Stary Sącz

Sister cities

• Chuhuiv
• Dunakeszi
• Keszthely

History

The history of the town dates back to the Early Middle Ages when Duchess Kinga of Poland, the daughter of the King Béla IV of Hungary and the wife of Duke Bolesław V the Chaste, received the land called Sącz, together with surrounding villages, from her husband in the year 1257. It is assumed to be the date of the town foundation. Indeed, the Duchess must have loved the mountains very much, since she founded a Convent of the Poor Clares there in 1280 and she became its duchess herself. Almost at the same time, on the opposite slope of the Sącz hill, the seat of a Franciscan order was established also by Duchess Kinga. In the year 1358 the town received a privilege of the Magdeburg law, confirmed by King Casimir III the Great. An extremely advantageous location, on a very busy trade route to Hungary, fostered the town's rapid development. However the town was often damaged by disasters, of which fires were the most harmful. The town also did not manage to escape floods, plagues, and wars. During the biggest fire in its history in 1795, the entire town almost burned down. In 1999, the town was visited by Pope John Paul II who attracted a crowd of 600,000 people for a mass which was dedicated to St. Kinga of Poland.

Geography

Stary Sącz is located in bottom of the valley called Kotlina Sądecka, between two rivers - Dunajec and Poprad, at an altitude of above sea level.

Most-observed species

• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  222
• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  199
• Common Chaffinch

  Fringilla coelebs Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  184
• Great Tit

  Parus major Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  180
• Song Thrush

  Turdus philomelos C.L.Brehm, 1831 · Aves
  140
• Common Buzzard

  Buteo buteo (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  139
• Common Chiffchaff

  Phylloscopus collybita (Vieillot, 1817) · Aves
  138
• European Robin

  Erithacus rubecula (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  130

Most recent

• M 5 — 2023-10-09
  15 km SE of Stropkov, Slovakia
• M 3.1 — 2006-06-25
  10 km S of Bukowina Tatrza?ska, Poland
• M 2.6 — 2005-08-24
  6 km N of Ko?cielisko, Poland
• M 2.8 — 2005-06-02
  7 km S of Czarny Dunajec, Poland
• M 3.6 — 2005-01-29
  2 km NNE of Czarny Dunajec, Poland
• M 3 — 2005-01-23
  1 km SSW of Czarny Dunajec, Poland