The place of miracles - Piaseczno

uu Worth Seeing:

uu The Gothic Temple The knights of the Teutonic Order completed the church building in 1348, at time when Henryk Dusemer was the Great Commander. Till today there is an archaic Germanic inscription outside the church.

During the Swedish Wars the church was seriously destroyed and was rebuilt and equipped by Jan III Sobieski – the subprefect of Gniew.

The vault of church is made by craftsman from Gdansk – Bartłomiej Ranisch.

In the middle of the 18th century because of the rising number of pilgrims there were two baroque chapels built on to the church. St. Joseph chapel comes from 1755, and the chapel of Our Lady of Mount Caramel was built 1758-1759. From From the same period also comes rococo equipping the temple – altars, confessionals, choir balustrade, pulpit and baptismal font.

In the main altar there is a statue of Mary with Child.

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Panorama of Gniew – unique in Europe The Castle in Gniew The biggest events: International Knight Tournament – Vivat Vasa (includes historic performance Two Vasas Battle – 1626) Archaeological Museum in Gniew Old Town with the biggest complex of historic tenements in Pomerania Town Hall in Gniew St. Nicholas church in Gniew Marian Shrine in Piaseczno Museum of the Polish Peasant Movement in Piaseczno St. Apostles Peter and Paul church in Opalenie St. John church in Pieniążkowo St. John church in Wielkie Walichnowy Cemeteries of the Mennonites in Wielkie Walichnowy and Polskie Gronwo Natural reserves: Opalenie Dolne and Opalenie Górne, Wiosło Małe and Wiosło Duże Forestry Board of Education in Pólko Opalenie and the Centre of the Environmental Education in Ciepłe Tourist routes: – the Lower Vistula Valley (Nowe – Tczew) – Grzymisław trail (Tczew – Nowe) – the River Wierzyca (Gniew – Pelpin) – Opalenie trail (Mała Karczma – Opalenie) – Dębińskie Woods (Mała Karczma – Opalenie) Leisure complex, Forest Museum, Mini Zoo In Brody Pomorskie Ecological areas: Trzcinowisko in Ciepłe, Parowa in Ciepłe, Borawa in Kuchnia, Strzelnica in Gniew Watering places: Rakowiec, Półwieś, Pieniążkowo and Tymawa Tennis courts

Parafia Rzymskokatolicka Narodzenia Najświętszej Maryi Panny Piaseczno 11, 83-123 Piaseczno tel. 58 535-14-23, fax 58 535-14-24 e-mail: ppiaseczno@pelplin.diecezja.org www.sanktuarium-piaseczno.pl Authors of photographs: Krzysztof Kuca, Marcin Lipiński, archiwum UMiG Gniew Text: Magdalena Frost, English translation: Joanna Diller Graphic Project: Studio A (studioa@onet.pl)

Muzeum Historii Polskiego Ruchu Ludowego 83-123 Piaseczno, tel. 58 535-14-29

The place of miracles Piaseczno

Urząd Miasta i Gminy Gniew Plac Grunwaldzki 1, 83-140 Gniew tel. 58 535-22-55 do 58, fax 58 530 79 40 e-mail: promocja@gniew.pl www.gniew.pl, www.zamek-gniew.pl

Piaseczno was mention for the first time in the documents form 14th century. The village and the parish were founded by the Teutonic Knights, who were spreading the cult of the Virgin Mary on that land. They also built a great temple, and made so famous this place forever.

In front of the museum there is a heritage park, where you can find machines used in agriculture in recent decades. Inside the museum there are two permanent exhibition rooms where are collections illustrating activities of peasant organizations, the diversity and activity of the peasant movement in these areas. There is also set of ethnographical exhibit items from Kociewie and the Pomerania gathered together in the cottage reconstructed according to the tradition of Kociewie region.

uu Madonna with Child This statue attracted crowds of pilgrims to Piaseczno. According to tradition the first manifestation and miracle took place in the 14th century. At that time the Beautiful Lady revealed to paralyzed son of the local craftsman and healed him. Fame of that miracle spread very fast and soon an unknown artist made a limewood statue of Madonna with Child. The statue is still in the main altar, where you can pray in front of her beautiful face. Wonderful raising to life of Anna Konopacka, healing the princess Krystyna Anna Radziwiłłówna, saving Zofia Gutowska the inhabitant from nearby village Gogolewo or healing Ewa Śpigłowa from Rynkówka and Grzegorz from Dzierżążno are the miracles of The Piasecka Lady. These miracles according to decree of Bishop Nicholas Gniewosz were declared as authentic and were eternized on the paintings. However there are only three at church in Piaseczno. Numerous votive offerings, which adorn the painting of Madonna, show how many divine graces pilgrims obtained through ages. The greatest votive offering is a church vault which was funded by king of Poland – Jan III Sobieski after the victory in the battle of Chocim in 1673.

On 8th September 1968 Cardinal Karol Wojtyla coroneted the statue of Madonna with Child with papal crowns and in 1978 the pope Paul VI ecumenical title of Mother of Unity.

uu Events in Piaseczno

uu The well Not far from church there is a holy water source and Calvary path. Next to it there was built a chapel. As a history says when, during the war the Nazis tried to destroyed that place, a German officer, who was supervising the demolition of the chapel was killed unhappily under the hoofs of his horse.

The present shrine in the shape of a sail boat was built in 1978. During the summer, every Sunday there is celebrated Way of the Cross. Piaseczno is also a traditional place of Pilgrimage of Pomerania. The Main, called the Great Indulgence Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, always begins on the Sunday after the 8th September and attracts crowds of pilgrims. According to tradition , to get the indulgence came here Krystyna Radziwiłł, a wife of Stanislaw Albrecht – the subprefect of Gniew. In 1696, shortly before his death came here also Jan III Sobieski.

uu Museum of the Polish Peasant Movement Piaseczno was the first village where came into existence the Peasant Company – Agricultural Association. To commemorate its founder – Juliusz Kraziewicz, in 1966 there was created a memorial chamber, which was later turned into Branch of the Museum of the Polish Peasant Movement in Warsaw.

Piaseczno is famous for Kociewie and Pomerania Folk Groups Review, which is held here since 1993. Every year, at the third weekend of August on the stage near the Calvary path teams from Pomerania and Kociewie meet for two days to charm audience with the variety of the folklore.