Study on the role of Protestants in shaping the cultural landscape of Łódź

Abstract

It has been more than 70 years since Łódź was a multi-ethnic city. But the traces of those days still remain. The characterised objects remind Łódź as it used to be when it was formed by different nations, including Protestants of German descent, who determined its dynamic development, especially after 1914. Today, the most evocative and clear trace of the presence of a multi-ethnic and religiously diverse community are the architectural monuments. They have survived almost intact, except for Jewish temples, which were completely destroyed in 1939–1945. Church buildings, tenement houses, mansions and factories were allowed to arise, as this what the erstwhile Lodzermenschen of different nations and religions wanted. The architecture of Łódź of the 19^th and early 20^th century shows changing styles, fashions and tendencies, which came here from the artistic centres all over the continent. In the buildings constructed then, we can see an obvious cosmopolitanism, but also unavoidable provincialism. The local bourgeoisie, and the architects they employed, knew and admired the buildings of St. Petersburg, Berlin, Vienna and Wrocław, as well as of the nearby Warsaw. Therefore, they were built according to what was fashionable at the time, what the sponsors liked and what was worth building to make Łódź a fully European city.