Wroclaw - Bazylika św. Elżbiety

The history of Wroclaw dates back more than a thousand years. At various times, it has been part of the Kingdom of Poland, the Kingdom of Bohemia, the Kingdom of Hungary, the Habsburg monarchy of Austria, the Kingdom of Prussia, and Germany. Wrocław became part of Poland again in 1945 as part of the result of extensive border changes and expulsions after WWII.

In 990 Mieszko I of Poland conquered Silesia and Wrocław. The town became a commercial center. In the 12th century Polish, Bohemian, Jewish, Walloon, and German communities existed here.

Wroclaw was devastated in 1241 during the first Mongol invasion of Poland. In the 13th century due to migration from Saxony and Bavaria, Wroclaw got germanised. The population adopted the German language and culture and the name changed to Breslau.

Between 1342 and 1344 two fires destroyed large parts of the city, which was a part of the Bohemian Kingdom at that time. Charles IV`s , successors Wenceslaus and Sigismund became involved in a long-lasting feud with the city and its magistrate, culminating in the revolt in 1418 when local craftsmen killed seven councilors.

After the city had defeated the Bohemian Hussites the city was besieged by a combined Polish-Czech force in 1474, however, a ceasefire was signed, according to which the city remained under Hungarian rule.

The Reformation reached Breslau already in 1518, and in 1523 the town council unanimously appointed a new pastor and thus introduced the Reformation in Breslau.

In 1526, the Habsburg monarchy of Austria inherited Bohemia, Silesia, and the city of Breslau. In 1609 German emperor Rudolf II granted the free exercise of church services to all Bohemian and Silesian Protestants. In the following Thirty Years' War, the city suffered badly. It was occupied by Saxon and Swedish troops and lost 18,000 of its 40,000 residents to the plague.

The Counter-Reformation had started with Rudolf II who encouraged Catholic orders to settle in Breslau. The dominance of the German population under the Habsburg rule in the city became more visible, while the Polish population diminished in numbers.

After Frederick the Great besieged the city for a year, it surrendered in 1741. In 1742, Queen Maria Theresa handed over Silesia to the Prussian king.
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St Elizabeth's Church is a Gothic church building made of brick. It is one of the oldest and largest churches in the city.

A first church here already existed in the 11th century. After the destruction of Wroclaw by the Mongols a new church was built and consecrated to Elizabeth of Thuringia in 1257. The present three-nave basilica in the Gothic style was built at the beginning of the 14th century. From 1452 to 1456 a new church tower was erected, 130 meters high, which at that time was one of the tallest buildings in Europe.

In the course of the Reformation, St. Elizabeth became Protestant already in 1525.

The 130 m high church tower collapsed in 1529 due to a storm. In 1535 a new 90 m high church tower was built. In 1649 pillars collapsed destroying two chapels and the organ. An explosion in the neighboring house destroyed part of the church windows in 1749. In 1857 two pillars collapsed again, during renovation works in the interior.

The church survived WWII with only minor damage. In 1946 it was handed over to the military ordinariate of the Roman Catholic Church as a garrison church.

In 1962 and 1975 lightning destroyed the steeple of the church. A fire in 1976 destroyed large parts of the church's interior. During the reconstruction of the church, modern building materials were used. The reconstructed church tower is 91.5 meters high.