Fr. Łukasz Bankowski – Vatican
The first Polish trace even before entering
“We can begin our Polish trail even before we properly enter the basilica,” points out Dagmara Kühne. In the atrium, she draws attention to the massive marble slabs. Inscribed on them are the names of individuals who participated on November 1, 1950, in the solemn proclamation by Pius XII of the dogma of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Among them is only one Polish name: Bishop Józef Gawlina, former field bishop of the Polish Armed Forces, who remained in exile after the war. At that time, the Church in Poland was already under severe pressure from the communist authorities, and the possibility for clergy to travel to the West was very limited.
Gdańsk under the pilgrims’ feet
Upon entering the basilica, the guide advises looking down at your feet. The lengths of the world’s largest churches are marked in the pavement of the main nave. One must walk about 80 meters.
There we find another Polish trace: St. Mary’s Basilica in Gdańsk. It is the only Polish church whose length of 103.50 meters is marked in the floor of St. Peter’s Basilica.
For Polish pilgrims, however, the most important place remains the Chapel of St. Sebastian. Since 2011, St. John Paul II has rested beneath its altar.
Dagmara Kühne points out that the surroundings of the Polish Pope’s tomb also tell the story of the Vatican’s relations with Poland. Nearby are monuments to Pius XI – Achille Ratti, the first apostolic nuncio to reborn Poland – and Pius XII, who after the war elevated the Metropolitan of Kraków, Adam Stefan Sapieha, to the cardinalate.
Would there be a John Paul II without John XXIII?
The guide leads us further, to the altar of St. Jerome, where St. John XXIII rests – the “Good Pope,” canonized together with John Paul II in 2014.
And right here, she suggests looking at the history of both popes together. John XXIII convoked the Second Vatican Council, whose sessions were held in St. Peter’s Basilica. One of its active participants was Karol Wojtyła – first as an auxiliary bishop, later as the Archbishop of Kraków.
“Had it not been for Karol Wojtyła’s active participation in the Council, would the cardinals have elected him in 1978, when Europe was divided by the Iron Curtain?” asks Dagmara Kühne.
The Council allowed Wojtyła to meet hierarchs from all over the world and make himself known beyond Poland’s borders.
Sobieski appears in the basilica more than once
Moving on, the Polish trail leads to the history of Jan III Sobieski and the victory at Vienna. In the Clementine Chapel rests Blessed Innocent XI – the pope of the time of the Vienna relief. Nearby is also his monument alluding to the events of 1683.
But the name of the Sobieskis will return in yet another completely different place in the basilica.
Polish cardinal and the last veto at a conclave
Near the Chapel of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Dagmara Kühne stops at another story that leads directly to Kraków. Beneath the altar rests St. Pius X, elected during the extraordinary conclave of 1903.
It was then that Cardinal Jan Puzyna, Bishop of Kraków, on behalf of Emperor Franz Joseph I, announced the *exclusiva* – an objection to the election of Cardinal Mariano Rampolla. This was the last such veto in the history of the conclave. Pius X, elected at that time, later forbade secular authorities from interfering in the election of the Successor of St. Peter.
Here the guide once again tells us to look at our feet. In the floor is the coat of arms of John Paul II, recalling its restoration during his pontificate. A similar trace can be found before the Baptistery Chapel.
The only Polish woman buried in St. Peter’s Basilica
And then the name of the Sobieskis returns. Dagmara Kühne shows one of the most surprising Polish traces – a place associated with Maria Clementina Sobieska, the granddaughter of Jan III Sobieski and the only Polish woman buried in St. Peter’s Basilica.
Her story leads from the Commonwealth all the way to the British throne. She married James Francis Edward Stuart, whom the Jacobites recognized as the rightful king of England, Scotland, and Ireland. Their sons were Charles Edward Stuart, the famous Bonnie Prince Charlie, and Cardinal Henry Benedict Stuart. They were the great-grandchildren of Jan III Sobieski and the last representatives of the main line of the Stuarts.
The monumental tomb of Maria Clementina with her mosaic portrait is located near the passage leading to the dome.
Dagmara Kühne also leads us to the altar of St. Basil the Great. Beneath it rest the relics of St. Josaphat Kuntsevych – a Basilian, Archbishop of Polotsk, and martyr whose life was tied to the lands of the former Commonwealth.
He was killed in 1623 in Vitebsk, giving his life for the unity of the Church. Through the turbulent history of Europe, his relics traveled all the way to Vienna and subsequently ended up in Rome. On November 22, 1963, during the Second Vatican Council, Paul VI ordered them to be placed under the altar of St. Basil in St. Peter’s Basilica, near the tomb of the Apostle.
This place acquires additional symbolism: a saint who gave his life for Christian unity came to rest by the tomb of St. Peter precisely during the Council, for which one of the most important themes was Christian unity.
Descending beneath the basilica
“The Polish traces do not end at the level of today’s basilica,” emphasizes the guide.
We descend to the Vatican Grottoes, to the level of the former Constantinian basilica. Here there are exceptionally many Polish references.
Resting here, among others, is Pius XI – Achille Ratti, the first apostolic nuncio to reborn Poland. There is also the tomb of Benedict XV, during whose pontificate the nunciature in independent Poland was established. In the Grottoes, there is also the place where John Paul II rested from 2005 to 2011, and where Benedict XVI is buried today.
The Polish Chapel. Here the history of John Paul II comes full circle
Dagmara Kühne makes one of the most important points of the entire tour the Polish Chapel dedicated to Our Lady of Częstochowa. It was established in 1958 thanks to the generosity of the American Polonia, and in 1982, during the celebrations of the 600th anniversary of Jasna Góra, it was expanded.
The histories of two popes and communist Poland intertwine at this place. In 1966, Paul VI wanted to personally participate in the celebrations of the Millennium of Poland’s Baptism at Jasna Góra, but the authorities did not agree to his visit. Therefore, on May 15, the Pope presided over a solemn Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica, uniting with Poles in the homeland and in exile.
However, the most poignant story of the Polish Chapel occurred almost four decades later.
On April 1, 2005, the day before his death, a gravely ill John Paul II blessed two pairs of crowns for the images of Our Lady of Częstochowa – one for Jasna Góra, the other for the Polish chapel in the Vatican Grottoes.
The next morning, on April 2, Cardinal Marian Jaworski crowned the Vatican image with them. In the evening, John Paul II departed to the Father’s house.
“‘Totus Tuus’, ‘Totally Yours’. John Paul II entrusted himself entirely to the Blessed Mother, who watched over him until the end,” summarizes Dagmara Kühne.
And that is precisely why St. Peter’s Basilica is sometimes worth visiting differently. Not just walking from Michelangelo’s Pietà to the confession of St. Peter, but looking for traces that also tell our story. They are inscribed in marble, mosaics, tombs, chapels, and floors. Some we pass by without even knowing they are Polish.
