The St. Barbara's Church

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The charming light-pink building of the St. Barbara's Church that has a status of the national architectural monument is one of the most recognizable symbols of Berdychiv. Having got Berdychiv as a dowry, the daughter of the wealthy Polish-Lithuanian magnate Barbara founded the first wooden temple on this place in 1759. She named the cathedral after her divine patroness great martyr Barbara. In the early 19th century, however, the wooden construction was pulled down and the stone cathedral, built in the typical for its time style, was raised on its place.

The St. Barbara's Church has a unique energetics. That is not surprising, though, considering what people, visited it in different times. In the 1820-ies young and back then known to no one Polish composer Frederic Chopin lived in Berdychiv. Here he learned how to play string instruments from Czech professor, and at the same time - supervised the process of organ installation in the St. Barbara's Cathedral. Unfortunately the organ, which the great Chopin played, was destroyed in the 20th century.

But even the greater fame was brought to the main catholic church of Berdychiv by prominent classic of the French literature Honoré de Balzac, who in 1850 married here his beloved Polish Countess Ewelina Hańska, whose lands lay not far from the temple. And seven years later the famous English writer Joseph Conrad, whose original literary style served as a reference point for another classic - Ernest Hemingway, was baptized in the St. Barbara's Cathedral.

The fate of all other temples around the country overtook the St. Barbara's Church during the Soviet period. It was repeatedly rebuilt; children's sports school was situated here for a long time. And only in the late 20th century the cathedral became a functioning temple again.