St. Martin and St. Nicholas Cathedral, Bydgoszcz
| St. Martin and St. Nicholas Cathedral | |
|---|---|
| Katedra św. Marcina i Mikołaja | |
 |
|
| Location | Bydgoszcz |
| Country |
 Poland
|
| Denomination | Roman Catholic Church |
| Website | www |
| History | |
| Dedication | Martin of Tours, Saint Nicholas |
| Consecrated | March 25, 2004 |
| Architecture | |
| Heritage designation | N°601220-Reg. A/740 (November 3, 1960) |
| Style | Brick Gothic |
| Groundbreaking | 1346–1364 |
| Completed | 1425 |
| Specifications | |
| Capacity | 1800 seats |
| Length | 52 metres (171 ft) |
| Width | 40 metres (130 ft) |
| Floor area | 604 square metres (6,500 sq ft) |
| Number of spires | 1 |
| Materials | Brick |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Roman Catholic Diocese of Bydgoszcz |
St. Martin and St. Nicholas Cathedral (Polish: Katedra św. Marcina i Mikołaja), or simply known as Bydgoszcz Cathedral, is a Catholic church built in the 15th century. It has a Gothic style, serves as a parish church and cathedral of the Diocese of Bydgoszcz. It also houses a shrine dedicated to the Virgin Mary. Its address is 10 Farna Street.
It is the most valuable architectural monument of the Old Town, standing on the Brda riverside. It has been elevated as a cathedral on March 25, 2004 by decision of then Pope John Paul II. Since November 3, 1960, the cathedral has been registered on the Kuyavian-Pomeranian heritage list.
The Bydgoszcz parish church was founded by first mayors of the city, Jan Kiesselhuth and Konrad, at the same time the parish itself was created, after Bydgoszcz establishment in 1346. The church building and its adjoining cemetery (active until 1809) were located in the north-western corner of city market place (today's Old Market Place - Polish: Stary Rynek), reaching the banks of Brda river and its leat branches feeding water mills (today's Mill Island).
17th-century chronicle of Bydgoszcz by Wojciech Łochowski as well as historical researches suggest that prior the construction of the parish church, an older temple dedicated to Saint Giles had been already standing in the suburbs of the old city Kujawski. From the 13th century, it served as a chapel of ease for local officials and knights of Bydgoszcz castle. After the construction of the castle in Bydgoszcz in the middle of the 14th century, Saint Giles church replaced the castle chapel. Until building completion of the parish church, it parson resided at the chapel of ease. This episode established a later but distorted tradition, making Saint Giles church the oldest parish church in Bydgoszcz; the chapel was erased in 1879 when constructing Bernardyńska Street in Bydgoszcz.
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