Uzda. Historical building of the Church of the Exaltation of the Cross.

The Church of the Exaltation of the Cross was built in 1798 by General Kazimierz Zawisz, who was the owner of the city at the time. The two-story building of quite an impressive size was made of wood and had majestic concrete columns.

It is known that Yanka Kupala’s grandfather, Anufriy Lutsevich, and in 1843 his father, Dominik Lutsevich, were baptized in this church.

At the beginning of the 20th century, a brick apse in the neo-Gothic style was added, and the temple was surrounded by a brick fence with gates.

In the 1930s, the church building began to be used as a club. In Soviet times, unfortunately, the church was converted into the Uzda District Culture House. Various events and discos were held here. Several years ago, due to the dilapidation of the building, the events were cancelled. They say that in 2019, the building was sold at auction to a local resident.

Today, it is not always possible to enter the building. For example, we managed to do so. We even looked inside the building, which was open – it seemed to us that there was some kind of workshop there.

The outside of the building is covered with ordinary boards; on the back side of the building, fragments of ancient brickwork and a stone apse have been preserved.

The only reminders of the fact that there was a church here before are the entrance gate in a brick fence, typical of Catholic churches, and the majestic ancient columns.

An interesting and unusual historical church building in a neglected, crumbling condition. It is a pity that this symbol of architectural heritage has fallen into disrepair and is not used for its historical purpose. One can only hope that the building will be reconstructed and that it will retain its appearance and features.

By the way, since you are in Uzda, you can visit the Catholic cemetery, located not far from the historical center of the city, where you can see the amazing chapel-tomb of the Zawisza family in the form of a large “Egyptian” pyramid 10 meters high.