The Church of St. Anne (Kolegiata św. Anny) located at in the historic centre of Kraków, is one of the leading examples of Polish Baroque architecture. The church’s history dates back to 14th century.

The church was first mentioned in 1381. In 1407 the building was completely destroyed during a fire, but it was rebuilt the same year in the Gothic style by King Władysław II Jagiełło. In 1428 the choir was reconstructed and enlarged. By a charter dated October 27, 1535 St. Anne’s was raised to the rank of a collegiate church.

In 1689 the Gothic edifice was demolished as it proved too small for the growing cult of Saint John Cantius, the patron saint of the Jagiellonian University who’s laid to rest there.
In 1689-1705 the new Baroque church was erected, modelled on Sant’Andrea della Valle in Rome. The architect was a Polonized Dutchman Tylman van Gameren, a chief architect at the court of Jan III Sobieski. The interior stucco decoration is the work of Baldassare Fontana, and the polychromy assisted by painters and brothers Carlo and Innocente Monti and Karl Dankwart of Nysa.
Much of the impact of the facade is lost owing to the narrow squeeze, but the church has endured as one of the supreme examples of the Baroque in Kraków.

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