Carmelite Church

The original structure was a wooden church built in 1643 for the Discalced Carmelite Order but was later destroyed by the Swedes and Brandenburg Germans in the 1650s.

The new church was founded in 1661 by Polish Primate Michał Stefan Radziejowski, who also established the Holy Cross Church in Warsaw. Construction of the new building took place from 1692 to 1701 according to the design by Józef Szymon Bellotti.

By the end of the 17th century, the basic structure of the church was mostly completed. However, the current façade was not constructed until 1761. Prince Karol Stanisław Radziwiłł commissioned the German architect Efraim Szreger to create a new façade in a style typical of the reign of King Stanisław II Augustus. The façade features prominent columns supporting the cornice, adding to its grandeur.

The renowned artist Szymon Czechowicz adorned the church with his paintings during the 18th century. Franciszek Smuglewicz, another prominent Polish painter, created the altar paintings. The interior of the church is lavish, featuring a magnificent rococo main altar, gilded decorations, and stucco ceiling ornaments.

Notably, the Carmelite Church played a significant role in Frédéric Chopin's career, as it was where he had his first employment. He was invited to give a recital on the church's organ.

After the brutal suppression of the January Uprising by the Russians in 1864, the monastery was dissolved by the Tsarist regime due to its association with Polish patriotism. The buildings were subsequently repurposed as the Warsaw Archdiocesan Seminary, with the former Carmelite Church serving as the seminary church.

While the Carmelite Church served as a procathedral, it was later replaced by the reconstructed Saint John's Cathedral.

The temple is a Latin cross with a main nave and two side aisles. The facade of the church is done in Baroque style with elements of classicism, typical during the reign of King Stanisław August Poniatowski, featuring columns on a truncated cornice. The facade is crowned by a copper sphere with an oplate resting atop it. The sphere intertwines with the defeated serpent of evil, symbolizing faith. This copper sphere gave rise to the Warsaw proverb "swell like the Carmelite vessel".

Above the main portal, with carved ornaments of black and greenish marble, a cartouche houses the coat of arms of the Radziwiłł princely family. On either side of the facade are two bell towers in the form of censers. In 2000, new bells were installed in them. At the same level are niches with statues of Saint Teresa of Avila and Saint Elijah the Prophet. The tops of the niches are adorned with sculptural groups "Love" - a mother with a child and angels, and "Hope" - a woman with an anchor and angels. Between them, in the center of the facade, is the Papal emblem. The top of the facade is crowned with a copper sphere with a gilded host placed on it - a symbol of faith.

The interior of the church is done in the style of late Baroque with elements of Rococo. The walls of the temple feature paintings by Szymon Czechowicz, an 18th-century painter. Canvases by the Polish artist Franciszek Smuglewicz decorate the main altar, as do sculptures by Johann Georg Plersch, transferred from the Dominican church in Warsaw. The gilded ceiling is adorned with magnificent stucco work.

In the side aisles are 10 small altars (5 on each side), one of which is consecrated in honor of the Madonna, the Giver of Good Death. It contains an icon of the Mother of God from Ukraine, donated to the temple by King Jan Kazimierz in 1664.