Its architecture and interior décor bear testimony to the religious patriotism of the local residents at the time when Poland was regaining its independence and shaking off the chains of German dominance which found its expression in the Kulturkampf scheme, leading, among others, to the persecution of the followers of the Roman Catholic church in the Greater Poland Region.

History

The town of Ryczywół obtained municipal rights before 1426; in 1684 it was chartered once again, only to lose its municipal rights in 1934.

The Roman Catholic parish in Ryczywół was founded back in the 15th century, with the first, wooden church being funded by the noble house of Nałęcz. During the inspection visit performed in 1628, the church was mentioned as having been completely destroyed during a fire which also swept across all the parish buildings, their ruins now lying in waste, unattended by church authorities. In the mid- 17th century, the erstwhile owner of the town Stefan Gruziński, acting together with Błażej Plutowicz, the local parish priest, began the reconstruction of the church as well as the construction of a school and infirmary. The old church was demolished in 1774, with a new, wooden building being erected somewhere around the year 1790; in 1802, this church underwent further extension works.

In 1923, the construction of a new, brick and stone church has begun. The construction works were preceded by the prolonged efforts to obtain a building permit, commenced back in the late 19th century and constantly hindered by legal actions brought against the parish before the German courts. The demolition of the old church began on May 28, 1923. On February 1, 1925, the church was consecrated by K. Stepczyński, the local parish priest. During World War II, the church remained in constant use, which was an exception seldom seen in the occupied Wartheland territories, thus preventing the fixtures and fittings from being confiscated by the Germans or otherwise dispersed around various locations; as a consequence, these fixtures and fittings can still be admired today in their original condition.

The church was repainted in 1974, while in 1982 the walls of the tower and the church itself were covered with plaster; the sheet metal on the tower roof was also replaced during that time, while the roof tiles on the rest of the roof were relaid. In 1990, repairs of the cornices and parts of the roof were performed; the rest of the necessary works were completed in 1995. In 1994, the interior was repainted, while the floor tiles and wooden parquet floors in the chancel were replaced in 1998.

Description

The Church of St. Nicholas in Ryczywół is located by the road leading from Rogoźno to Czarnków, to the south-west of the market square. It is a brick building designed on a rectangular floor plan, oriented towards the east, with bricks arranged in a cross bond. The church follows a three-nave layout, with a straight eastern façade flanked by two sacristies; the apse of the chancel, covered with a semi-conical roof, is located between the sacristies. The western façade is dominated by a square-shaped porch flanked by two triangular rooms, above which rises a two-storey tower covered with a bulbous cupola with a roof lantern on top. The main nave features a gable roof with queen-post structure, while the side naves are covered with shed roofs. All roof surfaces (except for the tower cupola) are clad with beaver tail roof tiles.

The interior of the church features a faux dome supported by four diagonal piers. Towards the east, the nave terminates with the chancel apse with two side entrances leading into the sacristies, while an organ gallery is located in the western part of the church.

Notable fixtures and fittings include the architectural altarpieces designed in the Baroque Revival style. There are three of them in all - one central altarpiece and two side ones - all of them incorporating religious paintings depicting, respectively, St Nicholas, the Virgin Mary with Child Jesus as well as the Virgin and Child with St. Anne. Apart from the altarpieces, one should also mention the stone stoup, pulpit and wall sconces designed by Stefan Cybichowski.

The church can be visited from the outside. Church service times: Sunday at 7.30 and 9.00 AM, weekdays at 6.00 PM, holidays falling on weekdays at 8.00 AM and 4.00 PM.

compiled by Tomasz Łuczak, Regional Branch of the National Heritage Board of Poland in Poznań, 14-11-2014.

Bibliography

• Katalog zabytków sztuki w Polsce, t. 5, Woj. wielkopolskie, red. Ruszczyńska Teresa, Sławska Aniela, z. 15, Pow. obornicki, opr. I. Galicka I., Kaczorowska I., Sygietyńska H., Warszawa 1965, s. 18-19.
• Karta ewidencyjna zabytków architektury i budownictwa, Ryczywół - kościół pw. św. Mikołaja, oprac. Mętkowska Grażyna, 2001, Archiwum Wielkopolskiego Wojewódzkiego Konserwatora Zabytków w Poznaniu.
• Wielkopolska. Słownik krajoznawczy, red. Łęcki Włodzimierz, Poznań 2002, s. 313-312.
• Łukaszewicz Józef, Krótki opis kistoryczny kościołów parochialnych w dawnej diecezui poznańskiej, t.1, Poznań 1858, s. 289-290.
• Kozierowski Stanisław, Szematyzm historyczny ustrojów parafjalnych w dzisiejszej archidiecezji poznańskiej, Poznań 1935, s. 353-354.