Partners
The Municipality Office of Tykocin
196-080
Tykocin
ul. Złota 2
tel/fax (085) 718 16 27
mail:
um1_tykocin@zetobi.com.pl
Area of
municipality: 207 km²
Population: 6 796
Number of transactors: 208
Tykocin, often called ‘a pearl of
baroque’ is a bit sleepy but charming town situated near Białystok.
It captivates tourists with its breathtaking nature, unique fowl and
game. On the territory of the municipality of Tykocin there is an
Area of Protected Landscape called ‘The Valley of Narew’ (“Dolina
Narwii”), where the Narew River overflows forming a maze of
riverbeds and picturesque meanders which fill out the whole width of
the valley. That area is surrounded by dwellings exploited regularly
for farming and by areas of peat bogs and marshes. The waterlogged
territories stretch along both riverbanks and after the Biebrzańskie
marshes, they are second according to the size area of that
character in Central Europe. The surroundings of the river are
attractive all year round from ornithological point of view as more
than 150 species of birds nest here. This is also the place where
the protective belt of the Narwiański National Park called lagging
is situated. Nowadays, it is the only preserved stretch of a big
river’s boggy valley kept in its natural condition in Poland. The
landscape of the park is characterised by two principal elements: an
extensive boggy valley of a river accompanied by a complex network
of riverbeds creating a system of watercourses, which occupies
sometimes the width of a whole valley, and morainic hills
surrounding the valley, which in some points reach considerable
relative altitude, characterised by steep slopes coming down towards
the valley.
Whereas in the natural reserve
Szelągówka one can admire a complex of pine-trees situated on a vast
dune area. The Tykocińskie marsh, which occupies the territory of
400ha is also worth visiting. It constitutes a part of ‘The Valley
of Narew’ located between the village of Góra and the town of
Tykocin. It consists of meadows, wastelands and stagnant water. On
the territory of the municipality the numerous natural monuments
also exist for example European ash, an alley of 155 trees in the
village of Stelmachowo, common juniper in Krosno and erratic
boulders in the villages of Sierki and Leśniki. In order to preserve
those natural values considerable attention is paid in the
municipality to the issues of ecology. The problems of the sewage
management are being solved by the construction of modern sewage
systems as well as private household sewage plants, modernisation of
boiler plants which involves an exchange of old traditional boilers
into modern heating systems run by renewable energy sources and
gradual insulation of public buildings which prevents the loss of
heat. Numerous historic monuments confirm the almost 600-year
history of the city so it is worth devoting some time to
sightseeing. In the central point of the city, which is a market
place of a trapezial shape and baroque features, there is the oldest
lay monument erected in a public place in Poland which dates back to
the year 1763 and portrays one of the town’s former successors
Stefan Czarnecki, who received the town as an inheritance. The
founder of the monument was the descendant of Czarnecki – Jan
Klemens Branicki. The eastern frontage of the market is occupied by
a cloister complex from 18th century. The Trinity church included in
the complex is kept in a uniform baroque style: inside the church
one can admire among others rococo organs as well as valuable
pictures of August Mirys, who was the Branickis’ court painter. A
bit further south, towards the Narew River, one of the most precious
historic monuments of Tykocin is located, namely late renaissance
military seminary, which was founded by Krzysztof Wiesiołowski in
1634-37 and served as a home for war veterans. This monument, which
is unique on world scale, was employed appropriately to its use till
the year 1914. Before the II World War Tykocin was the second city,
after Crocow, with regard to the number of Jewish inhabitants. The
first Jews settled down in Tykocin at the beginning of the 15th
sentury and occupied the western past of the town, called Kaczorowo.
The Jewish commune erected a magnificent synagogue, which was
renovated after the II World War and is now willingly visited by
crowds of tourists. The synagogue arranged on a triangle plan
possesses baroque features. The inside represents a typical for the
Jewish praying houses division into a vestibule, a praying hall with
a rostrum situated in the middle and a women’s gallery, which is a
separate room for women.
In the northern part of the city,
among the Narew backwaters, one can find the ruins of a castle,
which once belonged to king Zygmunt August. The monarch received the
estates of Tykocin after his marriage to Barbara Radziwiłłówna, a
widow after Gasztołd – the former owner of these lands. In 1533
Zygmunt August rebuilt the existing castle so that it could serve
the purposes of a fortified royal residence. This was the place
where the monarch located its treasury, arsenal, library, managed by
Łukasz Górnecki and a mint. The castle, which was characterised by
Gothic and Renaissance, was arranged on a rhombus plan with four
semicircular towers situated in the corners. In the year 1705 in the
very same castle king August II Mocny established the most important
and at the same time the oldest distinction ‘The Order of the White
Eagle’ (“Order Orła Białego”). Unfortunately, during the Swedish
Deluge the castle of the last king of the Jagiellońska dynasty was
destroyed and started to fall into decay throughout the following
years. The next sacred object of Tykocin situated next to the river
is a complex of buildings occupied once by a Bernardine monastery
and accompanied by an aisleless church built between the years
1771-91 on the ground of a former Zygmunt August’s manor. Pentowo is
an old gentry settlement, which is linked with Tykocin by an old
highroad with lots of leaning birches planted along it. On a vast
clearing one can find a wooden historic manor form the beginning of
the 20th century, which belonged to the Toczydłowscy family. Due to
the fact that it has been owned by one family for over 100 years it
managed to preserve an authentic interior of a gentry residence,
namely old richly decorated furnaces with finals, aged wardrobes,
escritoires, cupboards and a clock from the year 1975. The village
of Pentowo has recently become well-known thanks to storks – the
birds that are a symbol of Podlasie. Those birds took a special
liking to this place – on the roofs of wooden buildings they have
built more than 20 nests. In 2001 Pentowo, as a first village in
Poland, was honoured with a title of the European Village of Storks.
In this place one can also find boards that give information about
the dates of the arrivals and the numbers of the stork pairs, which
appeared in subsequent years. The honours receives by Pentowo have
inspired the idea of creating the Podlaski Stork Route which would
lead through 3 national parks: Biebrzański, Narwiański and
Białowieski.
Kiermusy
A few kilometres further west passing Pentowo in a village called
Kiermusy a luxurious guesthouse called (The Manor over the Meadows’
(“Dworek nad Łąkami”) is located. Tourists can choose between 5
stylish lodgings here which characteristic atmosphere is created
thanks to numerous folk elements. The fans of typical Polish cuisine
cannot miss an inn, which is a part of a holiday resort called
‘Rome’ (“Rzym). On first Sunday of each month there is a folk fair
organised in the guesthouse, which is one of the biggest attractions
of this type in Podlasie.
Jeżewo Stare
In the vicinity of
Tykocin by the road from Warsaw to Białystok, one can encounter a
place, which possesses an interesting history. Jeżewo Stare used to
be a royal village in the 15th century but later became the estate
of the Gloger family. Their manor had many famous people, especially
writers, as guests. This was probably the place where numerous
passages from Henry Sienkiewicz’s ‘Trilogy’ (“Trylogii”) were
written, as the village of Rzędziany, where the families of
Rzędzianów and Jaworskich were quarrelling over a famous pear-tree,
can be found easily.
