The history of the parish and church

The history of the parish and the church in Wizna begins in 1300, when a wooden chapel in the castle was built. In 1390, a wooden church of St. Mark the Evangelist was built and then it was burnt twice by Lithuanians and Teutonic Knights. The first parish priest was Placidus Cracovinus, a Benedictine from Tyniec. The church was in the place where the cemetery is now. According to Zygmunt Gloger "The files show, that there were 760 houses in Wizna, 4,800 people attended the Easter confession, and 2,000 in Wizna itself (...), there were 8 priests and 360 students at school."

In 1500, Duchess Anna Mazowiecka funded a new, brick church dedicated to St. John the Baptist, personally indicating the place of building. The construction and the temple were completed in 1525. It was located on the scarp on the River Narew on the hill called “Ogrody”. It was destroyed during the Swedish Deluge, as well as by two fires.

In the year 1884 the temple was given its final shape. In 1944, the church was blown up by retreating Germans, and rebuilt in 1951 - 1958 by the efforts of the parish priest Telesfor Podbielski. Currently, it is a reconstruction of the church in its oryginal, Gothic shape. Next to the church there is a brick belfry. It was built around 1650.

The church together with its surroundings is a sacred unique complex in the region, which testifies to the rich history of the city and its great importance during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.

Author: Karolina Janczewska