Szydłów is a fortified

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

in Staszów County,

Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship ( ), also known as Holy Cross Voivodeship, is a voivodeship (province) in southeastern Poland, in the historical region of Lesser Poland. The province's capital and largest city is Kielce. The voivodeship takes its ...

, in southeastern

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

. It is the seat of the

gmina The gmina (Polish: , plural ''gminy'' ) is the basic unit of the administrative division of Poland, similar to a municipality. , there were 2,479 gminy throughout the country, encompassing over 43,000 villages. 940 gminy include cities and tow ...

(administrative district) called Gmina Szydłów. It lies approximately west of Staszów and south-east of the regional capital

Kielce Kielce (; ) is a city in south-central Poland and the capital of the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship. In 2021, it had 192,468 inhabitants. The city is in the middle of the Świętokrzyskie Mountains (Holy Cross Mountains), on the banks of the Silnic ...

. Szydłów's history dates to the 12th century. The town contains several tourist attractions, including several buildings and churches dating to the 14th century and the ruins of a castle from the same period, and the 16th-century Szydłów Synagogue. The first official inventory of important buildings in Poland, ''A General View of the Nature of Ancient Monuments in the Kingdom of Poland,'' led by Kazimierz Stronczyński from 1844 to 1855, describes the Szydłów Synagogue as one of Poland's architecturally notable buildings.

Location

Szydłów is located in Lesser Polish Upland, between the

Świętokrzyskie Mountains The Świętokrzyskie Mountains (, ), often anglicized to Holy Cross Mountains, are a mountain range in central Poland, near the city of Kielce. The mountain range comprises several lesser ranges, the highest of which is Łysogóry (literally ...

and the '' Połaniec Plain''. The village lies within borders of '' Chmielnik–Szydłów Protected Landscape Area''. The distance to

is 40 kilometers, to Staszów 12 kilometers. Due to numerous plum orchards, the village is called ''Plum Capital of Poland''. Every year, the ''Plum Festival'' takes place here. The village is crossed by two regional roads—765th and 756th; furthermore, Szydłów is a stop along

Lesser Polish Way The Lesser Poland Way is one of the Polish routes of the Way of St. James, a medieval pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. It runs from Sandomierz to Kraków through the Lesser Poland Voivodeship and the Świętokrzyskie Voivod ...

History

First mention of Szydłów comes from the year 1191, in documents of

Sandomierz Sandomierz (pronounced: ; , ) is a historic town in south-eastern Poland with 23,863 inhabitants (), situated on the Vistula River near its confluence with the San, in the Sandomierz Basin. It has been part of Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship (Holy ...

Collegiate church In Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college of canons, a non-monastic or "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-governing corporate body, headed by a dignitary bearing ...

. At that time, the village was owned by Polish Kings, located along the

Vistula The Vistula (; ) is the longest river in Poland and the ninth-longest in Europe, at in length. Its drainage basin, extending into three other countries apart from Poland, covers , of which is in Poland. The Vistula rises at Barania Góra i ...

merchant road, which was of major importance in the late

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

. On July 1, 1329, Szydłów was incorporated as a town on

Środa Śląska Środa Śląska (, ; ) is a town in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. It is the seat of Środa Śląska County, and of the smaller administrative district (gmina) called Gmina Środa Śląska. The town lies approximately w ...

town law (see also:

Magdeburg rights Magdeburg rights (, , ; 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 cities and villages gr ...

). In the mid-14th century, King

Casimir III the Great Casimir III the Great (; 30 April 1310 – 5 November 1370) reigned as the King of Poland from 1333 to 1370. He also later became King of Ruthenia in 1340, retaining the title throughout the Galicia–Volhynia Wars. He was the last Polish king fr ...

founded here a fortified castle and the ''Church of Saint Ladislaus''. The town was surrounded by a

defensive wall A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications such as curtain walls with t ...

, with three gates—

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

Gate,

Opatów Opatów (; ) is a town in southeastern Poland, within Opatów County in the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship (Holy Cross Province). Historically, it was part of a greater region called Lesser Poland. In 2012 the population was 6,658. Opatów is located ...

Gate, and Water Gate. Soon afterwards, Szydłów became the seat of a

starosta Starosta or starost (Cyrillic: ''старост/а'', Latin: ''capitaneus'', ) is a community elder in some Slavic lands. The Slavic root of "starost" translates as "senior". Since the Middle Ages, it has designated an official in a leadersh ...

