The successive phases of the development of the temple are discernible in the architecture of the building – from Gothic, through to the Renaissance and Baroque, to the Classicist style. Inside the cathedral, there are excellent examples of sepulchral sculptures created by well-known Renaissance and Baroque artists, including: Jan Michałowicz from Urzędów, Adam Swach, Efraim Szreger, Willem van den Blocke and Jakub Fontana.

It is the resting place of twelve archbishops of Gniezno and the primate of Poland.

History

The Old Town of Łowicz, whose town rights were confirmed in 1359, was established on the site of the former market settlement located at the crossing of the Bzura River. It had its own parish dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary. The town was chosen as the permanent seat of the archbishop and probably this is why the church was raised to the rank of a collegiate church by Archbishop Wojciech Jastrzębiec on 25 April 1433.

Around the middle of the 15th century, during the times of Archbishop Jan Odrowąż, the construction of a new collegiate church was undertaken. A brick building was erected then, with a chancel terminated semi-hexagonally and containing canon stalls. It is difficult to establish now whether the collegiate church was originally a hall church or a single-nave church. The chancel of the collegiate church retains large sections of Gothic walls laid in the Polish pattern.

The first Gothic building burned down in 1525. It was rebuilt in the same style one year later. Before the mid-16th century, the principal block of the nave was extended to include a tomb chapel (in the 17th century, it was replaced by the chapel of the Tarnowski family). The second one, founded in 1580 by Primate Jakub Uchański, was his tomb chapel, erected by Jan Michałowicz from Urzędów, with a tombstone carved by this great artist. The chapel was modified in the 18th century (the decoration of the cupola was retained) and the bishop’s tombstone was removed and relocated onto the wall in front of the chapel.

In 1611, the construction of the chapel of St. Trinity was completed. Funds for this purpose were donated by Primate Jan Tarnowski. In accordance with the founder’s wishes, it was used as a mausoleum for the archbishop’s family. The chapel contains a tombstone of Primate Piotr’s father, produced by Willem van den Block.

In the 1620s, at the initiative of Primate Wawrzyniec Gembicki, a complete reconstruction of the church was undertaken. In the western part of the building, two towers were added and the main nave was closed with the low arcade of the choir gallery. The works were disrupted by a fire in 1628. In 1626, Primate Henryk Firlej commissioned Abraham van den Block to build a tombstone for himself. The tombstone was placed in the chancel. He also brought from Rome relics of St. Victoria - a gift from Pope Urban VIII. The relics were placed in an ebony altar, built especially for that purpose.

In 1635, the extension of the western part of the church was continued. Two towers were heightened, reaching the level of the vault of the main nave. They were covered with spherical cupolas. Archbishop Jan Wężyk commissioned the construction of the third storey of the towers, fitted with bipartite mullioned windows. The extensive work in the cathedral culminated with the construction of the main altar adorned with the painting of the Assumption of Mary, donated by Jan Wężyk. Another chapel ordered to be built by the archbishop was the chapel of St. Ann, constructed between 1635 and 1640. His successor, Primate Jan Lipski, founded the chapel of the Blessed Sacrament. It was completed after Lipski’s death in 1641. The chapel is thought to have been built by Konstanty Tencalli.

Another fire in 1652 made it necessary to undertake comprehensive alteration works in the church. Funds for this purpose were provided by Archbishop Maciej Łubieński and the design was created by Thomas Poncino. In the last stage of the works, he was assisted by his brother Andrew Poncino. As part of the alteration works, the chancel was levelled with the nave, the walls were heightened, new vaults were constructed over the aisles, a new elevation was built and a new façade was added. In 1653, stuccoes were produced on the vault of the nave and of the chancel, as well as capitals of pilasters in the nave and in the chancel. The stuccoes were created by John the Baptist Falconi.

During the Deluge, the Swedes destroyed the gilded altars and organs in the collegiate church.

After having been repaired and renovated, the temple was consecrated again and rededicated on 14 October 1668 by Primate Mikołaj Prażmowski.

Alteration works in the chapels were performed systematically throughout the 18th century. In the first decade of the 18th century, modernization works were carried out.

The chapel of the Tarnowski family was modernized in 1714. The chapel of the Blessed Sacrament was likewise modernized between 1717 and 1718. Its walls were covered with a polychrome then, which was painted by Adam Swach.

