Kowary () is a town in Karkonosze County,

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 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 ...

, with a population of around 11,000. It lies approximately south-east of Jelenia Góra, 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 ...

. The town is famed for its

sanatorium A sanatorium (from Latin '' sānāre'' 'to heal'), also sanitarium or sanitorium, is a historic name for a specialised hospital for the treatment of specific diseases, related ailments, and convalescence. Sanatoriums are often in a health ...

s and a miniature park displaying architectural monuments of the Lower Silesian region.

History

The official site of the town dates the history of Kowary dates to 1148 when semi-legendary miner Laurentius Angelus mined

iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the f ...

in the location on the behalf of Polish duke Bolesław IV the Curly, ten years later on the orders of the Polish ruler a mining settlement was founded in the area, the official page of the town also states that the Kowary miners took part in

Battle of Legnica The Battle of Legnica (), also known as the Battle of Liegnitz () or Battle of Wahlstatt (), was fought between the Mongol Empire and combined European forces at the village of Legnickie Pole (''Wahlstatt''), approximately southeast of the ci ...

in 1241. Other possible date of the start of the town is 1355 and connects it to '' Ostsiedlung''. Publications published in German Empire disputed the origin of Kowary and called it 'Schmedewerk'. In 1355 year Duke Bolko II the Small, the grandson of the Polish king Władysław I the Elbow-high, the last independent Silesian Piast, granted mining privileges to the local miners. As a mining center the settlement received several privileges and was seat of a '' wójt'' since 1368. It remained part of the Polish Duchy of Świdnica and Jawor until 1392, afterwards it was part of the Bohemian Crown under the

Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

. Since 1401 the village belonged to the possessions of the Schaffgotsch family. An accord with neighbouring Hirschberg ( Jelenia Góra) in 1454 elevated the settlement above the status of a village, it wasn't until 1513 however that Casper Schaffgotsch acquired the municipal law from Bohemian king Vladislaus II against the opposition of Hirschberg. Mining flourished until 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 ...

, when the town was destroyed in 1633. The main export partner was Poland, with record trade in 1558, it was also famous for its gunsmiths, with Polish king Sigismund II Augustus ordering 2000 gun barrels (later German publications claimed it was only 200). After the war veil weaving became more and more important for the town, whereas mining diminished. In the early 18th century the town became one of the biggest veil trading places in Silesia with trade relations to

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

and

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

. Schmiedeberg remained in possession of the Schaffgotsch family until 1634. In the 16th century the population adopted the Protestant faith. Hans Ulrich von Schaffgotsch was arrested as a follower of Albrecht Wallenstein the town came under Imperial custody. In 1639 the emperor sold the town to Bohemian count Heřman of Czernin and his family kept Schmiedeberg until Prussian takeover of Silesia. After the

Peace of Westphalia The Peace of Westphalia (, ) is the collective name for two peace treaties signed in October 1648 in the Westphalian cities of Osnabrück and Münster. They ended the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) and brought peace to the Holy Roman Empire ...

(1648) the town experienced

Counter-Reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also sometimes called the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to, and as an alternative to or from similar insights as, the Protestant Reformations at the time. It w ...

. The Protestants could now practice their faith only at the church of peace in

Jawor Jawor () is a town in south-western Poland with 22,890 inhabitants (2019). It is situated in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is the seat of Jawor County, and lies approximately west of the regional capital Wrocław. One of the oldest towns ...

and later in Hirschberg and

Kamienna Góra Kamienna Góra (, ) is a town in south-western Poland with 18,235 inhabitants (2023). It is the seat of Kamienna Góra County, and also of the rural district called Gmina Kamienna Góra, although it is not part of the territory of the latter (t ...

(then ''Landeshut''). Schloss Neuhoff Sammlung Duncker

When

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

annexed majority of Silesia in 1742, Prussian king Frederick II immediately sold the possessions to the town, which thereby became sovereign. Prussian conquering also meant a relief for local Protestants – they received their own church (''Bethaus''). Nevertheless, an economic decline followed. Aid by the Prussian king, the settling of

Saxon The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...

damask weavers, couldn't stop the downturn. Only the

Industrialisation Industrialisation ( UK) or industrialization ( US) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial society. This involves an extensive reorganisation of an economy for th ...

