St Charles Borromeo Church
Short summary
1890-1891
Neo-Gothic
ul. Kościelna 12, 96-300 Żyrardów
filial church of the parish in Wiskitki; later the first parish church in Żyrardów
Roman Catholic parish church of St Charles Borromeo
active church; the interior is accessible outside service times
The building description was prepared in consultation with the staff of the Museum of Western Mazovia in Żyrardów.
Discover the history
The first efforts to create a place of worship for Żyrardów’s Catholic community were made by the factory owners as early as the beginning of the 1870s. At that time, the growing settlement belonged to the parish in Wiskitki, and the considerable distance to the church made attendance at services difficult. In 1882, a temporary chapel was established in a private house, but it soon proved too small for the increasing number of worshippers.
Construction of a brick church began in 1890. The entire project was financed by Karol Dittrich Jr., while the bricks came from the brickyard in Radziejowice owned by the Joint Stock Company of the Żyrardów Linen Factory. The church was completed in 1891 and consecrated on 8 December of that year by Dean Antoni Maciążkiewicz.
Initially, the church functioned as a filial church of the parish in Wiskitki. In 1898, the first independent parish in Żyrardów, dedicated to Our Lady of Consolation, was established here. The small church, however, could not accommodate all the faithful, and construction of a much larger church on the town’s main square soon began. After its completion in 1903, St Charles Borromeo Church served first as a school church and later as a rectoral church. The independent parish of St Charles Borromeo was established in 1977.
In 1978, a fire broke out in the building, completely destroying the roof and seriously damaging the interior. Some of the historic furnishings were saved, including paintings, furniture, the choir gallery and the organ associated with the Rieger brothers’ workshop. The church was rebuilt in accordance with its original form. During later conservation work, historic wall paintings in the chancel, which had been painted over after the fire, were rediscovered and subsequently restored.
Time travel
Architecture
The church was built of exposed red brick in the Neo-Gothic style. It is an oriented church, with the chancel facing east. The building was laid out on a rectangular plan with a narrower, also rectangular chancel attached to it. Its form refers to hall churches.
The interior is divided by columns into three aisles, with the central nave slightly higher than the side aisles. The side aisles have wooden ceilings, while the central nave is covered by a timber false vault. The floor is made of white, grey and black tiles arranged in geometric patterns.
The Neo-Gothic character of the building is emphasised by pointed-arch windows and portals, brick friezes, buttresses, pinnacles and stepped gables. The church has no separate bell tower. Instead, a small bell was placed in a turret above the front part of the building. The church is surrounded by its preserved late 19th-century fence.
There are three altars inside the church. One is dedicated to St Charles Borromeo and contains a painting created in 1891 by August Frind, an artist associated with the Dittrich family. The church also retains a painting of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary, painted by the same artist in 1881.
Gallery
Nearby
Sources
- Historic Monument Documentation Cards
- Żyrardów Municipal Office Portal
- St Charles Borromeo Parish website
- Wikipedia