In 1725, a pulpit was erected, decorated with sculptures by Antoni Vogt, donated by Primate Krzysztof Szembek.

In 1758, the Gethsemane chapel was modified. Funds for this purpose were provided by Jerzy Barszcz - a councillor from Łowicz.

After 1764, the annexes at the chancel were remodelled with the aim to make them architecturally unified.

In the same year, the prelate’s and the canons’ sacristy was converted into the mausoleum of Primate Adam Komorowski. The tombstone of the archbishop, designed by Jakub Fontana, was placed there.

The works on the chapel of Primate Komorowski were accompanied by the construction of a new main altar, designed by Efraim Szreger, with decorations sculpted by Jerzy Plersch. The painting for the altar was brought by Primate Łubieński from Rome.

Between 1782 and 1783, Efraim Szreger modernized the chapel of St. Victoria, hiring the famous stucco artist Jan Michał Graff. Among other things, a new, Classicist tombstone of Primate Uchański was produced.

One of the last major works in the collegiate church was the conversion of the former entrance gate into a bell tower and installation of new cupolas on the towers.

The damaged northern tower was reconstructed in 1835.

Between 1862 and 1923, the church was thoroughly renovated.

The temple was seriously damaged again during the Battle of Bzura in 1939. The western part of the principal block and the roof burned down, following which the building underwent conservation works in 1939-45. The cupolas on the towers were reconstructed between 1947 and 1950.

On 25 March 1992, the diocese of Łowicz diocese was consecrated by Pope John Paul II with the bull Totus Tuus Poloniae Populus and raised to the rank of a cathedral. In 1999, the Pope granted the Łowicz cathedral the title of Minor Basilica. In 2011, full-scale conservation works in the cathedral were completed.

Description

The church with the accompanying bell tower is situated in the north-west part of the Old Market Square. The church area is surrounded by a brick wall with two monumental gates. The church is oriented.

In the chancel, large parts of the Gothic wall laid in the Polish pattern have been preserved. Originally built in the Renaissance style, the cathedral was transformed and extended in the Baroque style with Classicist elements.

The temple has the form of a three-nave basilica with an elongated chancel (original Gothic projection). Two towers adjoin the chancel from the west. The plan of the church was enriched and made more varied by the systematically added chapels. They were annexed both to the nave and to the chancel. The chapel of Jesus Crucified extends the aisles along the chancel. Behind it, there is the vicars’ sacristy from the north. Over it, there is the chapter house. From the south, there is the chapel of St. Victoria, with the canonical sacristy behind it and the treasury above. Behind the chancel, on the axis of the building, there is the Gethsemane chapel. From the north, the nave is adjoined by a porch and the chapel of the Blessed Sacrament and from the south - by another porch and two chapels – of St. Anne and of Holy Trinity.

The chancel is two-bay, with polygonal termination. The nave and the aisles are five-bay. In the westernmost bay, there is a choir gallery based on an arcade. In the western part of the church, there are towers too, erected on a rectangular plan with chamfered internal corners.

The aisles open into the nave by pillar arcades. The walls of the chancel and the pillars in the nave are framed by pilasters. Above them, there is an entablature with a rich stucco decoration with floral motifs, banquets, festoons and angels’ heads. The vertical articulation, highlighted by pilasters, and the horizontal articulation in the form of entablature balance each other. Above the arcades, there are cartridges with frescoes depicting evangelical figures. The walls and pillars of the aisles also open into the chapels with arcades. The rood arcade is particularly richly decorated with pilasters.

In the nave and the chancel, there is a groin vault separated by stripes. In the nave, there is a wooden, oval, gilded plaque from 1654 on the vault, featuring the coat of arms, insignia and monogram of Archbishop Łubieński.

The groin vaults in the aisles are covered by a geometrical network of stucco decorations. In the porches and on the ground floor of the southern tower, there is a cross-barrel vault. The roof truss is wooden. The gable roof over the chancel and the nave share the same roof ridge. The aisles are covered with shed roofs.

