Sebastian Alojzy Sierakowski (9 January 1743 – 9 August 1824) was a Polish architect and

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

pastor.

Biography

Sierakowski was born on 9 January 1743 in Bogusławice. His uncle, , was the

Bishop of Przemyśl A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

. He studied at the and, in 1759, became a

novice A novice is a person who has entered a religious order and is under probation, before taking vows. A ''novice'' can also refer to a person (or animal e.g. racehorse) who is entering a profession with no prior experience. Religion Buddhism ...

Ostróg Ostroh ( , ) is a city in Rivne Oblast, western Ukraine. It is situated on the Horyn, Horyn River. Ostroh was the administrative center of Ostroh Raion until 2020, but as a city of regional significance (Ukraine), city of oblast significance did ...

. From 1764 to 1767, he studied mathematics and

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

Lwów Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

, then continued his theological studies in Vienna and Rome, where he was ordained in 1768. Upon returning to Poland, he served as a professor of mathematics and astronomy at the . In 1771, he helped establish the Astronomical Observatory of Lwów University, and served as its first director. When the Jesuit Order was suppressed in 1773, he went to

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

; becoming a

Canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...

Wawel Cathedral The Wawel Cathedral (), formally titled the Archcathedral Basilica of Stanislaus of Szczepanów, Saint Stanislaus and St. Wenceslas, Saint Wenceslaus, () is a Catholic cathedral situated on Wawel Hill in Kraków, Poland. Nearly 1000 years old, it ...

. On the occasion of the arrival of

Stanisław August Poniatowski Stanisław II August (born Stanisław Antoni Poniatowski; 17 January 1732 – 12 February 1798), known also by his regnal Latin name Stanislaus II Augustus, and as Stanisław August Poniatowski (), was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuani ...

in 1787, he created a restoration plan for

Wawel Castle The Wawel Royal Castle (; ''Zamek Królewski na Wawelu'') and the Wawel Hill on which it sits constitute the most historically and culturally significant site in Poland. A fortified residency on the Vistula River in Kraków, it was established o ...

. Later, he served as Crown Custodian, then as a Senator for the

Free City of Kraków The Free, Independent, and Strictly Neutral City of Cracow and its District, more commonly known as the Free City of Cracow () and the Republic of Cracow (), was a city republic created by the Congress of Vienna in 1815, which included the Poli ...

. After 1790, he was a clergyman with the . In 1806, the , where he was to preside, was built according to his plans. From 1809 to 1814, he served as Rector at the

Jagiellonian University The Jagiellonian University (, UJ) is a public research university in Kraków, Poland. Founded in 1364 by Casimir III the Great, King Casimir III the Great, it is the oldest university in Poland and one of the List of oldest universities in con ...

. He became a member of the

General Confederation of the Kingdom of Poland The General Confederation of the Kingdom of Poland (28 June 1812 – 30 April 1813; Polish ''Konfederacja Generalna Królestwa Polskiego'') was a governing body of the Duchy of Warsaw created by Napoleon Bonaparte and the Polish political elite o ...

in 1812. This was followed by designs for reconstructing the decaying

Kraków Cloth Hall The Kraków Cloth Hall (, ), in Lesser Poland, dates to the Renaissance in Poland, Renaissance and is one of the city's most recognizable monuments. It is the central feature of the Main Market Square, Kraków, main market square in the Kraków ...

(1818), and the demolished

Kraków Town Hall The historic Town Hall of Kraków, known as Ratusz in Polish, was demolished in 1820. It was constructed of brick and mortar for the first time in 1316 as one of its subsequent several versions built over the following centuries. It was the city' ...

(1820). Also in 1818, he presented the with several plans for monumental fountains decorated with patriotic sculptures, that could serve as wells; replacing the old wooden water tanks. These plans were never carried out, due to a lack of funds. Some of his monumental designs were used to create a

colonnade In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building. Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or curv ...

in the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

at the .Michał Rożek, ''Groby królewskie w Krakowie'', Wydawnictwo Literackie, 1977, pg.12 He died on 9 August 1824 in Kraków. Two of his writings survive: ''Architektura obejmująca wszelki gatunek murowania i budowania'' ("Architecture, covering all kinds of bricklaying and building", 2 Vols. 1812), which addresses the folk architecture tradition; and ''Rzecz o tanim... sposobie murowania w Krakowie domów na przedmieściach'' ("A thing about a cheap ... way of building houses in the suburbs in Kraków", 1817), which is still in manuscript.

References

External links

"Ksiądz Sebastian Alojzy Sierakowski-Jezuita"
by Tadeusz Dybeł, from ''Głos Radziszowa'', #13, 2001, pgs.3-4
Drawings by Sierakowski
in the

National Library of Poland The National Library (, ''BN'') is the national library of Poland, subject directly to the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage. The main seat of the National Library is located in the Ochota district of Warsaw, adjacent to the Mo ...

@ Polona
Detailed biography and references
@ the Internetowy Polski Słownik Biograficzny {{DEFAULTSORT:Sierakowski, Sebastian 1743 births 1824 deaths 18th-century Polish Jesuits People from Koło County 19th-century Polish architects