Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Chorzów

The Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary stands in Chorzów Batory. The brick building with a 73-metre tower was built at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries and can hold about five thousand people.

Built in 1898-1901

The foundation stone was blessed on 23 October 1898, and the construction was led by the Wieczorek firm of Królewska Huta. The consecration was performed on 15 September 1901 by Cardinal Georg Kopp. The design was prepared by Ludwig Schneider, and the bricks were stamped with an inscription bearing his name and the title of architect. The church was entered in the heritage register in 2009.

Structure and interior

The Neo-Gothic pseudo-basilica has the plan of a Latin cross with a transept and buttresses, measures about 67.6 by 33.6 m, and the main nave is 22 m wide. Chapels are arranged around the five-sided chancel, and the naves are covered with star vaults. The tower, in the west projection of the façade, ends in a slender helm.

In the high altar hangs a painting of Our Lady of the Assumption, funded by the wife of Wilhelm Kollman, director of the Bismarck steelworks. The chancel is decorated with stained-glass windows showing Saints Elizabeth, Hedwig, John of Nepomuk and Joseph. In the porch stands a life-size sculpture of the crucified Christ, and in one of the chapels is the chapel of Blessed Józef Czempiel. The church keeps the relics of Saints Alban and Gaudentius.

Nearby

From Batory it is not far to the large green areas of Chorzów: it is about 4 km to Silesian Park, and a similar distance to the Silesian Zoological Garden. About 3 km further on lies the Upper Silesian Ethnographic Park.

Practical information

• Address: ul. Farna 3, Chorzów Batory.
• The church is in use as a parish church, so visiting the interior depends on parish life. Current information is given on the parish website.
• Next to it stands a brick presbytery from 1908, entered in the heritage register together with the church.