, beginning around 1850, led to a recovery of the local economy. In the 19th century the Polish magnate Radziwiłł and

Czartoryski The House of Czartoryski (feminine form: Czartoryska, plural: Czartoryscy; ) is a Princely Houses of Poland, Polish princely family of Lithuanian-Ruthenians, Ruthenian origin, also known as the Familia (political party), Familia. The family, whic ...

families were in possession of the Ciszyca Palace and Park in the northern part of today's Kowary. In 1882 the town received a rail connection to Hirschberg (Jelenia Góra), and then in 1895 to Karpacz, which further strengthened the economy. During

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 ...

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 ...

operated multiple slave labour camps in the town, including three camps for Polish women at local factories, a camp for Polish men at a local mine, a camp for

Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

at a

, three camps for French POWs and a camp for Italian POWs from the Stalag VIII-A POW camp. The town was not destroyed during the war and after the defeat of Germany in 1945, it became again part of Poland. The German population fled or was expelled in accordance with the

Potsdam Agreement The Potsdam Agreement () was the agreement among three of the Allies of World War II: the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Soviet Union after the war ended in Europe that was signed on 1 August 1945 and published the following day. A ...

. The town was resettled by Poles from the Eastern Borderlands, annexed by the Soviet Union. In 1959, town limits of Kowary were expanded by including the village of Krzaczyna.

Sights

Kowary is a town with rich historical architecture, which includes: * town hall * Gothic-

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

Holy Name of Mary church * former Franciscan monastery * Nowy Dwór palace * Ciszyca Palace and Park with the Radziwiłłówka Hill * Wysoka Łąka hospital * Bukowiec hospital * numerous historic townhouses and villas The Lower Silesia Monuments Miniature Park is located in Kowary, and there are also underground tourist routes in the former

uranium Uranium is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol U and atomic number 92. It is a silvery-grey metal in the actinide series of the periodic table. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons. Ura ...

ore mines.

Notable people

* Werner von Rheinbaben (1878–1975), German diplomat * Friedrich-August Schack (1892–1968), German General * (1932–1972), printmaker * Andrzej Kupczyk (born 1948), athlete * Tomasz Żyła (born 1967), bobsledder * Dawid Kupczyk (born 1977), bobsledder * Mateusz Luty (born 1990), bobsledder * Wojciech Chmielewski (born 1995), luger

Twin towns – sister cities

Kowary is twinned with: * Černý Důl, Czech Republic *

Frederikssund Frederikssund () is a Denmark, Danish town, seat of the Frederikssund Municipality, in the Capital Region of Denmark, Region Hovedstaden with a population of 17,583 (1 January 2025).

, Denmark *

Kamień Pomorski Kamień Pomorski (; ; or ''Kammin'') is a spa town in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship of north-western Poland, on the Baltic coast. It is the seat of an urban-rural gmina (administrative district) in Kamień County which lies approximately 63&n ...

, Poland * Malá Úpa, Czech Republic * Schönau-Berzdorf, Germany * Vrchlabí, Czech Republic * Žacléř, Czech Republic

Gallery

PL Kowary Ratusz PioM.JPG, Town hall Kowary kosciol.JPG, Holy Name of Mary church PL Kowary, plebania kościoła NMP, plac Franciszkański.JPG, Former Franciscan monastery Pałac w Ciszycy.jpg, Ciszyca Palace Szpital Bukowiec w Kowarach..jpg, Bukowiec hospital Zamek Czocha (20685459615).jpg, Lower Silesia Monuments Miniature Park

References

External links

Official town website

Jewish Community in Kowary
on Virtual Shtetl {{Authority control Cities and towns in Lower Silesian Voivodeship Cities in Silesia Karkonosze County Holocaust locations in Poland Populated riverside places in Poland