The façade of the collegiate church is massive and has two towers. The towers have rusticated corners and are divided into storeys by six horizontal stripes. The central part of the façade, placed between the towers, is three-axial, divided into two storeys by a rich entablature with a cornice. The surfaces against the background of which the axes are positioned are separated by pilasters in the giant order. The façade is crowned with a gable with a ‘broken’ pediment flanked by scroll-like volutes. A Baroque portal was placed on the axis of the façade. Above it, there is a plaque from 1652 commemorating the construction of the collegiate church. It contains the Pomian coat of arms of primate Maciej Łubieński. The lavish frame of the plaque incorporates a pediment containing a cartouche with the coat of arms. The two windows are enclosed by eared window surrounds. On the side axes, there are square blendes and niches. The openings in the upper part include bipartite mullioned windows in rusticated surrounds. In the lower part of the northern tower, a portal with an opening topped with a semi-circular arch is flanked by double pilasters from the 18th century. The cupolas of the towers were produced in the 1950s and imitate the original ones, designed by Efraim Schroeger. The corners of the walls of the chancel walls and of the southern wall of the nave are framed with pilasters. The northern wall is buttressed. The windows in the elevations: in the east-facing parts - rectangular and eared (some are blind), in two storeys. The chapels have large windows with semicircular arches. In the outer wall of the chapel of St. Victoria, there is a commemorative foundation plaque with the date 1580. The plaque is made of stone, plastered. It is modestly framed, with volutes on its sides. Above it, there is a cartouche with the coat of arms and insignia of Archbishop J. Uchański, probably produced by Jan Michałowicz. There are also two bronze plaques with the coat of arms and monogram of Archbishop A. Komorowski from 1759 - one above the window of the chapel of Jesus Crucified, incorporated into the Baroque surround, and one in the southern wall of the annex next to the chancel. The roofs over the chancel and the nave share the same ridge.

The principal block of the cathedral is adjoined by five tomb chapels of the primates of Poland:

• Chapel of the Primate Prażmowski – in the northern nave. It contains a Baroque epitaph plaque dedicated to Primate Mikołaj Prażmowski and two plates covering the tomb crypts.
• The Chapel of St. Victoria – erected between 1575 and 1580 by Jan Michałowicz from Urzędów, once containing the Mannerist tombstone of Primate Jakub Uchański designed by the Primate himself (at present, the tombstone is situated outside the chapel). The chapel was attached to the first bay of the chancel, next to the extended southern aisle. Between 1782 and 1783, it was remodelled in the Classicist style according to Efraim Szreger’s design. Erected on a square floor plan, it is decorated in the corners with pairs of columns, which support a prominent entablature on a circular plan, with stucco curtains hung below. Above the entablature, there is a coffered dome. Primate Maciej Łubieński had a marble altar erected as a votive offering in gratitude for the victory won by the Polish army at Beresteczek in 1651. The altar contains the relics of St. Victoria placed in a silver and gold coffin. 
• The Holy Trinity Chapel – the mausoleum of the family of Primate Jan Tarnowski – built between 1609 and 1611, adjoins the southern nave of the collegiate church. The chapel is Late Renaissance in style, with a dome partitioned by ribs. It is attributed to Kasper Fotyga of Chęciny. The entrance to the chapel leads through a decorative portal. It contains a Renaissance tombstone of Piotr Tarnowski, father of Primate Jan Tarnowski. In the altar, there are sculptures created (after 1604) by Willem van den Blocke - a sculptor from Gdańsk.
• The Chapel of St. Anna – erected in the years 1635-1640, adjoins two and a half bays of the southern nave and the eastern wall of the chapel of the Holy Trinity. The dominant feature of this three-bay, frugally articulated chapel, with late Renaissance interior décor, is the shallow rectangular arm for placing an altar. Positioned in front of the central entrance arcade, it accents the axis of the chapel, which is transverse to the axis of the church. The barrel vault of the chapel, with the characteristic lack of clear division into bays, as well as the vault over the altar area, have a simplified, stucco decoration of the so-called Lublin type – with a pattern of stucco ribs covered with lavish architectural ornamentation. This Baroque chapel, with its axis perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the church, determined the character of the extension of the collegiate church. In the chapel, there are altars of St. John of Nepomuk and of St. Anna, designed by Karol Bay. The chapel dedicated to Primate Jan Wężyk adjoins two and a half bays of the southern nave. It also adjoins the eastern wall of the chapel of the Holy Trinity. The dominant feature of the interior is the shallow rectangular arm for placing an altar. Positioned in front of the central entrance arcade, it accents the axis of the chapel, which is transverse to the axis of the church. 
• The Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament was built between 1641 and 1647. It contains an altar designed by Jakub Fontana and polychromes painted by Adam Swach. The chapel dedicated to Primate Jan Lipski adjoins the northern nave of the collegiate church, extending it over the length of almost three bays. It opens into the interior of the church with a triple arcade. The Baroque chapel has a regular layout, while its interior décor corresponds to the dominant dome with a lantern on an octagonal tholobate. The walls and the vaults are covered with polychromes depicting scenes associated with the invocation of the chapel. There are also ornamental polychromes containing the coats of arms of Primate Stanisław Szembek, as well as decorative bands with inscriptions. 
• The Chapel of the Holy Cross matches the dimensions of the former canons’ and prelate’s sacristy aligned with the first bay of the chancel, on the extension of the northern aisle. Built in the style of early Classicism, the interior of the chapel has a balanced character. The high arcade blocks the view of the chapel only up to the central part of the interior. As a result, the altar is prominently positioned, and so are the wall sections connected with the altar base, flanked by pilasters. The portal surrounds the arcaded entrance to the chapel. The portal has the form of a monumental, black-marble frame, which separates and additionally highlights the chapel. According to the latest findings, it may have been built by Jakub Fontana.
• The chapel of Jesus Crucified – erected in 1761, represents the late Baroque style and was built by Jakub Fontana. It contains a 16th century crucifix and the tombstone of Primate Adam Komorowski, thought to have been designed by Jan Chrysostom Redler.

