H. St. Sigismund’s church
St. Sigismund's Church, located southwest of the market square in Częstochowa, was originally a branch of the parish church of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Mother of God on Jasna Góra. When in 1382 Duke Władysław Opolczyk settled the Pauline Order on Jasna Góra hill, St. Sigismund's church (probably built around 1350) became a parish church and its parson was Henryk Biel of Beszno coat of arms Ostoja. In 1474, the parish of St. Sigismund, together with the entire estate, was transferred, by a decree issued by King Casimir Jagiellon "in the field below Złota Góra", from the administration of the lay parson Piotr of Charszewice, to the administration of the Pauline Fathers of Jasna Góra, who built a monastery next to the church. As is known from "Liber beneficiorum" by Jan Długosz, in the years 1470–1480 the parish included the city of Częstochowa and royal villages (Rększowice, Dźbów, Kiedrzyn, Wierzchowiska), church villages (Grabówka, Częstochówka), and noble villages, such as Konopiska, the property of Jakub Koniecpolski, Bleszno and Wrzosowa, owned by Jakub Trepka, as well as iron forges in Błeszno (noble village) and Gnaszyn (church village). The church was originally wooden. It was not until the records of the visitation of 1598 that it is reported to have been built of brick and well furnished. However, this former Gothic church, single-nave with a two-bay chancel, was built in stages, as archeological research indicates. It had four brick altars, a tower with two bells and a ridge turret with a third bell. On the southern side, directly behind the walls of Częstochowa, in front of St. Sigismund's Church, there was a cemetery, which over time was surrounded by a wall; later, the Holy Cross Chapel was built on it. Many townsmen of Częstochowa made bequests to the church, and mainly to charitable institutions. In 1559, mayor Stanisław Skoczylas donated part of his property to build a shelter for the poor. In 1590, townsman Maciej Mrozon donated three fields to St. Jacob's Hospital founded by Jakub Zalejski (Zaleski). Expanded in the second quarter of the 17th century. In 1642, on the northern side a chapel of St. Anne was erected, founded by Andrzej Gołdonowski, the provincial of the Pauline Fathers, and Grzegorz Otwinowski, the owner of Bleszno and Wrzosowa. In the years 1640–1647 Gołdonowski also built a sacristy on the north side. The church was burnt in 1505, 1519 and 1652, i.e. during the Swedish Deluge, after having been plundered earlier.
