Category:Mestwin Tower in Chełmno, Medieval fortified tower in Chełmno, Poland

Mestwin Tower is a 13th-century brick tower in Chełmno, the only surviving part of a Teutonic stronghold that stood by the church of St. John. Its main hall on the first floor has a ribbed cross vault. It is a rare example in northern Poland of a preserved Gothic residential tower.

The tower is most likely the oldest surviving structure in Chełmno, a remnant of a Teutonic stronghold that comprised two square brick towers, a dwelling between them and perimeter walls. Only Mestwin Tower survives, adjoining the convent buildings; the rest was incorporated into later Cistercian construction in the second half of the 13th century, when the site passed to the nuns.

The tower belonged to a Cistercian monastery and shows how religious communities in the Middle Ages protected their buildings. Visitors can see today how the thick walls and narrow windows served both defense and daily monastic life.

The tower stands within the monastery complex by the church of St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist in Chełmno's Old Town, and it adjoins the buildings of the Sisters of Mercy. Its main hall with a ribbed cross vault is on the first floor, so the interior is reached by stairs. The site lies on the Old Town walking route.

The tower's name comes from the Pomeranian duke Mestwin, who gave the Cistercian nuns of Chełmno the village of Grabowo after returning from a raid; when the Teutonic Knights finally handed the stronghold to the nuns, they named it after him. Mściwoj II was probably held here as a hostage.