Duchess Anna Fiodorowna of Masovia founded the church with a cloister for Bernardine friars, and groundbreaking took place in 1454. A slender tower was added in 1582, and the building was reconstructed several times in the seventeenth century. Jakub Fontana's design gave the facade a rococo form between 1740 and 1760.
King Stanisław August Poniatowski ordered the last reconstruction, from 1786 to 1788. Chrystian Piotr Aigner designed the present Neoclassical facade, which has statues of the Four Evangelists. The interior is high Baroque, with illusionistic paintings of scenes from the life of Saint Anne.
The roof was damaged in 1939 and burned in 1944. The church is part of the Historic Centre of Warsaw, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1980. It serves as the main parish of the city's academic community.
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