GARRISON CHURCH OF SAINT CATHERINE OF ALEXANDRIA

Church of Saint Catherine of Alexandria - made of red brick, in a neo-Gothic style, with the use of templates with Gothic forms of the 13th century - was erected with reference to the tradition of the Teutonic Knights times. Characteristic element of the building is a tower of 86 m in height, the tallest in Toruń. The structure, despite its short history, has permanently embedded into the city panorama, since the area on which it is located was closely related to the history of Toruń from the beginning of its existence.
History
The church was built in the years 1894-1897 according to the design of the architect from Berlin - Schönhals, as an Evangelical one, in 1921 it was consecrated again as a Roman Catholic garrison church. The place where the temple is located, in Middle Ages was behind the city walls. There was a Saint Catherine gate at the end of the street with the same name, leading from the New Town of Toruń to the suburbian area. The first church (actually a chapel) of Saint Catherine was erected ca. 1360. This was an oriented building with a rectangular body, with a square tower added from the West, built as a post-and-beam structure. In 1814 during fortification works its demolition was commenced, which was completed by Prussian authorities. Since from 1884 within the area between New Town, Toruń-Miasto railway station and the ponds located at today Przy Kaszowniku street, a new district - Wilhelmstadt, was starting to be formed, intended for the officers with families, the decision was taken to also build a new temple here for 1.6 thousand places, planned to be an architectural dominant of the new district. The area on which the church of Saint Catherine was originally located was chosen as a construction site. In the years 1970-1984 a thorough renovation of the church was performed, changing the roof coverings over the nave and transept, and the roof of the bell tower.
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