Description of the fixtures and fittings:

The main Rococo altar is wooden, polychromed and gilded, of the architectural type. Its major parts were produced at some point after 1761 and were probably designed by Jakub Fontana (and not by Efraim Schroeger as was previously thought). The altar is integrated with the central wall of the chancel apse. It is embellished with sculptures created by Jan Jerzy Plersch.

On the sides of the altar slab, there are high pedestals with figures of two cherubs. The tabernacle has the form of a Baroque, silver filigree altar-reliquary with a silver plaque in the Regency style. The plaques depict Christ and the Last Supper. There are also sculptures of 4 evangelists set on a high, extended pedestal. At the top of the pedestal, there is a sculpture of an apocalyptic lamb in glory. In the reredos, there is a Classicist painting representative of the Italian school, depicting the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The painting brought from Rome at some point after 1763 was donated by Primate Łubieński. The altar composition is crowned with the monogram of Mary in golden clouds and rays.

Near the altar, on both sides of the chancel, there are 3 tombstones: in the northern wall - of Archbishop Henryk Firlej, who died in 1626 - early Baroque, architectural, made from multi-coloured marble with a sculpture depicting the deceased, kneeling on a sarcophagus. In the southern part, there are two tombstones - of the Leszczyński archbishops: Andrzej, who died in 1657 and Wacław, who died in 1666 - a Baroque bipartite tombstone of architectural type from around 1666, marble, with oval portraits of the deceased, painted on sheet metal and with a cartouche with the coat of arms. There is also a Renaissance tombstone of Archbishop Jan Przerembski, who died in 1562. It consists of a stone surround of architectural type containing a marble slab with the recumbent figure of the deceased rendered in bas-relief. The tombstone was probably designed by Hieronim Canavesi. It was renovated in the 17th century after having been partly destroyed. In the walls of the chancel, there are also entrances to the vicars’ and canons’ sacristy - decorated with two marble portals. The northern one is Early Baroque in style and dates to around 1625-1654. It is framed by an eared surround with a cartouche containing the coats of arms of Nałęcz, Poraj and Jastrzębiec. The southern one is Late Baroque in style and dates to 1759. It is topped with the Korczak coat of arms and the insignia of archbishop A. Komorowski. The portals are placed around door wings containing fittings and locks from the 17th and 18th centuries. In the vicars’ sacristy (with restricted access), the furnishings and panelling come from the 18-19th century. Over this sacristy, there is a chapter house (not accessible for tourists). It houses a part of the collegiate library, including Gothic and more recent lavishly illuminated manuscripts, dating to the 14-17th century. It also contains numerous old prints.

