Interesting places

The most valuable building in Wierzchowice is the former Evangelical Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, situated on a hill.

Its construction began in 1769 and was completed in 1773. Its originator and executor was the Countess von Reichenbach Foundation.

Restored several times, it was richly furnished in 1819. This late Baroque, half-timbered building was built on a rectangular plan with chamfered corners and an added sacristy on the main axis of the building. The two-storey interior of the church was richly decorated, the walls are covered with panelling and woodcarving decoration. The organ made by the Schlag und Söhne company, well-known not only in Europe, has been preserved to this day.

The local parish chronicle describes the history of the creation of the church in Wierzchowice as follows: "(...) when the construction was about to start, after the peace agreement in 1763, the count fell ill with a chronic illness, so that the construction work did not start until 1769. Although the intention was to build a massive church at the beginning, the costing probably thwarted this plan. The countess sold her heavily gilded silver toilet and the count sold his precious and beautiful goldsmith's tools; and so, with the power of this money, the construction began. The inhabitants of Krosnice, Dziewiętlin and even the Catholic farmers from Pierstnica helped with the timber hauling. (...).

In 1770 the foundation stone was ceremoniously laid, and on 29 September. (...) Later that year, master mason Ferdinand Klose laid the foundation and part of the tower. The building work continued apace, and in the following years Scheffler of Brzeg made an organ with 22 stops and a reverse positive. The Count's second wife had the altar and pulpit built at her own expense. The younger count decorated the tower with a clock and two associated bells. In order to shape the tower neatly, Pastor Lauterbach and his carpenter travelled to the Brest and Olawa districts to inspect the church towers there. Only the tower in Miłowice near Oleśnica was worthy of imitation. The workers Ablass and Wende from Czatkowice and Jan Meier from Wierzchowice were the most courageous when it came to putting on the tower knob. (...)

On 1 July 1773, the knob, eagle and sun were placed on the top of the tower and everything was finally ready so that on the Sunday after the Trinity, 21 November 1773, the solemn consecration of the temple began (...)".

In the cemetery next to the church, cycling world champion Ryszard Szurkowski (died 01.02.2021) is buried in his family grave.

www.turystyka.krosnice.pl