, and first artisans came here, as well as Jewish settlers. It was a royal town of the Kingdom of Poland, administratively located in the

Wiślica County Wiślica County () was an administrative territorial entity of the Kingdom of Poland and later Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. It is unknown when it was established, probably some time in the 15th century, based on a medieval castellany. It was l ...

in the

Sandomierz Voivodeship Sandomierz Voivodeship (, ) was a unit of administration and local government in Poland from the 14th century to the partitions of Poland in 1772–1795. It was part of the Lesser Poland region and the Lesser Poland Province. Originally Sandomier ...

in the Lesser Poland Province. Its location helped wine, cattle and hops merchants, who would go with their goods to Sandomierz. In the 16th century, Szydłów emerged as a center of cloth-making. Also, tailors, bakers, shoemakers, iron smiths, saddle makers, sword makers and pot makers worked here, there also was a brewery. In 1528, waterworks and bath houses were opened, and in 1564, the town had 180 houses, of which 49 were located on the market square, but next year, large parts of Szydłów burned in a fire. At that time, a number Jews settled in the town, who in 1534–1564 built the first

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

. Good times came to an end in the first half of the 17th century. In 1630 Szydłów was burned by rebellious soldiers of fortune, who were not paid their salaries. Unable to enter the fortified town, the mercenaries set the suburbs on fire, and the blaze reached Szydłów.

Swedish invasion of Poland The Deluge 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 of Andrusovo in 1667, comprising the Pol ...

(1655–1660), and the invasion of troops of George II Rakoczi (see

Treaty of Radnot Treaty of Radnot was a treaty signed during the Second Northern War in Radnot in Transylvania (now Iernut in Romania) on 6 December 1656. The treaty divided the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth between the signing parties. According to the treaty ...

) brought almost complete destruction, after which town's population shrank from 1,300 to 350, and the number of houses was reduced to 54 (as for 1663). After these conflicts, Szydłów never recovered to its previous prosperity. In 1789, Szydłów had a stone town hall, 5 mills on the Ciekąca river and 196 houses, many of them abandoned. The castle was ruined, and by 1827, the number of houses grew to 202, and the population reached 1,550. After the

Third Partition of Poland The Third Partition of Poland (1795) was the last in a series of the Partitions of Poland–Lithuania and the land of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth among Prussia, the Habsburg monarchy, and the Russian Empire which effectively ended Polis ...

(1795), Szydłów was annexed by the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire, officially known as the Empire of Austria, was a Multinational state, multinational European Great Powers, great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the Habsburg monarchy, realms of the Habsburgs. Duri ...

. After the Polish victory in the

Austro-Polish War The Austro-Polish War or Polish-Austrian War was a part of the War of the Fifth Coalition in 1809 (a coalition of the Austrian Empire and the United Kingdom against Napoleon's French Empire and allied states). In this war, Polish forces of ...

of 1809, it was regained by Poles and included within the short-lived

Duchy of Warsaw The Duchy of Warsaw (; ; ), also known as the Grand Duchy of Warsaw and Napoleonic Poland, was a First French Empire, French client state established by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1807, during the Napoleonic Wars. It initially comprised the ethnical ...

, within which it became a county seat. After the duchy's dissolution in 1815, it became part of Russian-controlled

Congress Poland Congress Poland or Congress Kingdom of 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 was established w ...

, and in 1850, Russian authorities liquidated Szydłów County, merging it with

Stopnica Stopnica is a town in Busko County, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, in south-central Poland. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Stopnica. It lies in Lesser Poland, approximately east of Busko-Zdrój and south-east o ...

County. In 1869, as a punishment for participation of residents in the

January Uprising The January Uprising was an insurrection principally in Russia's Kingdom of Poland that was aimed at putting an end to Russian occupation of part of Poland and regaining independence. It began on 22 January 1863 and continued until the last i ...

, Szydłów was reduced to the status of a village. In 1929 Szydłów, already part of Kielce Voivodeship, had 2,246 inhabitants, of which 30% were Jews. Szydlow, widok ogolny ca 1936 (66230882) (cropped).jpg, General view, circa 1936 Szydlow, rynek ante 1939 (67215910) (cropped).jpg, Market Square, before 1939 Szydlow, mury miejskie obok kosciola farnego ca 1936 (66230663) (cropped).jpg, City walls, circa 1936 Szydlow, ruiny zamku ante 1939 (67215926).jpg, Castle ruins, before 1939 Szydlow, synagoga ca 1936 (66230900) (cropped).jpg, Synagogue, circa 1936 Following the joint German-Soviet

invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939), was a joint attack on the Second Polish Republic, Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak R ...

