Churches and monasteries
one of the largest Gothic churches in Poland, being rebuilt after the fire of 1945, with a terrace on the tower
Historic sites
a Gothic brick façade, rebuilt after 1945, today a library and a cultural centre
Churches and monasteries
Neo-Gothic brick church from 1913, built from the contributions of Polish labourers, today a sanctuary
Historic sites
brick gate of the 15th century with a defensive gallery and corner turrets, named after Schwedt
Churches and monasteries
Gothic single-nave church of the 14th century, a former Augustinian church, with cloisters
Churches and monasteries
15th-century church of stone and brick of a former Augustinian monastery, with a Neo-Gothic tower of the 19th century
Historic sites
a 15th-century brick tower gate with a viewing terrace, part of the town walls of Chojna
Architecture in Chojna means brick Gothic: St Mary's Church, two town gates, the town hall and three smaller churches, from the 14th century to 1913.
Chojna is a small town, but it holds plenty of monuments from the age of brick, and they stand close together. The selection suits anyone who wants to see forms, details and different styles in a few hours rather than just one church. The rest of the town is covered under attractions in Chojna, and a wider overview from the region is architecture in West Pomerania.
Three Gothic structures matter most: St Mary's Church, the town hall and the gates of the old walls. All were built of brick, and two of them, the church and the town hall, were rebuilt over many years after the destruction of 1945.
Kościół Mariacki w Chojnie (St Mary's Church) is a three-aisled hall church from 1389-1407, enlarged later. The walls are faced with glazed brick, and the neo-Gothic tower, taller than a hundred metres according to Wikipedia, can be seen from afar. After a fire in 1945 the church was rebuilt. How it came to that is told in the article Chojna's St Mary's: Gothic, fire and reconstruction.
Ratusz w Chojnie (Town Hall) stands in the north-western part of the former market square and combines Gothic and Baroque features, though the brick Gothic facade dominates. Restored after wartime damage, it serves the town as a cultural centre with a library, as it has done since 1986. Its reconstructed facades are counted among the richest Gothic solutions in Poland, so look at them closely instead of just walking past. The story of the building and the gates is gathered in the town hall, Świecka Gate and walls of Chojna.
Of Chojna's three defensive gates, two still stand, Świecka and Barnkowo. Both date from the 15th century and are built of brick, but they differ in shape and fit the street in different ways.
Brama Świecka w Chojnie (Świecka Gate) rises on a square base and is crowned with a brick gallery, battlements and small turrets, so it resembles a little fortress. Its name refers to Świecie nad Odrą, now the German town of Schwedt, which the road led to. Brama Barnkowska (Barnkowo Gate) is a brick tower gate on Bolesława Chrobrego street, listed as a monument, with a viewing terrace. Together they show what the walls that surrounded the town in the 13th and 14th centuries looked like.
Besides the large parish church, three smaller ones are worth a look. They represent three different periods and materials, from stone with brick to early 20th-century neo-Gothic.
Kościół Świętej Trójcy w Chojnie (Holy Trinity Church) stands on Malarska street, a Gothic building with one nave dating from the first half of the 14th century. It belonged to the Augustinians until 1536 and was rebuilt after the war in 1959-1965. Kościół św. Marka w Chojnie (Church of St Mark) stands in Barnkowo, a former suburb, and is a late Gothic building of stone and brick from the 15th century, its tower being a neo-Gothic addition of the 19th century. The youngest is Kościół Najświętszego Serca Pana Jezusa w Chojnie (Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus), a neo-Gothic brick building from 1913 on Roosevelta street, raised thanks to contributions from Polish workers.
A few hours is enough to see all seven buildings from the outside. St Mary's Church and the walk to the gates take the longest, while St Mark's lies outside the strict centre, in Barnkowo.
If you like defensive details, start with the Świecka Gate, with its gallery and battlements. The Barnkowo Gate has a viewing terrace and stands on Bolesława Chrobrego street.
Since 1986 the town hall has housed a cultural centre and the town library. The building stands in the north-western part of the former market square.
Of those listed, the oldest are Gothic: St Mary's Church from 1389-1407 and Holy Trinity Church from the first half of the 14th century. The youngest dates from 1913.
