Spycimierz is a

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

in the administrative district of Gmina Uniejów, within Poddębice County, Łódź Voivodeship, in central Poland. It lies approximately south-west of

Uniejów Uniejów is a spa town in Poddębice County, Łódź Voivodeship in central Poland, with 2,957 inhabitants (2020). It is the seat of the local government of Gmina Uniejów. The town lies in northwestern corner of Poddębice County, near the bord ...

, west of Poddębice, and west of the regional capital

Łódź Łódź, also rendered in English as Lodz, is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located approximately south-west of Warsaw. The city's coat of arms is an example of canti ...

. The village has a population of 380. It is famous for a beautiful celebration of the Corpus Christi feast when the inhabitants create flower carpets along the 2 km long route of the procession.

History

The name of the village comes from a given name

Spycimir Spycimir, also Spyćmier, Spyćmir, Spyćmierz, Spićymierz, etc., is an old Polish masculine given name. Etymology: ''spyci-'': "in vain", ''-mir'': "peace". Diminutives: Spytko, Spytek. Its name day is 26 April.Bogdan Kupis, ''Nasze imiona'', 1991 ...

, also spelled Spycimierz in Polish. The village was first mentioned as Spicimir in the chronicle of Gallus Anonymus, written in 1112–1116. Gallus wrote that it was attacked in a

Pomerania Pomerania ( pl, Pomorze; german: Pommern; Kashubian: ''Pòmòrskô''; sv, Pommern) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The western part of Pomerania belongs to ...

n raid in 1108. In the

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

, a fortified gord existed in the location of the present village. Spycimierz was located at the junction of two important trails, from

Rus Rus or RUS may refer to: People and places * Rus (surname), a Romanian-language surname * East Slavic historical territories and peoples (). See Names of Rus', Russia and Ruthenia ** Rus' people, the people of Rus' ** Rus' territories *** Kievan ...

, and from

Łęczyca Łęczyca (; in full the Royal Town of Łęczyca, pl, Królewskie Miasto Łęczyca; german: Lentschitza; he, לונטשיץ) is a town of 13,786 inhabitants () in central Poland. Situated in the Łódź Voivodeship, it is the county seat of the ...

to Kalisz. The gord was ring-shaped, with wood and earth fortification, topped by a wooden

palisade A palisade, sometimes called a stakewall or a paling, is typically a fence or defensive wall made from iron or wooden stakes, or tree trunks, and used as a defensive structure or enclosure. Palisades can form a stockade. Etymology ''Palisade' ...

. Here, Duke Bolesław III the Wrymouth imprisoned Archbishop Martin in ca. 1106. Spycimierz was regarded as a ducal property, mentioned in 1136 in a bull of

Pope Innocent II Pope Innocent II ( la, Innocentius II; died 24 September 1143), born Gregorio Papareschi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 14 February 1130 to his death in 1143. His election as pope was controversial and the fi ...

. The gord was the seat of a

castellan A castellan is the title used in Medieval Europe for an appointed official, a governor of a castle and its surrounding territory referred to as the castellany. The title of ''governor'' is retained in the English prison system, as a remnant o ...

, and remained one until the early 14th century. The Spicymierz Castellany belonged to the

Duchy of Sieradz The Duchy of Sieradz ( la, ducatus Siradiae, pl, Księstwo Sieradzkie), also known as the Duchy of Siradia, was one of the territories created during the period of the fragmentation of Poland. It was originally part of the central Seniorate Provi ...

, and was located along right bank of the Warta river. Some time before 1331, in unknown circumstances, the gord became private property of a local nobleman, Pawel Ogonczyk. Spycimierz was burned to the ground in 1331, when a unit of

Teutonic Knights The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians on ...

crossed the Warta, and set the gord on fire. A wooden castle was built in the location of the former gord, but Spycimierz lost its importance to the adjacent town of

. The gord is still visible. It lies on a meadow, near the Warta river

Oxbow lake An oxbow lake is a U-shaped lake or pool that forms when a wide meander of a river is cut off, creating a free-standing body of water. In South Texas, oxbows left by the Rio Grande are called '' resacas''. In Australia, oxbow lakes are call ...

Flower carpets for Corpus Christi procession

Spycimierz is best known for the flower carpets that members of the local parish have been arranging for the Corpus Christi procession for decades. In 2018, the tradition was entered into the National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage. In March 2020 Poland nominated Flower carpets tradition for Corpus Christi processions in Spycimierz and four parishes in southern Poland (Klucz, Olszowa, Zalesie Ślaskie, Zimna Wódka) for inscription on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity maintained by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

). On 15 November 2021, a UNESCO Evaluation Body issued a document containing the examination of nominations for inscription on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2021. The Evaluation Body recommended that the Flower carpets tradition for Corpus Christi processions be inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The final decision on the inscription was taken on 15 December 2021 by the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage. The history of flower carpets in Spycimierz goes back to a hard to specify period. Although the oldest written account of this custom comes from the parish chronicle dating back to 1957, oral communication is much older. For the oldest message, one should acknowledge the legend of the appearance of this custom along with the return of soldiers from Napoleon to their native village. The composition of the flower carpets has changed and evolved over the years. At first, yellow sand and twigs were used, so the old decoration was modest. Later, flowers began to be used, and the current way of dressing the route took shape after 1945. The colorful carpet of live flowers is laid by parishioners along the Corpus Christi road, which is about 1 kilometre long. A solemn procession passes over it at 5 p.m." Flower carpets " https://spycimierskiebozecialo.pl/en/tradycje-en/the-strength-of-the-community

Gallery

> File:Two kilometer flower carpet for Corpus Christi procession in Spycimierz, Poland - June 2021.jpg, The main square on the day of Corpus Christi, June 2021 File: Flower carpets and gates for Corpus Christi procession in Spycimierz, Poland - June 2021.jpg, Gate and a fragment of a carpet at the entrance to the church, June 2021 File:A fragment of the flower carpet for Corpus Christi procession in Spycimierz, Poland - June 2021.jpg, A fragment of the flower carpet, June 2021 File: Patterns used to arrange flower carpets for Corpus Christi procession in Spycimierz, Poland - June 2021.jpg, Patterns used to arrange flower carpets, June 2021 File: Arranging flower carpets for Corpus Christi procession in Spycimierz, Poland - June 2021.jpg, Parishioners during carpet arranging, June 2021 File:Beautiful flower carpet for Corpus Christi procession in Spycimierz, Poland - June 2021.jpg, A floral carpet and one of two gates at the back, June 2021 File: Flower carpets for Corpus Christi procession in Spycimierz, Poland - June 2021.jpg, Beautiful carpet with live flowers, June 2021

References

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Spycimierz Spycimierz is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Uniejów, within Poddębice County, Łódź Voivodeship, in central Poland. It lies approximately south-west of Uniejów, west of Poddębice, and west of the regional capital Łó ...