Brzeziny

A tiny town of Brzeziny, located near Lodz, attracts tourists tired of a big city’s hustle and bustle. The town is famous for its picturesque landscapes and natural monuments. Brzeziny may boast of beautiful listed churches. In the town itself and in its neighbourhood you will find many hotels and tourist centres.

Brzeziny TOURISM

The town is populated by approximately 12 thousand people and has the area of 21.58 km². Despite its small area, Brzeziny is an important economic and tourist centre. Its main advantages are a close proximity to Lodz and beautiful landscapes. You will find here Lodz Hills Landscape Park with forests, fragments of coniferous forests and reservoirs. The park covers also three nature reserves: Lagiewniki Forest (Polish: Las Łagiewnicki), Dobieszkow Stream (Polish: Struga Dobieszkowska) and Janinow Arroyo (Polish: Parowy Janinowskie). Therefore, Brzeziny is a perfect place for everyone who appreciates contact with nature and open air activities. Within the park there are both foot and bike trails. The neighbouring town of Rochna (approximately 6 km from Brzeziny), on the other hand, is a paradise for keen anglers and mushroom pickers. There, you will have a chance to rest and relax in a hotel and conference complex with a pool, pitch and tennis courts. Rochna also may boast of a rich nature, beautiful parks and forests.

Except for the relaxation in a harmony with nature, Brzeziny have a lot of tourist attractions to offer. Because of its rich history, Brzeziny may boast of numerous monuments, like the Gothic Feast of the Cross Church with a listed bell tower from the 14th century and St. Anne Church erected in 1719. Franciscan Monastery Complex is also worth visiting. This complex was many times devastated and rebuilt. In between 1947 and 1952 it was renovated and since then has its present shape. Worthy of interest is also the Jewish cemetery and the Roman-Catholic cemetery.

GEOGRAPHY

Brzeziny is located in Lodz Voivodeship, in Brzeziny County. The town lies east from Lodz, within the area of Lodz Hills, in the Mrozyca river valley. In Brzeziny neighbourhood there is Lodz Hills Landscape Park. It is easy to get from Brzeziny to Lodz as many important routes are running through the town.

HISTORY

The history of Brzeziny dates back to the 11th century. The first records about the town we find in the documentary of prince Wladyslaw Siemowitowicz from 1332. Brzeziny was granted the right to be founded with a German law by King Casimir the Great in 1364.

As time went by the small settlement started to become a significant economic centre. The development of the town was determined by its location on the trade route. The “Golden Age” of Brzeziny began in the second half of the 15th century, i.e. when the town was ruled by the Lasocki family. At that time Brzeziny was a significant textile and dressmaking centre and Poland’s largest cloth producer. In the 16th century the town was also a famous brewery.

Brzeziny became famous for the high standards of teaching in the local school. One of its student was a poet and historian, Maciej Stryjkowski. Also Andrzej Frycz Modrzewski, a popular Renaissance Polish writer was connected with this town. Since the 17th century Brzeziny began to decline both economically and culturally. The cause of such a situation was wars with Sweden. The succeeding Partitions of Poland also devastated the town.

In 1870s there was an economic boom in Brzeziny. The town again became a textile and dressmaking centre. An intensive production of cloths began; there was an influx of people. The First World War destroyed and desolated the town. The interwar period, however, boosted the textile industry. In 1918 the Producers of Men’s Clothing Association came into existence.

As a result of the Second World War Brzeziny was bombed and desolated. Germans persecuted Jews. After 1945 the textile industry revived and Damina textile works was created. As a result of the 1990s restructuring, the works were closed up. At present Brzeziny is not a significant trade and dressmaking centre but it attracts tourists with its picturesque areas and unique atmosphere.