The 18th century Church of
San Stanislao dei Polacchi, located in the rione Sant'Angelo (XI), is dedicate to St Stanislaus, martyr and patron of Poland. The church is also referred to as Santissimo Salvatore e San Stanislao in older sources, and this is the name inscribed on the façade. It is the only National Polish church in Italy.
For reference, a plan of the church is available
here.
The first church here, known as “San Salvatore in Pensili de Sorraca” is mentioned in documents from 1174 and 1209. From the 16th century the area around the church was the Polish center. The Polish Cardinal Stanislaw Hosius was in Rome during the Jubilee year of 1575. He was struck by how the Polish pilgrims had nowhere of their own to stay. So he initiated a project to found a hospice complex for Polish pilgrims and expatriates in Rome, and was granted the derelict church in 1578. Immediate financial assistance came from King Stefan Batory and his wife, Queen Anna Jagiełłonka to build the hospice and rebuild the church. The church was finished in 1580 according to the inscription on the façade. The complex was completed in 1591, and the rebuilt church was consecrated in that year, when it was rededicated to St Stanislaus.
The church was completely rebuilt from 1729 to 1735, the architect of the fabric being
Francesco Ferrari and the supervisor of the interior decoration, Ignazio Brocchi. The hospital was also rebuilt, and the overall project was completed in 1757. This project was sponsored by King Stanislaw August Poniatowski who was the last king of Poland. His coat of arms is above the presbytery.
When the French took over Rome in 1798, they ejected the Poles from the complex and turned it into an army barracks. Then, at the Congress of Vienna in 1815, the Tsar of Russia was given the title of King of Poland. This meant that the church and complex passed into the possession of the Russian government, who turned it into a hospice for Russians
In 1920 the Bishop of Krakow, Prince Adam Stefan Sapieha, successfully laid claim to the hospice and church. It was extremely neglected and dilapidated. Renovations began but, due to the outbreak of war, were not completed until 1948. In 1982 the church obtained the status of a Polish national parish in Rome, and the Society of Christ Fathers for Poles Living Abroad was later put in charge.
