History of the structure

The village is mentioned in the sources in 1286 and the first known parish priest from Schwanowitz is mentioned in 1295. The church in Zwanowice (the name of the village comes from Zwan, which means to call sb/sth) was mentioned for the first time in 1297. In the same year, on 25 March, near Zwanowice a rally was held with the participation of the following princes: Bolesław Opolski, Henryk Głogowski and Bolek I. During the meeting comes Bogusz from Michałów and Pogorzela (died in 1309-1314), the owner of Lewin Brzeski, certified the sale of the mill in Wróblin to the commander of the Łosiów Order of St. John, Bogusz Suevo. In 1357 the estate in Zwanowice was bought by Janusz (Jan) from Pogorzela, the son of Henryk, the older brother of the bishop of Wrocław Przecław from Pogorzela. On 25 April 1359 prince Ludwik of Brzeg approved for Janusz of Pogorzela a document issued by princess Katarzyna on 16 November 1357 concerning the purchase by him of estates in the villages of Zwanowice (Swanowicz), Stobrawa (Stoberow) and an unidentified Cumerow (Komorowo?). Janusz appeared in documents from 1344 to 1360, most often as a witness to documents of prince Bolesław III and his uncle, the Bishop of Wrocław Przecław of Pogorzela. In addition to Zwanowice, he also possessed the above-mentioned Stobrawa and Komorowo, as well as estates in Nowa Wieś Mała near Lewin Brzeski, where he bought the ducal rights and Lewin Brzeski. The estate was later inherited by his son Bogusz from Pogorzela (died 1385-1405) and his grandson Jan from Pogorzela and Lewin (1405-1419).

In the second half of the 14th century Zwanowice belonged to the Lords pf Pogorzela. On 7 September 1376, Ludwik, prince of Brzeg, confirmed that the town of Lewin Brzeski and the estates in Zwanowice and Stobrawa belonged to Bogusz from Pogorzela. Thus, it was the property inherited from his father Janusz. In addition to Lewin Brzeski, Zwanowice and Stobrawa, Bogusz also owned Gierszowice and Lipowa, bought by his mother Zofia. Zwanowice was also the property of the Lords of Pogorzela at the end of the 14th century, as evidenced by a document issued in 1385 in Zwanowice, in which Boruta and Bogusz of Pogorzela, heirs to Zwanowice, confirmed that Anna, the widow of the head of the village, Piotr Golon, with her children sold the entire village unit to Jan Ernest of Zwanowice. After Bogusz of Pogorzela died in about 1405 Zwanowice was inherited by his son Jan from Pogorzela and Lewin (1405-1419). He (Hans von Pogrella) is mentioned as the owner of Zwanowice in a document dated 29 September 1418. In 1544 Anna, the widow of Bernard von Waldau (Bernhard Walde zu Schwanowitz), was the owner of the village. Zwanowice remained in the hands of the von Waldau family until the middle of the 17th century. Until that time they were most likely patrons of the local church. As there is no research, it is uncertain whether the family was related to the Pogorzels.

The present church was built around 1400 in Gothic style on the site of an earlier wooden church. In the period between 1534-1945 it belonged to Evangelicals. In 1724, the church was renovated. Another renovation was carried out in 1770 (which is evidenced by a flag with a date). The brick tower was erected in the years 1819-1820 (earlier there was a wooden tower). The church was severely damaged during World War II, and in 1945 it was used by Red Army soldiers as a warehouse and stables. It was renovated in the years: 1957, 1964, 1968, 1973, 1980 and 1998. In the 1960s, its sacred use was restored. On 8 April 1964, the temple was entered in the register of historic monuments of the Opolskie Voivodeship under number 775/64.

Description of the structure

The parish church of Our Lady of Zwanowice is situated in the middle of the village, on the western side of the Strzelniki-Kopanie road. The present church was built around 1400 in Gothic style. The church is oriented, single-nave, with the nave set on a rectangular floor plan. The two-bay chancel with a three-sided closure, covered with a cross-ribbed vault with keystones. A sacristy adjoins the chancel on the north side, and a square tower adjoins the nave to the west. Originally it had a wooden tower, a brick one was added in the years 1819-1820 (with classical decoration). In the 16th century wooden galleries (no longer existing) were added to the northern wall of the chancel and nave, as well as a lodge on the level of the sacristy.

The interior of the Zwanowice church was decorated with Gothic polychrome, which is now under plaster. Its only evidence is a pre-war photograph (Archive of the Institute of Art of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw, file Z 72, neg. no. 32099 and the resources of the Voivodeship Heritage Protection Office in Opole) of the church interior, on which one can see images of coats of arms of Silesian knighthood decorating the rood beam base. One of them was the Grzymała coat of arms, which was used as a seal by the Lords of Pogorzela.

The church is almost devoid of historic furnishings. Painted vault ribs in the chancel (brick motif). The 17th/18th century choir gallery, the semi-circular arcade connecting the tower floor with the nave and the baroque portrait of Jan Bernard von Waldaw (died in 1678) have not survived. There is a contemporary polychrome on the rood beam arch. There are probably unidentified medieval polychromes under the plaster. The following have survived from the historical furnishings: a Gothic portal from approx. 1400, a stone Renaissance fireplace from about 1600, two pairs of Baroque doors with fittings from the 17th century, an Art Nouveau brass spider chandelier from the beginning of the 20th century, and the renaissance stone gravestones of Barbara von Waldaw nee Tzech (died in 1609) and Krzysztof von Waldaw (died in 1595), equerry to prince Jerzy II of Brzeg.

The building is in poor technical condition. In particular, ground-level dampness is a problem. It is necessary to preserve the Gothic portal, clean the vault ribs in the chancel, renovate the roofing and the truss structure. In the future, the medieval polychromes under the plaster should also be uncovered and restored.

Visitor access: the site is accessible to visitors

Author: Joanna Banik, Regional Branch of the National Institute of Cultural Heritage in Opole, 10.04.2019

Bibliography

• Banik J., Działalność fundacyjna Panów z Pogorzeli na Śląsku w XIII i XIV w. Fundacje kościelne, MONUMENT. Studia i Materiały Krajowego Ośodka Badań i Dokumentacji Zabytków, Warsaw 2009.
• Chrzanowski T., Kornecki M., Sztuka Śląska Opolskiego, Kraków 1975.
• Katalog zabytków sztuki w Polsce, ed. T. Chrzanowski, M. Kornecki, vol. VII, z. 1, (Opolskie Voivodeship, Brzeg District), Warsaw 1961.
• Karta ewidencyjna zabytków architektury i budownictwa: Zwanowice kościół fil. Pw. Matki Boskiej Królowej Polski, compiled by W. Żurakowski, 2003 [in:] resources of the Voivodeship Heritage Protection Office in Opole.
• Lutsch H., Verzeichnis der Kunstdenkmäler der Provinz schlesien, Bd. II, Breslau 1889.