Zinar Castle

The first temple in Krakow, inspired by the sacred architecture of Baroque Rome, with a magnificent stone facade and a well-designed dome, is an important element of the city's panorama.

In the second half of the 16th century, after the end of the Council of Trent, they came to Krakow Jesuits, bringing with them ideas of the Counter-Reformation and a new, baroque vision of church architecture. Initially, they were served by the modest church of St. Barbara, however, soon the idea arose to build a more worthy temple. In order to best serve the fulfillment of the Order's counter-reformation mission, it was to stand in the city center and dominate the urban surroundings. We managed to obtain financial support from King Sigismund III Vasa who was devoted to matters of faith, and in the years 1597-1619 the first baroque church in Poland was built. The design was modeled on the mother Roman temple of the Jesuits Il Gesù, considered a model work of the early Baroque.

The construction was not easy: the walls already under construction began to scratch and had to be dismantled to deepen the foundations. It was only the third architect involved, Giovanni Trevano, who managed to correct the design and vault the church with a dome, and put up an imposing façade lined with stone blocks. The architecture of the interior is monumental, very economical, almost austere. The main altar with a painting depicting the handing over of St. To Peter the keys to Rome.

In the crypt under the chancel lies the Jesuit Piotr Skarga, who died in 1612 - a leading representative of the Counter-Reformation in Poland, writer and court preacher to King Sigismund III Vasa. In 2012, on the 400th anniversary of the priest's death, the first part of the National Pantheon was opened in the basement of the church. The writer Sławomir Mrożek was the first to rest there in 2013.