Bzowo: St Margaret’s Church, Steep Slope and Local History

Bzowo on the Steep Slope of the Vistula Valley

Bzowo lies on the steep slope of the Vistula Valley. This location describes the geographical setting of the village; its architectural and settlement history spans several distinct periods. To get your bearings, it is useful to consider the landscape and historical features separately: the church, cemetery, wooden houses and horse trough relate to different aspects of the village’s history.

St Margaret’s Church

The present-day late Baroque Church of St Margaret was built of brick and stone in 1768 and still stands today. Its features include a tower and a Rococo interior dating from the 18th century. These terms describe different aspects: brick and stone are materials, the tower is a structural element, and Rococo characterizes the interior design. The late Baroque classification refers to the church as a building, while the Rococo description applies to its interior; the terms therefore refer to different aspects and do not contradict each other.

On 24 July 1938, Bishop Konstanty Dominik consecrated the church. This date marks the consecration, not the construction; the church was built 170 years earlier.

Settlements, Parish and Cemetery

Bzowo formerly consisted of the two settlements of Bzowo and Głowno, which were joined in the 16th century. The first mentions of the parish in Głowno date from 1325. These dates refer to different events: the parish is mentioned before the settlements were later joined. The date 1325 does not refer to the construction of St Margaret’s Church; that took place in 1768.

The cemetery at the Roman Catholic parish church of St Margaret was established at the beginning of the 18th century, probably on the site of a cemetery dating from the 14th century. The cemetery predates the church’s construction in 1768; the existence of an earlier cemetery from the 14th century remains a hypothesis.

Wooden Houses and Former Uses

Bzowo has wooden houses built in the Dutch or Olęder log-building style, dating from the mid-19th century. Alongside the religious building, they represent a different type of architecture and use: the houses and St Margaret’s Church differ both in building type and date. The mid-19th century is considerably later than 1768. The buildings therefore belong to different periods, not to a single building phase. Brick and stone characterize St Margaret’s Church; the wooden houses, by contrast, were built in the Dutch or Olęder log-building style.

The former horse trough, dating from the 19th century, provides a different historical point of reference from the houses and church: its name refers to the former watering of horses, while the other examples concern building types and architectural history. The village’s history therefore extends beyond religious architecture and wooden houses to include places used for other purposes in the past.

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