Muzeum Ordynariatu Polowego

What to expect

The basement of the Field Cathedral of the Polish Armed Forces - the same building whose cellars served as an insurgent hospital in August 1944, when a German bombing on 20 August killed roughly 120 wounded and staff. Today, this underground space houses Poland’s only museum dedicated to the history of military chaplaincy.

The exhibition is multimedia-driven - by necessity, since the underground chambers leave little room for traditional display cases. It covers over a thousand years: from the Christianisation of Poland in 966 AD to modern overseas missions. Key artifacts: the pastoral staff of Bishop Stanislaw Gall (Poland’s first military bishop, 1918), the mitre and pontifical gloves of Bishop Jozef Gawlina (who lived in field conditions with troops during WWII rather than staying in capitals), portable field altars, chaplains’ liturgical vestments, and rosaries made by soldiers at the front.

Semicircular display cases designed by architect Wojciech Obtulowicz. A dedicated memorial space honours the chaplains who died in the Smolensk plane crash on 10 April 2010 - the museum opened just eight months after the tragedy.

Worth knowing: the exhibition covers not only Catholic chaplains but also Protestant, Orthodox, Jewish, and Muslim chaplains who served in the Polish military.

Dluga Street is in Srodmiescie (central Warsaw), a short walk west of the Old Town Market Square.

Tips

• Call before visiting. In 2022, management transferred from the Museum of Warsaw to the cathedral parish. Hours may have changed. Call: +48 22 498 02 43.
• Historical hours: Tue-Thu 10:00-16:00, Fri-Sun 10:00-18:00. Free on Thursdays.
• Standard ticket: 6 PLN (€1.40), reduced: 4 PLN (€0.90).
• The basement adaptation cost 10.9 million PLN (€2.5M), with 6.8 million from EU funds. The interior is modern despite the historic location.
• Combine with the cathedral above - the Katyn Chapel with roughly 15,000 names of murdered officers inscribed on the walls and the Chapel of the Polish Soldier are a separate experience worth your time.
• No elevator to the basement - not accessible for wheelchair users, though the downstairs toilet is adapted.

Getting there

Metro Ratusz Arsenal (M1, red line), 3-5 minute walk east along ul. Dluga. Trams 15, 16, 26 (Ratusz Arsenal stop). A 5-minute walk west from the Old Town Market Square.

Nearby museums

State Archaeological Museum (ul. Dluga 52, 400 m) - same street, collections from the Palaeolithic through the Middle Ages. Warsaw Uprising Veterans’ Association (ul. Dluga 22, 100 m) - video testimonies from the Uprising, steps away.