On both walls of the chancel, there are magnificent canons’ stalls from the end of the 17th century with ornaments from around 1700. The walls of the chancel are also decorated with four large paintings, including three paintings representing the Italian school. They were presumably painted around the mid-17th century by the royal painter Tomasz Dolabella, who was probably influenced by Michel Caravaggio. The themes of the paintings include: the Visitation of Saint Elizabeth, Birth of Mary, Presentation of Mary in the Temple. The fourth painting depicts the Christ Crucified and God the Father. In front of the entrance to the chancel, there is a Baroque marble baptismal font with the coat of arms and the name of the founder - Wacław Kunicki, a canon of Łowicz from 1632. The tin cover of the baptismal font comes from the second half of the 18th century.

In the nave, next to the pillars, there are seven Baroque altars from the 18th century - all of them are wooden, polychromed and gilded, of architectural type. The northern altar at the chancel opening is dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary. In the reredos, there is a Baroque painting of the Mother of God with the Child from 1719 in a silver Rococo robe from around 1766 and crowns from around 1775. There is also a painting of Our Lady of Łowicz, famous for its miraculous powers. On 5 October 2002, the painting was crowned with papal crowns. On the sliding panel, there is a painting of Our Lady of the Rosary painted by Antoni Strzałecki around 1868.

At the next pair of pillars from the north, there is the altar of St. Rosalia - with her image in a silver rococo robe from the mid-18th century. On the sliding panel, there is a picture of St. Francis, and in the second storey - of St. Anthony of Padua, both painted by Józef Buchbinder in 1889. At the southern pillar, there is the altar with a painting of St. Joseph with the Child from the late 17th century, in silver Rococo robes from around 1772. On the sliding panel, there is a painting of St. Isidore the Farm Labourer, painted by Buchbinder in 1888. In the second storey, there is a painting of Baby Jesus, probably from the 18th century. At the southern pillar, opposite the pulpit, there is an altar of St. Barbara with a painting of St. Barbara from the early 18th century, in a silver Rococo robe from the mid-18th century; on the sliding panel, there is a painting of Sts. Peter and Paul, painted by Buchbinder in 1888. In the second storey, there is a painting of St. Lawrence. At the last pair of pillars, there are two altars commissioned by Archbishop Teodor Potocki around 1730 (the invocations and paintings were changed after a fire which occurred during the war). From the north, there is the altar of St. Adalbert (formerly St. Liberiusz) and from the south - the altar of St. Andrew Bobola (originally St. Roch and St. Sebastian). The paintings in both altars were painted by Professor Krawczyk.

At the central northern pillar, there is a Rococo, wooden, polychromed pulpit. It was commissioned by Primate Adam Komorowski and produced between 1753 and 1754. It is topped with an elaborate canopy with a figure of St. John of Nepomuk and decorated with bas-relief plaques depicting the martyrdom of St. Ignatius the Bishop. The sculptures were created by Franciszek Vogt. Under the choir gallery, the northern wall incorporates a two-storey tombstone of Anna Śleszyńska (died 1578) and Marcin Śleszyński (died 1578) - Wojski (officer in medieval Poland, responsible for the security of voivodeships or districts at times when voivodes and castellans had accompanied the nobility to war) of Gostynin. The framing of the tombstone from around 1580 is attributed to Jan Michałowicz, while the figures of the deceased represent a much lower artistic level.

On the western wall, the tombstone of Andrzej Szalawski (died 1686) was placed. He was the Archdeacon of Łowicz, not to mention other functions. There is also an inscription plaque from 1668, which states that the parish church in Łowicz existed as early as 1100.

In the nave, next to the pillars, there are five altars from the second half of the 19th century. The altars contain the following paintings: of the Mother of God with the Child in robes from the 18th century, of Our Lady of the Rosary painted by Antoni Strzałecki in 1868, of St. Stanislaus resurrecting Piotrowin, probably dating to the 18th century, of the Guardian Angel from the 2nd half of the 18th century, repainted, in robes in Regency style, of St. Nicholas of Mirena painted in 1886 by Aleksander Przewalski from Łęczyca and of the Eye of Providence.

The object is open to the public all year round, it can be visited every day.

Compiled by Agnieszka Lorenc - Karczewska, Regional Branch of the National Institute of Cultural Heritage in Łódź. 30 October 2015

Bibliography

• Czyż Anna, Kolegiata Wniebowzięcia NMP, Warszawa 2010.
• Majkut S., Bazylika katedralna w Łowiczu, 2009,