Churches and monasteries
a Neo-Romanesque Franciscan church from 1908, known for its annual altar nativity scene and the Calvary next door
Parks and nature
a recreation park with an amphitheatre, a skatepark and a brine graduation tower open since 2019
trampoline park of 3,000 m² with an air bag, an air track, a climbing zone and dodgeball
Places with character
monastery from the 1930s with chapels, a memorial room and a missionary museum
Culture
cultural centre in an Art Nouveau villa from 1910, organiser of the Hawthorn Blossom Festival
Churches and monasteries
Stations of the Cross and rosary chapels in a park by the Kłodnica, next to the Franciscan monastery
Museums
ethnographic museum with souvenirs of Franciscan missionaries from several continents
Churches and monasteries
modern church with mosaics, a figure of St Barbara made of coal and a Späth organ
Churches and monasteries
a new Franciscan church with a clinker facade and a dome, blessed in 2023
Churches and monasteries
Franciscan church set up in a former restaurant, a parish church until 2023
Places of remembrance
monument honouring underground soldiers and political prisoners of the Stalinist period
Cemeteries and monuments
early 20th-century necropolis with Franciscan plots and the grave of the defenders of Katowice
Parks and nature
a neighbourhood square in Ligota with a granite globe showing the directions to Katowice's partner cities
Places with character
altar Nativity scene with about 120 figures, built in the basilica since 1908
Cemeteries and monuments
a marble and bronze bench with a bust of the composer, unveiled in 2019
Cemeteries and monuments
a sculpture with three children in front of the entrance to the Servant Sisters convent in Panewniki
Cemeteries and monuments
a mass grave of the defenders of Katowice from 1939 in the Ligota cemetery
Cemeteries and monuments
a sandstone figure of the patron saint of Silesia from 1912 in front of the basilica in Panewniki
What to see in Ligota-Panewniki: the Franciscan basilica with its calvary and nativity scene, churches, Zadole Park and small museums in Katowice.
Ligota-Panewniki is a southern district of Katowice, known mainly for the Franciscan monastery complex in Panewniki. Besides it there are parks, a square with a globe, a cultural centre in an Art Nouveau villa and a cemetery with monuments, so it is an address for a quiet walk combined with history.
Start with the Basilica of Saint Louis the King and the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary at ulica Panewnicka 76. It is a Neo-Romanesque monastery church of the Franciscans, built of clinker brick in 1905-1908 and entered in the register of monuments. It has held the title of minor basilica since 1974, and the building is 76 metres tall.
Next to the basilica there is a park with the Panewniki Calvary, a set of Passion and Marian chapels on about eight hectares. The calvary is considered to date from 1909. On plac Klasztorny stands the monument to Saint Hedwig of Silesia, a sandstone figure from 1912 by Bruno Tschötschel, unveiled on 21 July 1912, with a plinth designed by the Franciscan Meinard Wieczorek.
In winter the basilica draws visitors with the nativity scene in Panewniki, an altar Christmas crib built since 1908, with about 120 figures, regarded as the largest of its kind in Europe. Next to the monastery is the Franciscan Mission Museum at ulica Związkowa 20, an ethnographic display of about 200 items from Africa, Latin America and the Middle East. The exhibition room opened in 2003, and the items were brought by Franciscan missionaries from Upper Silesia.
Besides the basilica the district has several churches. The full list is under churches and monasteries in Ligota-Panewniki. The modern Church of Our Lady of the Rosary on ulica Zadole was built in 1985-1992, and in later years it was given mosaics, figures and an organ.
The newest is the Church of Saint Anthony of Padua on ulica Panewnicka, part of the Franciscan monastery complex in Stare Panewniki, built in 2019-2023 and consecrated in June 2023. The same name covers a second address: the former parish church at number 463, set up in 1958 in a building that was once a restaurant and replaced by the new one in 2023. These are therefore two different buildings, and a visitor should look for the new one at number 451.
The Servants of the Mother of God have their provincial house at ulica Panewnicka 63, from the 1930s. It is a convent and retreat house with a public chapel, so it is not a place meant for sightseeing. In front of the convent stands the monument to Edmund Bojanowski, a sculpture showing him with three children.
The largest green space in the district is Zadole Park, a municipal recreation area of 7.76 ha in the south of Ligota. It has a skate track, an amphitheatre, tennis courts and a brine graduation tower, and entry is free. Together with Kościuszko Park and the Katowice Forest Park it is among the city's larger recreation areas, and officially it is called the Zadole Recreation Grounds.
In the centre of Ligota lies plac Miast Partnerskich, between ulica Koszalińska, ulica Słupska and ulica Świdnicka, with an illuminated granite globe showing directions to Katowice's partner cities, a playground and a dog run. Locals call it the central square of Ligota.
For a rainy day with children parents have JUMPCITY Katowice at ulica Kościuszki 227, a commercial trampoline and entertainment park of 3,000 square metres with jumping arenas, climbing and a zone for the youngest.
The Ligota Municipal Cultural Centre at ulica Franciszkańska 33 operates in an Art Nouveau villa from 1910, built for the director of the Ligota Chemical Factory. It has a library and organises festivals. If you like music, also look at the Bolesław Szabelski bench at the junction of ulica Piotrowicka and ulica Panewnicka, a monument bench with a bust of the composer, unveiled in 2019. Szabelski lived in Ligota in 1945-1956.
At ulica Panewnicka 45 there is the municipal cemetery from 1911, opposite the basilica, with Franciscan plots and a collective grave of the defenders of Katowice from 1939. The cemetery is tied to the history of the basilica and, according to its manager, is a typical historic Silesian cemetery. It is active, and current burials take place almost only in family graves, so quiet is expected there.
There are two monuments in the cemetery. The Monument to the Defenders of Katowice commemorates Silesian insurgents, girl and boy scouts murdered by the Germans in 1939 and the defenders of the city buried here. The Monument to the Victims of Stalinism is dedicated to soldiers and activists of the independence underground in 1945-1956 and to political prisoners of the Stalinist period, murdered and secretly buried in Upper Silesia. The remaining sites are listed in cemeteries and monuments in Ligota-Panewniki.
Most places lie along ulica Panewnicka: the sisters' house at number 63, the basilica at number 76 and the cemetery opposite. You will spend most of your time there. Zadole Park, the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary and plac Miast Partnerskich lie in Ligota, so they are easy to combine into a second walk. All the places are gathered under things to see in Ligota-Panewniki.
The basilica with the calvary, the mission museum and the cemetery on ulica Panewnicka, and in the afternoon Zadole Park and plac Miast Partnerskich.
The altar Christmas crib is built every year in the Franciscan basilica at ulica Panewnicka 76.
Yes: JUMPCITY Katowice with trampolines, playgrounds in the park and on plac Miast Partnerskich, and Zadole Park with an amphitheatre and a skate track.
There are no charges for Zadole Park, plac Miast Partnerskich, the cemetery and the monuments.
