St James' Cathedral Basilica in Szczecin

St James' Archcathedral is the main church of Szczecin and of the Archdiocese of Szczecin-Kamień, a Gothic brick hall church standing in the Old Town. Its tower with the spire reaches 110.18 m, and viewpoints have been set up in the spire. The interior holds Gothic altars from destroyed churches of the region and twelve chapels with furnishings linked to the history of the city.

Where the church came from and how it was built

According to tradition the church was founded by a wealthy burgher, Bering of Bamberg, and the date of consecration is given as 25 July 1187. The heritage register dates the present building to the turn of the 13th and 14th centuries. Work continued with interruptions until the end of the 15th century: around 1320 it was halted, and it was resumed roughly half a century later.

In 1456 the south tower collapsed, which destroyed the western part of the body of the church. In the second half of the 15th century the body was rebuilt as a hall, and instead of two towers one central tower was erected. The work was completed in 1503 or 1504. In 1534, after the introduction of Lutheranism in the duchy, the church became a Protestant one and remained so until 1945.

Destruction and reconstruction

The cathedral went through two great fires. The first was caused in 1677 by a shell during the siege of the city by Brandenburg troops: the tower, the vaults and part of the Gothic furnishings burned. The second destroyed the church in 1944 after bombing: the roof, the tower spire and three quarters of the vaults burned.

Permission for reconstruction was issued on 27 April 1971, and work was carried out in 1972-1974 to a design by the Szczecin architects Stanisław Latour and Adam Szymski. Since 1972 the church has been the cathedral of the diocese, since 1992 of the archdiocese, and in 1983 it received the title of minor basilica. The north wall was rebuilt in a modern form, and Wikipedia writes of an ongoing project for its re-Gothicisation. The slender tower spire was put up only on 12 January 2008.

What to see inside

The most valuable are the Gothic altars brought from other churches. In the chancel hangs a triptych assembled from several destroyed altars, with bas-reliefs from about the 15th century, among them the Madonna and Child from Mieszkowice. In the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament stands a triptych from Ciećmierz from the late 14th century, and in the Baptismal Chapel a triptych from the 1520s from the Lübeck workshop of Claus Berg.

The chapels have separate themes: Port Workers (with the cross that stood on Łasztownia in August 1980), People of the Sea, the Home Army, and a chapel dedicated to the victims of the German extermination camps. In the Chapel of the Pomeranian Dukes lie the remains of the Griffins moved from the crypt of the Ducal Castle, and the sarcophagi after conservation can be seen in the castle museum. In the Shoemakers' Chapel the only original Baroque furnishings in the cathedral, from 1779, have survived.

The organ from 2008 has 66 stops and 4743 pipes, and the instrument is 10 m high. Since 1990 a Diocesan Museum has been created on the south gallery.

Practical information

• Address: St James Street in the Old Town, a few minutes on foot from the Old Town Hall.
• The hours for visiting, Mass and entering the tower are given on the cathedral's website, so check them before your visit.
• It is a working church: during services visiting may be restricted, and dress should be appropriate.
• After your visit you can walk down to the Oder to the Chrobry Embankment.