St. Lawrence's Chapel (

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

: ''Kaplica św. Wawrzyńca'';

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...

: ''Kaple Sv. Vavřince'';

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

: ''Laurentius Kapelle'') – a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

chapel located on the peak of Śnieżka; in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

. The chapel is located in south-west of

, in the eastern

Karkonosze The Giant Mountains, Krkonoše, or Karkonosze (Czech: , , ), are a mountain range located in the north of the Czech Republic and the south-west of Poland, part of the Sudetes mountain system (part of the Bohemian Massif). The Czech–Polish bord ...

Mountains, on the peak of Śnieżka – the highest peak of the

Mountains, located around 5.3

kilometres The kilometre ( SI symbol: km; or ), spelt kilometer in American and Philippine English, is a unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), equal to one thousand metres (kilo- being the SI prefix for ). It is the preferred measur ...

west of the centre of

Karpacz Karpacz (, German: ''Krummhübel'') is a spa town and ski resort in Jelenia Góra County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, south-western Poland, and one of the most important centres for mountain hiking and skiing, including ski jumping. Its populatio ...

History

The construction of the chapel was founded by

Count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

Christof Leopold von Schaffgotsch, as a votive offering to the confiscated wealth of his father. The building of the chapel on Śnieżka was done so to enforce his right to the mountain, which was

impeached Impeachment is a process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In Eu ...

Czernin. The construction of the chapel on the peak of Śnieżka began in 1665. The construction works were led by architect Bartłomiej Nantwig from

Gryfów Śląski Gryfów Śląski (), simplified to Gryfów (), is a historic town in Lwówek Śląski County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. It is the seat of the administrative district (gmina) called Gmina Gryfów Śląski. As of 2019, the ...

. To build the foundation of the chapel, 4.5 metres of debris was removed, together with rock scree to get to a resistant rock base. The chapel was completed in 1681, with the chapel's

altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...

taken from Krzeszów. The chapel was consecrated on August 10, St. Lawrence's Day, in 1681, by the

Abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the head of an independent monastery for men in various Western Christian traditions. The name is derived from ''abba'', the Aramaic form of the Hebrew ''ab'', and means "father". The female equivale ...

Krzeszów Abbey Krzeszów Abbey (, ) is a historical Baroque architecture, Baroque Cistercians, Cistercian monastery in Krzeszów, Lower Silesia, Poland. The Abbey, a 1242 Benedictine foundation, from 1289 to 1810 was run by Cistercians, until it was secularized ...

, Bernard Rosa. A regular mass service took place in the chapel until 1810. The chapel on Śnieżka was the first

filial church A filial church, in the Roman Catholic Church, is a church to which is annexed the cure of souls, but which remains dependent on another church. The term comes from the Latin ''filialis'', from ''filia'', “daughter”. Description The term ''fi ...

in Miłków, referenced in a visitation protocol in 1687. The

Cistercians The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...

took control of the chapel until the

secularisation In sociology, secularization () is a multilayered concept that generally denotes "a transition from a religious to a more worldly level." There are many types of secularization and most do not lead to atheism or irreligion, nor are they automatica ...

of law in 1810. Between 1810 and 1850, the chapel lost its sacramental function, during which the

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

was moved to St. Anne's Chapel in Sosnówka. The building began to function as a

mountain hut A mountain hut is a building located at high elevation, in mountainous terrain, generally accessible only by foot, intended to provide food and shelter to mountaineering, mountaineers, climbing, climbers and Hiking, hikers. Mountain huts are us ...

. The chapel was restored in 1850, by Friedrich Sommer, which returned the chapel's sacramental function. The chapel was re-consecrated in 1850, by

Bishop of Wrocław Bishops of the (Breslau )Wrocław Bishopric, Prince-Bishopric (1290–1918), and Archdiocese (since 1930; see Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Wrocław for details). Bishops * 1000–? – John (Johannes) * 1051–1062 – Hieronymus * 1063–1072 � ...

Heinrich Förster Heinrich Förster (1800-1881) was a German Roman Catholic bishop who was deposed during the Kulturkampf in Germany. Biography He was born at Grossglogau on 24 November 1799, was educated at Breslau, and in 1837 was appointed chief preacher at t ...

. The regularity of sacramental practices was also restored. In 1981, the chapel celebrated its 300-year, with its construction unchanged to the present day.

References

External links

Kaplica św. Wawrzyńca - Kaple Sv. Vavrince, St. Laurentius Kapelle
na portalu polska-org.pl {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Lawrence's Chapel, Sniezka Roman Catholic churches completed in 1681 Roman Catholic chapels in Poland Śnieżka 1681 establishments in Europe 17th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Poland