Siedlce

Sister cities

• Pescantina
• Sabinov
• Vawkavysk
• Dasing
• Nevers
• Berdychiv
• Byerastsye

History

The city, which is a part of the historical province of Lesser Poland, was most probably founded some time before the 15th century, and was first mentioned as Siedlecz in a document issued in 1448. In 1503, local nobleman Daniel Siedlecki erected a new village of the same name nearby, together with a church. In 1547 the town was granted Magdeburg rights by King Sigismund the Old. Siedlce as an urban center was created after a merger of the two neighboring villages. It was a private town, administratively located in the Lublin Voivodeship in the Lesser Poland Province. In the 16th century, and until the mid-17th century, Siedlce prospered, with its population quickly growing and a number of artisans opening their shops here. The period of prosperity ended during the Swedish invasion of Poland (1655–1660), when Siedlce, together with most Lesser Poland's towns and cities, was burned by the Cossacks, Tatars, Muscovities, Swedes and the Transylvanians. After these conflicts, the town belonged to the Czartoryski family, as a dowry of Joanna Olędzka, who married Prince Michał Jerzy Czartoryski. In 1692 Siedlce burned again, and the destruction was used by Kazimierz Czartoryski, the son of Michał Jerzy, to plan a new, modern market square, together with adjacent streets. In the first half of the 18th century, a new parish church was built. In 1775, after Aleksandra Czartoryska married Hetman Michał Kazimierz Ogiński, the town passed over to the Ogiński family. At that time Siedlce emerged as one of the most important cultural centers of the nation. The Ogiński Palace was visited by several notable artists and writers, such as Franciszek Karpiński, and Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz. King Stanisław August Poniatowski visited the palace twice, in 1783 and 1793. Due to efforts of…

Most-observed species

• Common Crane

  Grus grus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  28
• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  26
• White Stork

  Ciconia ciconia (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  20
• Eurasian Collared-Dove

  Streptopelia decaocto (Frivaldszky, 1838) · Aves
  20
• Black-headed Gull

  Chroicocephalus ridibundus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  19
• Western Jackdaw

  Coloeus monedula (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  19
• Rook

  Corvus frugilegus Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  17
• Common Wood-Pigeon

  Columba palumbus Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  17