Bożków (pronounced ) is a

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

in the administrative district of

Gmina Nowa Ruda __NOTOC__ Gmina Nowa Ruda is a rural gmina (administrative district) in Kłodzko County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. Its seat is the town of Nowa Ruda, although the town is not part of the territory of the gmina. The gmina ...

, within

Kłodzko County __NOTOC__ Kłodzko County () is a unit of territorial administration and local government (powiat) in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, south-western Poland. It came into being on 1 January 1999 as a result of the Polish local government reforms passed ...

Lower Silesian Voivodeship Lower Silesian Voivodeship (, ) in southwestern Poland, is one of the 16 Voivodeships of Poland, voivodeships (provinces) into which Poland is divided. It covers an area of and has a total population of 2,899,986. It is one of the wealthiest ...

, in south-western Poland. It lies approximately south-east of

Nowa Ruda Nowa Ruda (, ) is a town in south-western Poland near the Czech Republic, Czech border, lying on the Włodzica river in the central Sudetes mountain range. it had 22,067 inhabitants. The town is located in Kłodzko County, Lower Silesian Voivod ...

, north-west of

Kłodzko Kłodzko (; ; ; ) is a historic town in south-western Poland, in the region of Lower Silesia. It is situated in the centre of the Kłodzko Valley, on the Eastern Neisse (Nysa Kłodzka) river. Kłodzko is the seat of Kłodzko County (and of the ru ...

, and south-west of the regional capital

Wrocław Wrocław is a city in southwestern Poland, and the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is the largest city and historical capital of the region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the Oder River in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Eu ...

History

The village is located in

Kłodzko Land Kłodzko Land (; ; ) is a historical region in southwestern Poland. The subject of Czech–Polish rivalry in the High Middle Ages, it became a Bohemian domain since the 12th century, although with periods of rule of the Polish Piast dynasty in th ...

, a territory which often passed between Polish and Bohemian rulers in the

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 ...

. The first document that mentioned village of Bożków is dated back to 1348 – it noted that Berhardt von Maltwitz was the owner of the village. During the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

the property was confiscated by Ferdinand II and sold or given to Kasper Jaeschke von Eisenhut, an ennobled imperial physician (1633). After his childless death, his widow gave the property to the Kłodzko

Jesuits The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

order. John George von Goetzen (b. 1626), starost of the Kłodzko county bought the estate from the order. The Count Anthony Alexander von Magnis finally bought the rights to Bożków in 1780. The property was inherited by Friedrich Wilhelm Antoni Karol Fabricius von Magnis (1786–1861), who was succeeded by his son Wilhelm Ernest Adolf (1828–1888), and then by his grandson Franciszek Wilhelm Karol (b. 1862). The property belonged to the von Magnis family until 1945. A labour camp of the

Reich Labour Service The Reich Labour Service (''Reichsarbeitsdienst''; RAD) was a major paramilitary organization established in Nazi Germany as an agency to help mitigate the effects of unemployment on the German economy, militarise the workforce and indoctrinate ...

was operated in the village under

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

. After

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 ...

, Lower Silesia became again part of Poland and the palace became state property. It was gradually turning into a ruin, the interiors were mostly destroyed and even stolen. In 1956, a partial renovation was done. Later, the palace was housing a local school for many years. The Polish drama film '' Shivers'' from 1981 was filmed in the Bożków Palace. Currently, the palace is in private hands. In February 2021, it was again offered for sale.

People from Bożków

Franz Xaver Gebauer Franz Xaver Gebauer (c.1784 – 13 December 1822), born in Kingdom of Prussia, Prussian Silesia, was an organist, composer of church music, and choirmaster and music director of the Augustinian Church, Vienna. Before his early death he organised t ...

(1784–1822), composer, and promoter of 'Concerts spirituels' in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. *

Heinrich Feisthauer Heinrich Feisthauer (14 September 1898 – 11 November 1964) was an opponent of the Nazi regime and survivor of Sachsenhausen concentration camp of Silesian origin. Early life Feisthauer's ancestors were Austrian Landler who were deported from ...

, political opponent of the Nazi-regime and a survivor of Sachsenhausen. * Franz Magnis-Suseno, Jesuit, rector of the philosophical school in Jakarta, Indonesia.

References

Villages in Kłodzko County {{Kłodzko-geo-stub