reminiscent of the Renaissance basilica of St Justine in Padova, erected between 1532 and 1580. The Warsaw church is a three-nave hall erected on a Latin cross floor plan. It is 75 metres long, 29 metres wide and 54 metres tall (with towers). The building features a lower and upper church. At the intersection of the main nave with the transept there is a lantern, while a chapel with a cupola is situated at the chancel. The front façade is framed by two towers. Tall stairs leads up to the main entrance. The front façade is crowned with a triangular pediment in the central part, which includes a reconstructed relief of Jan Woydyga, “Christ Announcing Eight Blessings” from 1893. Cloisters run along both sides of the front façade. In front of the main entrance there is a monument of John Paul II made in 1993 by Giorgio Galletti.

When it comes to the interior, it is worth noting:

• the main altar with postwar copies of paintings “Resurrection” by Henryk Siemiradzki and “Apotheosis of the Saints” by Wojciech Gerson;
• an openwork pulpit from 1889, designed by Józef Pius Dziekoński and Apoloniusz Nieniewski, repaired after 1945 by Józef and Jan Felak;
• a marble sculpture “The Teaching Jesus” made in 1896 by Wiktor Zbrodzki, reconstructed after the war from the surviving fragments;
• a baptismal font from 1893 made of black marble, with a lavishly decorated lid made of bronze;
• eight paintings by Michael Willmann from the late 17th century, brought to Warsaw in 1945 from the Cistercian monastery in Lubiąż. They present the martyrdom of particular apostles.

Viewing of the church is possible before and after services.

Author: Bartłomiej Modrzewski, National Institute of Cultural Heritage, Branch in Warsaw, 24 October 2017

Bibliography

• Encyklopedia Warszawy, ed. B. Petrozolin-Skowrońska, Warsaw 1994
• Historia, Website of the All Saints parish in Warsaw, http://wszyscyswieci.pl/parafia/historia/, accessed: 24 October 2017
• Żabicki J., Leksykon zabytków architektury Mazowsza i Podlasia, Warsaw 2010