Jaworze, Silesian Voivodeship
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Jaworze is a village and the seat of
Gmina Jaworze __NOTOC__ Gmina Jaworze is a rural gmina (administrative district) in Bielsko County, Silesian Voivodeship, in southern Poland. Its seat is the village of Jaworze, which lies approximately west of Bielsko-Biała and south of the regional capit ...
in the south-west part Bielsko County,
Silesian Voivodeship Silesian Voivodeship, or Silesia Province ( pl, województwo śląskie ) is a voivodeship, or province, in southern Poland, centered on the historic region known as Upper Silesia ('), with Katowice serving as its capital. Despite the Silesian V ...
, southern Poland. It lies in the historical region of
Cieszyn Silesia Cieszyn Silesia, Těšín Silesia or Teschen Silesia ( pl, Śląsk Cieszyński ; cs, Těšínské Slezsko or ; german: Teschener Schlesien or ) is a historical region in south-eastern Silesia, centered on the towns of Cieszyn and Český T ...
. The village has been known for its thermal qualities. As early as in 19th century waters rich in iodide-bromine salts. Every year many people suffering from respiratory illnesses visit. Presently there are three medical centers, which offer among other things specialist rehabilitation programs for individuals. There are also holiday-recreation facilities, bike and ski tracks in Jaworze. The tourist attractiveness of the commune is increased by numerous sport and cultural events presenting local folklore. The undeniable crown jewel of Jaworze is its heritage park, over in size and with large number of monument trees.


Etymology

The Polish name is of topographic origins and is derived from
sycamore Sycamore is a name which has been applied to several types of trees, but with somewhat similar leaf forms. The name derives from the ancient Greek ' (''sūkomoros'') meaning "fig-mulberry". Species of trees known as sycamore: * ''Acer pseudoplata ...
trees (Polish: ''jawor''. German name is a composition of a personal name Ern(st) and ''dorf'' (German: a village).


