Budowa kościoła ewangelickiego w Barczewie w XIX wieku

In 1823, the evangelicals in Barczewo received an oratory for the celebration of liturgical services. Soon it became apparent that it was too small to accommodate the increasing number of congregants. In 1834, the royal court devised plans to reconstruct this structure. Two years later, a Franciscan church was planned to be built to house the Evangelical church. However, the Bishop of Warmia did not approve of this project. In 1844, the state authorities in Berlin recognised the need to erect the Evangelical church in Barczewo, but no construction work was undertaken at that time. At the synod in 1862, it was proposed to build in this place a “Church of Gratitude” (Dankeskirche) for the miraculous rescue of the Prussian ruler in Baden-Baden. Probably in January 1868, the state treasury filed the case of the Barczewo parish, questioning its right to donate due to royal patronage. At the same time, the parish priest Fr. Otto Hass promoted a fund raising campaign for the construction of a church in the whole Prussian state, asking for a donation of one thaler. By November 1871 more than 5000 thalers had been collected. The church was probably built on the basis of Georg Gustav Erbkam’s project. Its dedication took place on September 28, 1871.