Church of Sts Peter and Paul the Apostles in Tarnowskie Góry

The parish church on Gliwicka Street in Tarnowskie Góry is a brick building with a Renaissance core and a Neo-Romanesque rebuilding from the mid-19th century. It is among the oldest masonry churches in the town and is listed in the heritage register.

From a wooden church to a masonry church

The first church, wooden, was built in 1529 and was put up by Lutherans. Two years later it was replaced by a masonry building, probably erected on the foundations of a Catholic chapel from the 1520s. In 1545 a chancel was added, and in 1560-1563 a tower, whose form has survived to this day; only the helm was replaced, in 1798. During the Thirty Years' War the church was taken from the Protestants and on 1 February 1630 handed over to Catholics. It was consecrated in 1670.

Rebuildings and furnishings

In 1723-1724 a late Baroque chapel of St Barbara was built by the church. The greatest change came in 1848-1851, when the church was rebuilt in the Neo-Romanesque style and a new transept and chancel were added. The church has preserved a clock from 1586, one of the oldest in the Silesian Voivodeship. The organ, built around 1928 by Dominik Biernacki, has 43 stops, three manuals and a pedalboard. The church was restored in the 1920s and 1980s.

Nearby

The church lies in the town centre, a few steps from Gwarków Square, around which sightseeing in the town is concentrated.

Practical information

• Address: ul. Gliwicka, Tarnowskie Góry.
• This is a working parish church, so the interiors are visited with respect for services; parish information is provided on the parish website.