History

The village was first mentioned in a Latin document of
Diocese of Wrocław In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...
called '' Liber fundationis episcopatus Vratislaviensis'' from around 1305 as ''item in Javorse''. It meant that the village was in the process of location (the size of land to pay
tithe A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash or cheques or more ...
from was not yet precised). The creation of the village was a part of a larger settlement campaign taking place in the late 13th century on the territory of what will be later known as
Upper Silesia Upper Silesia ( pl, Górny Śląsk; szl, Gůrny Ślůnsk, Gōrny Ślōnsk; cs, Horní Slezsko; german: Oberschlesien; Silesian German: ; la, Silesia Superior) is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia, locate ...
. Politically the village belonged initially to the
Duchy of Teschen The Duchy of Teschen (german: Herzogtum Teschen), also Duchy of Cieszyn ( pl, Księstwo Cieszyńskie) or Duchy of Těšín ( cs, Těšínské knížectví), was one of the Duchies of Silesia centered on Cieszyn () in Upper Silesia. It was split o ...
, formed in 1290 in the process of feudal fragmentation of Poland and was ruled by a local branch of Piast dynasty. In 1327 the duchy became a
fee A fee is the price one pays as remuneration for rights or services. Fees usually allow for overhead, wages, costs, and markup. Traditionally, professionals in the United Kingdom (and previously the Republic of Ireland) receive a fee in cont ...
of
Kingdom of Bohemia The Kingdom of Bohemia ( cs, České království),; la, link=no, Regnum Bohemiae sometimes in English literature referred to as the Czech Kingdom, was a medieval and early modern monarchy in Central Europe, the predecessor of the modern Czec ...
, which after 1526 became part of the Habsburg monarchy. The village probably became a seat of a Catholic
parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one o ...
prior to the 16th century. After the 1540s
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 ...
prevailed in the Duchy of Teschen and a local Catholic church was taken over by
Lutherans Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched ...
. It was taken from them (as one from around fifty buildings in the region) by a special commission and given back to the
Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
on 16 April 1654. In spite of being bereft of place of worship many of the local inhabitants remained to be Lutherans. After issuing the
Patent of Toleration The Patent of Toleration (german: Toleranzpatent) was an edict of toleration issued on 13 October 1781 by the Habsburg emperor Joseph II. Part of the Josephinist reforms, the Patent extended religious freedom to non-Catholic Christians livi ...
in 1781 they subsequently organized a local Lutheran parish as one of over ten in the region. As a private village it had many noble owners. The most important for its development were two related aristocratic families of the Barons Laszowski, Nałęcz coat of arms (two generations), and the Counts Saint-Genois d’Anneaucourt (four generations), who were in possession of Jaworze for the period of 154 years. Many antique souvenirs of theirs have remained to the present day. Their remains rest in the local Catholic graveyard. In 1862, Maurycy Count Saint-Genois founded in Jaworze the first in the Cieszyn Silesia health resort. It has been very popular for many years, especially among Poles from Galicia for whom the freedom of speaking Polish language in the area was invaluable. However, it was due to the support and help of the Larisch family that Dr Zygmunt Czop founded hydropathic establishment after the
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. Rooms in the castle which has been visited by many celebrities of political and cultural circles of the interwar Poland were made available to the Starost of Bielsko by the Count himself. It was an important fact in the history of Jaworze. Many well-known figures were visitors to the hydropathic establishment in Jaworze. Advanced works related to restoring the status of a health resort to Jaworze were wrecked by the outbreak of the
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. After Revolutions of 1848 in the Austrian Empire a modern municipal division was introduced in the re-established
Austrian Silesia Austrian Silesia, (historically also ''Oesterreichisch-Schlesien, Oesterreichisch Schlesien, österreichisch Schlesien''); cs, Rakouské Slezsko; pl, Śląsk Austriacki officially the Duchy of Upper and Lower Silesia, (historically ''Herzogth ...
. The village as a municipality was subscribed to the
political Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that stud ...
and
legal district A judicial district or legal district denotes the territorial area for which a legal court (usually a district court) has jurisdiction. By region Europe Austria In texts concerning Austria, "judicial district" (german: Gerichtsbezirk) refers ...
of
Bielsko Bielsko (german: Bielitz, cs, Bílsko) was until 1950 an independent town situated in Cieszyn Silesia, Poland. In 1951 it was joined with Biała Krakowska to form the new town of Bielsko-Biała. Bielsko constitutes the western part of that to ...
. According to the censuses conducted in 1880, 1890, 1900 and 1910 the population of the municipality grew from 2105 in 1880 to 2247 in 1910 with a dwindling majority being native Polish-speakers (from 94.6% in 1880 to 89.2% in 1910) accompanied by a growing German-speaking minority (from 108 or 5.2% in 1880 to 232 or 10.3% in 1910) and a few Czech-speaking persons (at most 14 or 0.6% in 1900), in terms of religion in 1910 the population was mixed mostly between Roman Catholics (49.8%) and Protestants (48.7%) accompanied by
Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
(34 or 1.5%). The village was also traditionally inhabited by
Cieszyn Vlachs The Cieszyn Vlachs ( pl, Wałasi cieszyńscy, cs, Těšínští Valaši) are a Polish ethnographic group (subgroup of Silesians) living around the towns of Cieszyn and Skoczów, one of the four major ethnographic groups in Cieszyn Silesia, the on ...
, speaking
Cieszyn Silesian dialect The Cieszyn Silesian dialect or Teschen Silesian dialect (Cieszyn Silesian: ''cieszyńsko rzecz''; pl, gwara cieszyńska or '; cs, těšínské nářečí; Silesian: ''ćeszyński djalekt'') is one of the Silesian dialects. It has its roots ...
. After
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, fall of
Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
,
Polish–Czechoslovak War The Poland–Czechoslovakia War, also known mostly in Czech sources as the Seven-day war ( cs, Sedmidenní válka) was a military confrontation between Czechoslovakia and Poland over the territory of Cieszyn Silesia in early 1919. After a vai ...
and the division of
Cieszyn Silesia Cieszyn Silesia, Těšín Silesia or Teschen Silesia ( pl, Śląsk Cieszyński ; cs, Těšínské Slezsko or ; german: Teschener Schlesien or ) is a historical region in south-eastern Silesia, centered on the towns of Cieszyn and Český T ...
in 1920, it became a part of
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 populou ...
. It was then annexed by
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
at the beginning of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. After the war it was restored to
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 populou ...
. In the period when Jaworze functioned as a health resort, it became renowned due to the writings of
Wincenty Pol Wincenty Pol (20 April 1807 – 2 December 1872) was a Polish poet and geographer. Life Pol was born in Lublin (then in Galicia), to Franz Pohl (or Poll), a German in the Austrian service, and his wife Eleonora Longchamps de Berier, from a Fre ...
who wrote words of praise about Jaworze in
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 ...
's newspapers. In the interwar period it was the writer Maria Dąbrowska who gave Jaworze wide publicity. She was a visitor to the hydropathic establishment in Jaworze where she wrote, among other things, part of her work „Noce i dnie” and some other less known pieces. Also
Melchior Wańkowicz Melchior Wańkowicz (10 January 1892 – 10 September 1974) was a Polish army officer, popular writer, political journalist and publisher. He is most famous for his reporting for the Polish Armed Forces in the West during World War II and writing ...
was writing here his piece „Dysk Olimpijski”. Destroyed during a few months of fights, after the war Jaworze has struggled for a long time to rebuild its existence and striven in vain to continue works connected with restoring the village the status of a health resort. Nevertheless, it remained a health and tourist resort with two sanatoriums and a growing number of recreation centres over the years. At the same time, entertainment and recreation facilities were being built. Depriving Jaworze of administrative independence in 1973 was the reason for stopping a planned development of the village in this direction. Because of the firm attitude of inhabitants, Jaworze became an independent commune again in 1991 after eighteen years break and is now following its development plan.


