In the very heart of Poznań, only a few dozen steps form the City Hall, one of the most beautiful examples of European baroque art is located: the St. Mary Magdalene’s parish church.

The construction works of the church began in 1649 and – with intervals – lasted over 50 years. The church was built by the Jesuits. The building façade of is the masterpiece of Giovanni Catenazzi with the main portal being designed by Pompeo Ferrari. The three-aisle church interior overwhelms with its greatness. The church is 55 metres long and 34 metres wide; the height of the nave measures 27 metres.

The interior of the church is extremely elaborate. No other Polish church is decorated in such highly expressive Roman baroque style, also called “the triumphant baroque” for this reason.
On both sides of the nave, there are 16 monumental columns made from artificial marble., Sculptures of the 12 apostles stand above their capitals. The presbytery and the nave are decorated with polychrome by Karol Dankwart, dating back to early 18th century. The author of the stuccoworks, which are from the same period, was Wojciech Bianco. The high altar was designed by Pompeo Ferrari.

Two monumental altars that close the transept were modelled after the St. Aloysius Gonzaga’s altar from the St. Ignatius’ church in Rome, which was constructed in accordance with the project by Andrea Pozzo. In the lower aisles, which form a groin vault, there are 10 smaller altars. One of them, the eastern aisle, contains a gothic statue of Jesus Whipped from around 1430, which was brought here from the former St. Mary Magdalene’s collegiate church.
The pipe organ was constructed in 1876 by the famous Friedrich Ladegast from Weissenfelds. The largest of the 2,579 pipes are 6 metres high. Organ music concerts are frequently organised in the church. Enormous cellars stretch under the church, which served as wine cellars in the interwar years.
In the vicinity of the parish church, there is a former building of the Jesuit college. Nowadays, it is the main seat of the Poznań City Hall. The building played a significant role in the history of Europe. At the end of 1806, the French emperor Napoleon resided here for a dozen or so days with his whole court. Napoleon’s stay in Poznań is commemorated among other things by a plaque on the wall of the Jesuit college, situated next to the entrance.
A few years ago, Friedrich Ladegast’s organ was thoroughly modernised. At the same time, renovation works on the whole church began. The money for the restoration comes among other things from donations and auctions. Each year, in the middle of July, a special fest is organised, when funds are collected for the restoration of the parish church. During the fest it is also possible to visit the church vaults with a guide.
The European Union also plays a role in the restoration of the church. Much of the money for the completion of the works comes from one of the EU funds.