Church of St. Michael the Archangel in the village of Gniezno description and photos - Belarus: Grodno region (Topic)

St. Michael the Archangel in the village of Gniezno description and photo - Belarus: Grodno region. Detailed information about the attraction. Description, photos and a map showing the nearest significant objects.

Photo and description

The Church of St. Michael the Archangel in Gniezno was built in 1524 on the site of a burnt wooden church by Jan and Elzhbeta Shemetovich. 2012 marked the 488th anniversary of the temple. Once on the site where the church was built there was an ancient pagan temple. During the restoration work in the 19th century, sacrificial stones were found.

The Reformation did not bypass the church. From 1555 to 1643, the temple was a Calvinist cathedral. In 1643 he returned to the fold of the Catholic Church.
The church was built with a large margin of safety. Its thick walls could withstand the siege of enemies. The temple was used as a defensive structure in all wars, as evidenced by the cannonball embedded in the brickwork.

In 1838, a fire broke out in the church. Everything that could burn - burned out. In 1844 G. Tarasevich donated a considerable sum for its restoration. In 1926, the temple was reconstructed and a tower was added. In 1930-1932, restoration work was carried out according to the project of the architect T. Plyutsinsky.

In the USSR, a special committee was created, which was entrusted with studying the history of the temple and its restoration. In the late 1980s, the temple was abandoned. In 1989, the church was returned to the believers, however, during the period when it was empty, the church had noticeably decayed. Its restoration was undertaken by the Catholic priest Ludwik, who took over the temple on behalf of the Catholic Church. During this time, a lot of work has been done to restore and popularize the temple as a tourist site.

An ancient fence, a gate, a chapel and a cemetery have been preserved on the territory of the church. There are sculptures in the church,

We also recommend reading Wallraf-Richartz Museum description and photos - Germany: Cologne

Topic: Church of St. Michael the Archangel in the village of Gniezno description and photos - Belarus: Grodno region.