Kraczkowa 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 Łańcut __NOTOC__ Gmina Łańcut (Łańcut Commune) is a rural gmina (administrative district) in Łańcut County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in southeastern Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It ext ...

, within

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

Subcarpathian Voivodeship Subcarpathian Voivodeship is a Voivodeships of Poland, voivodeship, or province, in the southeastern corner of Poland. Its administrative capital and largest city is Rzeszów. Along with the Marshal, it is governed by the Subcarpathian Regional As ...

, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately south-west of

Łańcut Łańcut (, ; ; ) is a town in south-eastern Poland, with 18,004 inhabitants, as of 2 June 2009. Situated in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship (since 1999), it is the Capital (political), capital of Łańcut County. History Archeological investigat ...

and east of the regional capital

Rzeszów Rzeszów ( , ) is the largest city in southeastern Poland. It is located on both sides of the Wisłok River in the heartland of the Sandomierz Basin. Rzeszów is the capital of the Subcarpathian Voivodeship and the county seat, seat of Rzeszów C ...

Geography

Kraczkowa is situated between

- the capital of Subcarpathia province, and

on European route E40. Kraczkowa includes hamlets such as: Tłoki, Budy Kraczkowskie, Działy Wschodnie, Działy Zachodnie. Cierpisz, once belonged to Kraczkowa.

History

Kraczkowa was established under German law and founded by Otto of Pilica in 1369. Kraczkowa belonged to families such as Pileccy, Korniaktowie and

Potoccy The House of Potocki (; plural: Potoccy, male: Potocki, feminine: Potocka) was a prominent Polish noble family in the Kingdom of Poland and magnates of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. The Potocki family is one of the wealthiest and ...

. A member of Viennese Parliament, Tomasz Szajer was born.
The "Declaration of Rights of Young Generation" was signed there in 1936. Kraczkowa was a thriving center, of the peasant movement (ruch ludowy) that emerged in Galicia at the time.

Notable places

Cross on the Kraczkowskie Błonia–The first wooden cross was built in 1901 and was consecrated by Father Stojałowski. The cross mediated between God and the flock. It protected crops and farms from disaster. It was destroyed 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 ...

. A new cross was constructed by "

Solidarność Solidarity (, ), full name Independent Self-Governing Trade Union "Solidarity" ( , abbreviated ''NSZZ „Solidarność”''), is a Polish trade union founded in August 1980 at the Gdańsk Shipyard, Lenin Shipyard in Gdańsk, Polish People's Rep ...

" on the anniversary of "sierpień 1980" in 1981. Stations of the Cross on Zimna Góra–Zimna Góra is a 238 m hill situated on Kraczkowa and Cierpisz border. Zimna Góra is a road used to travel from Cierpisz to Kraczkowa. In 1988 the

Stations of the Cross The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Via Dolorosa, Way of Sorrows or the , are a series of fourteen images depicting Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and acc ...

were built along the road. At the top of the hill stands a shrine. Church in Kraczkowa–Church of St. Nicholas in Kraczkowa was built in 1911-1913 as a

Neo-Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...

temple with

Neo-Romanesque Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended t ...

elements. It has wooden equipment and murals. The church hosts memorabilia associated with

John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

. The most notable memorial is the cross that John Paul II held during the

Good Friday Good Friday, also known as Holy Friday, Great Friday, Great and Holy Friday, or Friday of the Passion of the Lord, is a solemn Christian holy day commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus and his death at Calvary (Golgotha). It is observed during ...

service in 2005. These relics have led to many miracles. Other papal items are in the School of Kraczkowa which was named in honor of John Paul II. Valley of Divine Mercy in Kraczkowa–The valley was designed to thank God for his grace and the triumphs of the

Divine Mercy Divine mercy or God's mercy refers to the compassionate love, forgiveness, and forbearance of God toward creation, especially humankind. It is an essential attribute of God in Christianity, in Judaism, and in Islam. It has also inspired particu ...

in Kraczkowa Parish. The valley displays figures of saints, the chapel and the

. The Shrines and Crosses trail connects Grunwald - Hill Magdalenka - Cierpisz and Grunwald, covering 15.5 kilometers. It starts and ends next to the monument of Grunwald Glory in Kraczkowa. The route is divided into four sections of varying difficulty. It passes 20 historic shrines, four crosses, 300-year-old oaks, a church dedicated to

Mary Magdalene Mary Magdalene (sometimes called Mary of Magdala, or simply the Magdalene or the Madeleine) was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to crucifixion of Jesus, his cr ...

, agritourism farms, cultural centers and viewpoints.

Cultural organizations

Kraczkowa hosts the Dance group "Patria", a brass band, a mixed

choir A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

and a chamber orchestra "Nicolaus".

References

{{Gmina Łańcut Villages in Łańcut County 1369 establishments in Europe Populated places established in the 1360s