Wojcieszków
Wojcieszków | |
|---|---|
Village | |
 Church of the Sacred Heart | |
  Wojcieszków | |
| Coordinates:51°46′N22°19′E/ 51.767°N 22.317°E | |
| Country |  Poland |
| Voivodeship | Lublin |
| County | Łuków |
| Gmina | Wojcieszków |
| Population | |
| • Total | 1,100 |
Wojcieszków(Polish pronunciation:[vɔjˈt͡ɕɛʂkuf]) is avillageinŁuków County,Lublin Voivodeship,in eastern Poland. It is the seat of thegmina(administrative district) calledGmina Wojcieszków.It lies in historicLesser Poland,approximately 18 kilometres (11 mi) south ofŁukówand 61 km (38 mi) north of the regional capitalLublin.[1]The village was a town from 1540 to 1819.
History
[edit]The village of Wojcieszkow was founded in 1437 by a local nobleman Klemens Bielinski. In the same year, Bishop of KrakówZbigniew Olesnickiestablished a Roman Catholic parish church here. On January 21, 1540, upon request of Mikolaj Dzik, the owner of Wojcieszkow, KingSigismund I OldgrantedMagdeburg rightsto it.
In 1767, a wooden church of Holy Trinity was built, and in 1771, a Suchodolski family library was opened. Until thePartitions of Poland,Wojcieszkow belonged to the County ofStezyca,Sandomierz Voivodeship.
In the late 18th century, the Plater family built a large manor house, which was burned duringWorld War II.According to documents, in 1802 Wojcieszkow had a marketplace, a church, and a castle. The town, however, was on poor soil, among forests and sands, which had a negative impact on its development. As a result, Wojcieszkow gradually declined and, in 1819, was stripped of its town charter.
Today
[edit]The location of Wojcieszkow turned out to be an advantage. Owing to its clean environment, hilly landscape and forests, the village is emerging as a local tourist center. It has a historic church and a cemetery, where Maria Babska, the wife ofHenryk Sienkiewicz,is buried.
