Strzelno - Kościół Świętej Trójcy i Najświętszej Marii Panny

In the 12th century the local voivode endowed the Church of St. Cross here. At the end of the 12th century another church, the Rotunda of St. Prokop, was built.

Premonstratensian nuns had a monastery here from 1148 to 1838. The Holy Trinity Church, consecrated in 1216, was also built during this period.

Strzelno fell to Prussia in 1772. After the end of the First World War Strzelno was ceded to the Second Polish Republic. In 1939 the region was occupied by the German Wehrmacht; subsequently Strelno was reincorporated into the German Reich. In the spring of 1945 it rejoined Poland.

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Today's parish church is the former monastery church of the Premonstratensian nuns. It was consecrated in 1216. It is a three-nave basilica with transept, large choir loft and apse. On the eastern side, the church was originally equipped with two round towers. The central nave is covered by a star vault, while the side aisles are covered by ribbed vaults.

In the 18th century the church was rebuilt. It was given a new facade and baroque furnishings. The original appearance was thus rendered unrecognizable. It was even forgotten.

During the renovation of the church in 1946, six Romanesque columns were freed from a thick layer of plaster. Two of the column shafts are richly decorated with figural bas-reliefs. Their origin is dated to the second half of the 12th century or the beginning of the 13th century. Six out of seven columns have been stripped of the Baroque plaster so far.

Such complex columns are rare and unusual. I have seen similar columns in Santiago and Venice.