St. Vincent de Paul Basilica Minor in Bydgoszcz is located in downtown Bydgoszcz, Poland, at Ossoliński Alley, 2. It is dedicated to saint Vincent de Paul. The basilica, completed in 1945, has been designed by Polish architect Adam Ballenstedt and comprises the church, a monastery and a park. It has been registered on the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship Heritage List on 30 May 1996. Minor Basilica dedication has been carried out during a ceremony chaired by Pope John Paul II, on 3 June 1997 History In 1923, Priests of the Congregation of the Missionaries of St. Vincent de Paul have been invited to Bydgoszcz by Cardinal Edmund Dalbor, Archbishop of Gniezno and Poznań, appealing to open a new pastoral facility and small seminar in the town. Further, this request would support: the erection of a church for Poles in a part of the city devoid of temple; balancing anti-Polish activities of German citizen; the celebration of the return of Bydgoszcz region to Motherland and the 300th anniversary of the Congregation of the Mission. The same year, Bydgoszcz municipal authorities offered an extensive plot of land for the new church and missionary school. In March 1924, architect Adam Ballenstaedt from Poznan started preparatory works. On 1 May 1924 a decree of Cardinal Edmund Dalbor erected the St. Vincent de Paul to parish level, and on 15 October 1925 missionary priests, led by Father Antoni Mazurkiewicz, began their pastoral work. The foundation stone for the church was solemnly laid on 27 September 1925 by Bishop Antoni Laubitz from Gniezno. At the ceremony, city authorities were represented by Vice-Mayor, Dr. Chmielewski, City Council by its president Janicki with counselors and Polish armed forces by General Wiktor Thommée. By the end of 1927, the chancel was built, and in the early 1928, foundation works started under the body of the aisle. Part of the budget of the quickly developing project has needed the involvement of parish priest Fr. Antoni Mazurkiewicz and his successor, Father Ludwik Moska, who traveled regularly to the United States to raise funds from Polish Americans. The Private High School began operating in 1931, run by priests of Bydgoszcz Congregation. However, lacking funds, it only functioned two years: in 1933 the institution was closed and the students were moved to Krakow. At the beginning of 1932, both wings of the church were completed, one of them established as a school for boys. At