, which started

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in September 1939, Szydłów was occupied by Germany until 1945. Part of the town, and almost all of its Jewish population, were destroyed. At the beginning of the war, between 500 and 600 Jews lived in the town. Immediately on occupying Szydłów, the Germans robbed and plundered Jewish homes and shops. They would randomly shoot and torture Jewish men. Men were also conscripted for

forced labor Forced labour, or unfree labour, is any work relation, especially in modern or early modern history, in which people are employed against their will with the threat of destitution, detention, or violence, including death or other forms of ...

. In 1940, Germans forced Jews from other towns in the region into Szydłów, doubling the Jewish population. By the end of 1941, more than 1000 Jews were in Szydłów with more Jews deported there periodically. In October 1942, 150 Jews were sent to labor camps, fifteen Jews were shot in Szydłów, and the remaining Jews, then numbering about 1000, were marched to the Szczucin train station and sent to the

Treblinka extermination camp Treblinka () was the second-deadliest extermination camp to be built and operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland during World War II. It was in a forest north-east of Warsaw, south of the village of Treblinka in what is now the Mas ...

where they were immediately murdered. The number of Szydłów

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

survivors is unknown. In 1960 the population was 1,402. On 1 January 2019, Szydłów regained its town status.

Points of interest

* Medieval town center, with a 700-meter long

. Out of three gates, only Kraków Gate still exists. * St. Stanisław Church (14th century) * Gothic All Saints Church (14th–15th century) * 14th-century Royal Castle in Szydłów, rebuilt in the 16th century. Main building of the complex is in ruins, currently the castle has a library and a museum. It is entered through a 17th-century gate. * Ruins of the Holy Spirit Church and Hospital (16th century) * Late-Renaissance synagogue (16th century), which now houses a Jewish Culture Museum. File:Szydłów - Kościół pw. św. Władysława 4.jpg, Saint Władysław Church File:20170211 Kościół Wszystkich Świętych w Szydłowie 4192.jpg, All Saints Church File:Szydlow 20060619 1240.jpg, Old Church ruins File:Szydlow(js)1.jpg, Courtyard of the Castle File:Szydlow castle 20060619 1433.jpg, Szydłów Castle File:Synagoga w Szydłowie.jpg, Szydłów Synagogue

Demography

According to the 2002 Poland census, there were 1,054 people residing in Szydłów village, of whom 50.7% were male and 49.3% were female. In the village, the population was spread out, with 23.6% under the age of 18, 37.4% from 18 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 18.5% who were 65 years of age or older.

ImageSize = width:350 height:220 PlotArea = left:70 right:15 top:30 bottom:50 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal AlignBars = justify Colors = id:gray1 value:gray(0.9) id:blue1 value:rgb(0.2,0.7,0.8) legend:Male id:red1 value:rgb(1,0.5,0.5) legend:Female id:green1 value:rgb(0,1,0) Legend = orientation:horizontal top:220 left:150 TextData = pos:(165,20) textcolor:black fontsize:S text:Szydłów in 2002 DateFormat = yyyy Period = from:-97 till:97 ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:97 start:-97 gridcolor:gray1 PlotData = bar:80+ color:blue1 width:1 from:-24 till:0 width:12 text:24 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:80+ color:red1 width:1 from:0 till:29 width:12 text:29 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:70–79 color:blue1 width:1 from:-35 till:0 width:12 text:35 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:70–79 color:red1 width:1 from:0 till:51 width:12 text:51 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:60–69 color:blue1 width:1 from:-21 till:0 width:12 text:21 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:60–69 color:red1 width:1 from:0 till:46 width:12 text:46 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:50–59 color:blue1 width:1 from:-63 till:0 width:12 text:63 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:50–59 color:red1 width:1 from:0 till:59 width:12 text:59 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:40-49 color:blue1 width:1 from:-88 till:0 width:12 text:88 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:40–49 color:red1 width:1 from:0 till:87 width:12 text:87 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:30–39 color:blue1 width:1 from:-59 till:0 width:12 text:59 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:30–39 color:red1 width:1 from:0 till:67 width:12 text:67 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:20–29 color:blue1 width:1 from:-81 till:0 width:12 text:81 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:20–29 color:red1 width:1 from:0 till:54 width:12 text:54 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:10–19 color:blue1 width:1 from:-96 till:0 width:12 text:96 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:10–19 color:red1 width:1 from:0 till:76 width:12 text:76 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:0–9 color:blue1 width:1 from:-67 till:0 width:12 text:67 textcolor:black fontsize:8px bar:0–9 color:red1 width:1 from:0 till:51 width:12 text:51 textcolor:black fontsize:8px

Figure 1. Population pyramid of village in 2002 — by age group and sex

References

External links