St. Stanislau grave in Wawel – Wawel Cathedral, Kraków
Fact of the Polish figure „St. Adalbert”
Part of the „The patrons and guardians of the land” topic
St. Stanislaus of Szczepanów is considered to be one of the main patron saints of Poland. Polish kings were crowned in front of his tomb in the Wawel Cathedral in Kraków, where his relics were placed in 1088. This emphasized the connection between secular power and religion – especially in light of the circumstances of the saint’s passing, since the bishop of Kraków’s death was a result of a dispute with the king Bolesław II the Bold. However, the death sentence caused a rebellion of the nobility and the king had to flee the country, while the cult of Stanislaus intensified, gradually displacing another patron, St. Adalbert’s. Successive kings financed subsequent elements of the mausoleum, but they were destroyed by the Swedish troops. In the second half of the 17th century, a new silver sarcophagus was made.
Further reading:
Golianek R., A Polish saint. Historical-national themes in Franz Liszt’s oratorio ‘St Stanislaus, ,,Interdisciplinary Studies in Musicology” (2014), V. 13, p. 79-89.
Rożek M., Krakowska Katedra na Wawelu, Kraków 1989.