Geography

Jaworze lies in
Silesian Foothills Silesian Foothills ( pl, Pogórze Śląskie, cs, Slezské podhůří, szl, Pogōrze Ślōnske) are foothills located in Silesian Voivodeship, Poland. It has an area of 545 km2. Its western border is Olza river, eastern Skawa. Other main r ...
and on northern edge of
Silesian Beskids Silesian Beskids ( Polish: , Czech: , german: Schlesische Beskiden) is one of the Beskids mountain ranges in Outer Western Carpathians in southern Silesian Voivodeship, Poland and the eastern Moravian-Silesian Region, Czech Republic. Most of ...
. Four valleys crossing the village – of Kammienny, Wysoki, Szeroki and Jesionki streams abundant with flora enriched with protected species and frequently visited walking areas. The south border of the commune are the peaks of mountains visited in large numbers by tourists. The main street of Jaworze called Zdrojowa Street, almost 4 km long, runs from the north border of the commune at the state Cieszyn road to its south borders. One of the four hills of Jaworze visible from Zdrojowa Street is the historical Młyńska Kępa (403m) situated at the former Emperor's track, also called the saline road (with an inn for mail horses) along which the army of
Jan III Sobieski John III Sobieski ( pl, Jan III Sobieski; lt, Jonas III Sobieskis; la, Ioannes III Sobiscius; 17 August 1629 – 17 June 1696) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1674 until his death in 1696. Born into Polish nobility, Sobie ...
redeployed to Vienna rescue. The landmark of Jaworze center lying under Goruszka Hill (411m) is the monument for victims of fascism erected in 1946 by the efforts of the Association of Former Political Prisoners (59 victims). From there you can climb up the Goruszka constituting the only compact site of black pines in the
Silesian Beskids Silesian Beskids ( Polish: , Czech: , german: Schlesische Beskiden) is one of the Beskids mountain ranges in Outer Western Carpathians in southern Silesian Voivodeship, Poland and the eastern Moravian-Silesian Region, Czech Republic. Most of ...
. In 2004 these rare trees were counted and there are only 500 of them, what is worth mentioning they are not self-sown plants in out conditions. In the 19th century this hill was called “Allainzberg” (Mountain of the Allies) which was connected with the history of Napoleonic period and the fact the hitherto owners of Jaworze were Saint-Genois counts. On the top of the Goruszka there is a 200-year-gloriette which was renovated in 2003. During the conservation works under the roof of one of the columns the year 1798 engraved was discovered.


Tourism

The favourite route in Silesian Beskids is the climb or ride by cable car on the Szyndzielnia mountain and then marching or walking you may get to Klimczok and Błatnia and from there walk down to Jaworze or Nałęże or even further at the direction of Brenna or other mountain peaks. Tourism and agricultural tourism are essentially crucial to the development of the Jaworze Commune. Wooded areas of the Commune, mountain slopes and other natural values like mineral water resources are the most important factors which favour tourism development in Jaworze. In addition, the Jaworze Commune has good transport links, there are monuments of nature and interesting cultural places including monuments registered both in record of monuments and register of monuments. Hiking trails (e.g. Greenways) in the Commune and the direct proximity and cooperation with the regions of the
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
,
Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...
, and
Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...
are also of significance. The village offers agro-tourist households with a wide range of services, i.e. accommodation, regional cuisine, trips by horse light carriages, sleigh rides, expositions of old household appliances (heritage park), old constructions and inns, galleries of folklore artists. A highly important factor in the social and economic development of the Commune are brine springs that are present here. In accordance with the thesis presented in geological documentation prepared by the Polish Geological Institute in Warsaw, it was officially confirmed that deposits of mineral groundwater of Miocene and Devonian formations, which are present here, are of great value for curative purposes.


Notable residents

* Ireneusz Dudek (b.1951), blues musician, Head of the
Rawa Blues Festival Rawa Blues Festival (pronounced ''rava'') is the world's largest indoor blues festival. The festival was named after the Rawa River, which flows through the city of Katowice in Poland. The first edition was held in April 1981. Among the highlig ...
* Jacek Proszyk (b.1973), historian and religious scholar


Footnotes


References

*


External links

*
Official website of the gmina

Jewish Community in Jaworze
on Virtual Shtetl {{Authority control Villages in Bielsko County Cieszyn Silesia Silesian Voivodeship (1920–1939)