History

The parish in Uniejów was established around the mid-12th century. The previous church served as a collegiate church and was under the care of the archbishops of Gniezno. In 1331, it was destroyed during the raids of Teutonic Knights. The new temple, ordered to be built by Archbishop Jarosław Skotnicki, was erected between 1342 and 1349. In the next century, it was enlarged (the length of the nave was extended to include two more bays). Before 1635, the chapel of St. John (now the chapel of the Holy Cross) was built. Funds for its construction were donated by M. Głuchowski. The Chapel of Blessed Bogumił was probably built between 1666 and 1668, funded by the Uniejów custodian, priest Boleszczyński. The chapel contains the relics of the hermit. Both chapels are situated at the northern wall of the nave.

In 1635, the Chapel of the Blessed Virgin Mary was added. It adjoins the southern wall of the nave and was funded by the townspeople of Uniejów (it is also possible that it was built in the 16th century). In 1649, the nave of the church was raised upwards and the vaults were altered. Another renovation took place in 1876, when the shape of most of the window openings was modified.

During the Second World War, the roof, the western top and some of the fixtures and fittings of the temple burned down. The church was rebuilt shortly after the war.

Description

The church is situated in the centre of Uniejów, on a plot of land at the north-west corner of the market square. The premises are surrounded by a wall. In the south-east corner of the wall, there is a clock tower with a gate. The temple is oriented. The building is an example of Gothic architecture that has been remodelled and expanded many times.

The church consists of two connected principal blocks, which differ in size. Both the five-bay nave (which is higher and wider) and the three-bay chancel were built on the floor plan of a rectangle. The chancel is terminated polygonally. The sacristy adjoins it from the north, as well as a tower erected on a circular plan. From the same side, the nave is adjoined by two chapels: of the Holy Cross and of Blessed Bogumił. From the south, it is adjoined by the Chapel of the Blessed Virgin Mary and a small church porch.

​​​​​​​The collegiate church in Uniejów is made of brick on fieldstone foundations. Most of the outer walls remain unplastered, with the bricks laid in the Gothic bond pattern (also known as Polish). The nave and the northern chapels have barrel vaults. The chancel, the choir gallery and the sacristy are topped with groin vaults, whereas the southern chapel has a cloister vault. The whole is covered by a wooden roof truss with a rafter-collar beam structure, clad with sheet metal.

​​​​​​​The walls of all the elevations are reinforced with three-step buttresses. The buttresses are crowned with a prominent eaves cornice. The shapes of the window and door openings are contoured by plastered surrounds. Most of the window openings are semicircular. The southern elevation serves as the façade, in which there is the entrance to the church, accentuated by a portal. The eastern elevation has retained most of its original features – including the pointed-arch windows. Between the buttresses there is a small chapel - Gethsemane, adorned with a fanciful top. The northern elevation incorporates several structures - the sacristy and the chapels. Their walls are plastered. The Chapel of Blessed Bogumił stands out with its ornamental top. The top (created during a post-war reconstruction) adorns the western elevation too.

​​​​​​​The walls of the nave and of the chapels are embellished with numerous polychromes. The chapels open into the interior of the church with semicircular arcades. In the chapel of the Holy Cross and in the chapel of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the vaults have stucco decorations of the Kalisz-Lublin type. The walls of the nave are divided by pillars supporting the vault. Valuable features include the Gothic portal, which leads from the church porch to the temple.

​​​​​​​The most precious element of the church fixtures and fittings is the marble sarcophagus with a figure of Blessed Bogumił. It was created in 1666 by a stonemason from Gdańsk.

The main winged altarpiece dates from 1778 and is an example of Rococo art. It contains a painting of St. Florian. The two side altars, placed at the chancel arch, were built in the 17th century. Other noteworthy features include the entrance door with ornamental iron grid, representative of Gothic art.

The church is open to the public all year round. It can be toured inside upon prior arrangement by phone or in between church services.

Compiled by Anna Michalska, Regional Branch of the National Institute of Cultural Heritage in Łódź. 20 October 2015

Bibliography

• Ruszkowski A., Sieradz i okolice, Sieradz 2000.
• Kalinowski W., Trawkowski S., Studium historyczno-urbanistyczne do planu zagospodarowania przestrzennego, Warszawa 1954
• Red. Szymczak J., Uniejów, dzieje miasta, Łódź 1995
• Kazimierza Stronczyńskiego opisy i widoki w królestwie polskim, Warszawa 2011, Vol. III.
• Katalog Zabytków Sztuki, Warszawa 1959, woj. poznańskie