St Vincent's and St James's Cathedral in Wrocław

St Vincent's and St James's Cathedral at plac bp. Nankiera 15 is a Gothic former Franciscan church, today a Greek Catholic cathedral. Construction began in the mid-13th century under Duke Henry the Pious for Franciscans brought from Prague, and the church is listed in the heritage register as a brick building dated to the turn of the 13th and 14th centuries.

The foundation of a duke who died at Legnica

The church was founded around 1240 by Duke Henry the Pious, originally dedicated to St James, in the Romanesque style. Henry died in 1241 in the Battle of Legnica and was buried in the crypt beneath the church, while it was still under construction. The church was already mentioned as completed in 1254, and on 16 December 1261 the founding charter of the New Town was proclaimed there.

Rebuilding into a Gothic nave

In the 14th and 15th centuries the church underwent significant rebuilding. A new main nave was built then, 77.5 metres long and 23 metres high, in the Gothic style that still predominates today. A quadrangle of the former Franciscan monastery adjoins the church on the north side.

Baroque furnishings and the Hochberg Chapel

Between 1662 and 1674 the church received rich Baroque furnishings, and in 1667 a new altar was built by Franz Zeller and Georg Czermak. Between 1723 and 1727 the late Baroque Hochberg Chapel was added, designed by Christoph Hackner, with frescoes depicting scenes from the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary, sculptures and a grille considered a work of blacksmithing art. The chapel was severely damaged during the bombing in 1945, the church was rebuilt from 1947 over more than forty years, and the chapel itself was reconstructed between 2000 and 2013.

Greek Catholic cathedral

In 1997 Pope John Paul II, together with Cardinal Henryk Gulbinowicz, handed the church over to the Greek Catholic Church. The Greek Catholic parish, active in Wrocław since 1956, belongs to the Eparchy of Wrocław-Koszalin, and the church has served as its cathedral since 1997.

Practical information

• Address: plac bp. Nankiera 15, Stare Miasto, Wrocław.
• Getting there: the building lies in the very centre, close to other monuments of Ostrów Tumski and the area around the Market Square.
• What to expect: a Gothic church body with a Baroque interior and a restored Hochberg Chapel, today serving as a Greek Catholic cathedral.
• It is worth combining the visit with a walk to Tumski Bridge and the Archcathedral of St John the Baptist, and calling in at the Market Square on the way to the centre.