Szydłowiec

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Szydłowiec

	(Coat of arms)

Basic Information
Country	Poland
Voivodeship	Masovian
Powiat (County)	Urząd Miasta Szydłowiec
Gmina (Commune)	Szydłowiec
Population	15 243
Founded	12th century
City rights	1427
Latitude Longitude	51° 14' N 20° 51' E
Gmina Szydłowiec
Type of commune	mixed commune (gmina miejsko-wiejska)
Area	138,15 km² km²
Area code	+48 48
Car plates	WSZ
Economy and Traffic
Administration
Mayor	Andrzej Jarzyński
Municipal Address	pl. Rynek Wielki 1 26-500 Szydłowiec
Municipal Website

Szydłowiec (lat. Shidloviecz, rus. Шидловец, hebr. שידלוביץ, jidysz שידלטווצע) is a town in Szydłowiec County, Mazovian Voivodeship, Poland, with 15,243 inhabitants (December 31, 2005). It is the seat of Szydłowiec Commune (Gmina Szydłowiec). Previously, from 1975 to 1998, it was in the Radom Voivodeship.

[edit] History

From the 12th century the environs of Szydłowiec belonged to the powerful knightly family of Odrowąż, who descended from Moravian-Bohemian Baworowic family. In the 13th century the site of the present castle was occupied by a stronghold on an artificial island with wood and earth defences and by a village called Szydłowiec. The present town came into being in the early 15th century and together with the neighbourigh estate was the propert of the Szydłowiecki and Radziwiłł families until the 19th century. The town flourished in the 16th and the first half of 17th centuries. It was then an important centre of trade and crafts, mainry stone-masonry based on the exploatition of the local sandstone which was easy to work. This stone was used to carve architectural sculptural elements and to make tools for agriculture. It was also a building material for the local Saint Sigmunt Church, castle and the town hall; moreover, it was sent to Kielce, Cracow and Warsaw. Among the goods traded in vere agricurtular products. The period of wars 1648-1717 and numerous epidemics and fires brought abought a decline of Szydłowiec,which persisted for centuries, its state being yet aggravated after the partitions of Poland. The town owes this present cheracter to transformations in urban design and architecture which took place in the second half of the 19th century and in the 20th century.