As in any city I visit, walking is a must and I did walk sometimes not even remembering where lol! After passing by the main areas for tourists I saw several nice monuments with a lot history in Krakow. I like to tell you a bit about the Church Saint Andrew of Krakow !! Hope you enjoy the post as I.
What better way to tell a country than by its religious monuments and Krakow ,Poland has them deep in their roots. This is a separate post on a previous post of many but felled they deserve a post of their own, Let me give my brief contribution to the Church Saint Andrew of Krakow.
The Church of St. Andrew located at 54 Grodzka Street, in the Old Town is a historical Romanesque church built between 1079 and 1098 by a medieval Polish statesman Palatine Sieciech. It is a rare surviving example of the European fortress church used for defensive purposes. It was the main temple of the Okół settlement, located in the southern part of the later Old Town of Kraków and being a suburb of the Wawel stronghold. After the fall and exile of Sieciech at the beginning of the 12C, the church came under the patronage of the Benedictine abbey in Sieciechów and around the second or third quarter of that century it was rebuilt into a basilica. In 1320, the rebuilt church was given to the Poor Clares from the Grodzisk near Skała, for whom monastery buildings were erected nearby, funded by King Władysław Łokietek.
The Church Saint Andrew is one of the oldest buildings in Kraków and one of the best-preserved Romanesque buildings in Poland. It was the only church in Kraków to withstand the Mongol attack of 1241. Along the lower part of the broader section of its façade are small openings that served as defensive windows at a time when the church was a place of refuge from military assaults. The Baroque domes atop the octagonal towers were added in 1639. In later centuries, the church had fires several times, but it was always rebuilt without major changes in the external appearance. In the 17C, an oratory was erected between the church and the west wing of the monastery.
The baroque decoration of the interior, with rich stucco decoration comes from the refurbishment that took place after 1700, while the construction of the high altar, was initiated in the upcoming years. Attention is drawn to the pulpit in the shape of a boat, and the musical choir with 18th-century organ in the chancel, decorated in the rococo manner. The baroque steeples added in 1639 contrast with the severity of the Romanesque form of the church.
The Krakow tourist office on old town sights see Church of St Andrew: https://visitkrakow.com/krakow-old-town-area-guide/
A Krakow travel site on the Church St Andrew : https://krakow.travel/en/17711-krakow-st-andrews-church
There you go folks, I feel better to have a post on this church on a post of its own,fully deserving, me think. The visit to Krakow was very nice and looking forward one of these days to be back, eventually. Again, hope you enjoy the post on the Church Saint Andrew as I,
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 