Proszowice is a town in southern
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
, situated in the
Lesser Poland Voivodeship
Lesser Poland Voivodeship or Lesser Poland Province (in pl, województwo małopolskie ), also known as Małopolska, is a voivodeship (province), in southern Poland. It has an area of , and a population of
3,404,863 (2019).
It was created on 1 ...
(since 1999), previously in
Kraków Voivodeship Kraków Voivodeship may also refer to:
*Kraków Voivodeship (14th century – 1795)
* Kraków Voivodeship (1816–1837)
*Kraków Voivodeship (1919–1939)
*Kraków Voivodeship (1945–1975)
*Kraków Voivodeship (1975–1998)
The Kraków Voivodeshi ...
(1975–1998). Its population numbers 6,206 inhabitants (2004). It is the capital of
Proszowice County, and the town is located some 25 kilometers northeast of
Kraków
Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...
, on the right bank of the Szreniawa river. Proszowice received its
Magdeburg rights
Magdeburg rights (german: Magdeburger Recht; also called Magdeburg Law) were a set of town privileges first developed by Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor (936–973) and based on the Flemish Law, which regulated the degree of internal autonomy within ...
charter in 1358. Proszowice has a sports club ''Proszowianka'', established in 1916.
First mention about the village of Proszowice comes from 1222. The origin of its name is not known, probably the village was named after a knight named ''Proszkomir'', who lived here. By 1240, Proszowice already had a brick church of St.
John the Baptist
John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...
. The village was privately owned, and in the mid-14th century it became royal property of King
Kazimierz Wielki, who granted it town charter in 1358. The King greatly contributed to the development of Proszowice, building here a palace, which for some time was one of the royal residences (later on, its role was taken on by the
Niepołomice Castle). Proszowice prospered due to several royal privileges. A number of artisans lived here, there was a parish school, and the period from the early 15th century to the early 17th century is regarded as ''Golden Age'' of the town, which was one of the most important centers of
Kraków Voivodeship Kraków Voivodeship may also refer to:
*Kraków Voivodeship (14th century – 1795)
* Kraków Voivodeship (1816–1837)
*Kraków Voivodeship (1919–1939)
*Kraków Voivodeship (1945–1975)
*Kraków Voivodeship (1975–1998)
The Kraków Voivodeshi ...
; here
sejmiks took place. King
Kazimierz Jagiellończyk
Casimir IV (in full Casimir IV Andrew Jagiellon; pl, Kazimierz IV Andrzej Jagiellończyk ; Lithuanian: ; 30 November 1427 – 7 June 1492) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1440 and King of Poland from 1447, until his death. He was one of the ...
initiated the construction of a new church, which was finished in 1454 and was among most impressive Gothic churches in
Lesser Poland
Lesser Poland, often known by its Polish name Małopolska ( la, Polonia Minor), is a historical region situated in southern and south-eastern Poland. Its capital and largest city is Kraków. Throughout centuries, Lesser Poland developed a s ...
. Here,
Stańczyk
Stańczyk (c. 1480–1560) () was a Polish court jester, the most famous in Polish history. He was employed by three Polish kings: Alexander, Sigismund the Old and Sigismund Augustus.
Name, identity and historicity
Scarcity of sources gave ...
, the legendary
court jester was born, and in the 16th century, Proszowice became one of centers of
Protestant Reformation
The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...
. All Catholic churches in the area were turned into Calvinist or
Polish Brethren prayer houses, but later on, the
Counter-Reformation
The Counter-Reformation (), also called the Catholic Reformation () or the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to the Protestant Reformation. It began with the Council of Trent (1545–1563) a ...
prevailed. In 1616, the town was almost completely burned in a fire. Like almost all towns of Lesser Poland, Proszowice was destroyed in the
Swedish invasion of Poland
The Deluge ( pl, potop szwedzki, lt, švedų tvanas) was a series of mid-17th-century military campaigns in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. In a wider sense it applies to the period between the Khmelnytsky Uprising of 1648 and the Truce ...
(1655–1660).
After
Partitions of Poland
The Partitions of Poland were three partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that took place toward the end of the 18th century and ended the existence of the state, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland and Lithuania for 12 ...
, Proszowice first belonged to the
Habsburg Empire, but in 1815 it became part of Russian-controlled
Congress Poland
Congress Poland, Congress Kingdom of Poland, or Russian Poland, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland, was a polity created in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna as a semi-autonomous Polish state, a successor to Napoleon's Duchy of Warsaw. It w ...
. During
January Uprising
The January Uprising ( pl, powstanie styczniowe; lt, 1863 metų sukilimas; ua, Січневе повстання; russian: Польское восстание; ) was an insurrection principally in Russia's Kingdom of Poland that was aimed at ...
, several skirmishes took place in the area of the town, and as a punishment, the Russians reduced Proszowice to the status of a village (1869). In 1923, already in
Kielce Voivodeship of the
Second Polish Republic
The Second Polish Republic, at the time officially known as the Republic of Poland, was a country in Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe that existed between 1918 and 1939. The state was established on 6 November 1918, before the end of ...
, Proszowice regained its town charter. In 1999 the town became the seat of a county.
The center of Proszowice is of typical medieval shape, with a market square and streets radiating from it. Houses in the market square, however, are modern, most of them were built in the 20th century. Once there was a town hall, which was dismantled in the mid-19th century. Local parish church was first erected in the 13th century, during the reign of Prince
Bolesław V the Chaste. The first church burned between 1306 and 1308. New complex was built in 1325, and most likely, it burned in a fire in 1407. Third parish church was completed in 1454. It was partly destroyed after a storm in May 1824, when one of the walls collapsed, together with the Gothic
vault. The reconstruction took 12 years.
References
History of Proszowice and Proszowice County
External links
Jewish Community in Proszowiceon Virtual Shtetl
Places in Proszowice
{{Authority control
Cities and towns in Lesser Poland Voivodeship
Proszowice County
Kraków Voivodeship (14th century – 1795)
Kielce Governorate
Kielce Voivodeship (1919–1939)