The second-oldest building in Niepołomice (after the castle less than 200m away), Kazimierz the Great made no delay in establishing a local church, which he did as a votive offering in honour of his victory over the Russians in 1349. The chancel with its long Gothic windows and the ‘old vestry’ – including the only 14th century Italian frescoes in Poland – are the only surviving remnants of the original building after it was destroyed by fire and rebuilt under Baroque influence in 1690. In 2008 the church celebrated the 650th anniversary of its 1358 consecration by unveiling a 25,000-piece mural of Pope John Paul II (as you do in PL). In the Royal Castle and this magnificent church, Niepołomice boasts a rather extraordinary historical and architectural site at its centre.
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