This is one of the most amazing and interesting sights in Lower Silesia. Its beginnings can be traced back to medieval times but today it is only an observation platform. This massive structure is 34m tall and has a 2m lean from the vertical. It was probably a bastion forming part of the fortifications. The walls are 4m thick which indicates a defensive character.

In the 14th century the bastion was converted into the bell tower of the St. Anne Church. The tower began leaning at the end of the 16th century as a result of tectonic plate movement in nearby Bardo recorded in 1598. The extra burden of the added section certainly increased the cause of the inclination. The Leaning Tower in Zabkowice Slaskie is an example of a free-standing Gothic bell tower.

Inside the tower is a chamber which in olden times was probably a dungeon, now entirely filled with rubble. On the dome there has been mounted an orb with a cross into which has been placed, by the then rector, a letter marking the event. During renovation two paintings by an unknown artist were discovered in the niches of the tower, which now hang in the city hall.

Municipal Council – Zabkowice Slaskie (woj. Dolnoslaskie)

www.zabkowiceslaskie.pl