Kłodzko is located in the south of the Lower Silesian

Voivodeship, in the north-eastern part of Kotlina Kłodzka, approx.

100 km from Wrocław and some 50 km from the Polish-Czech

border. This city of 27,000, situated at the foot of the Bardzkie

Mountains on the Nysa Kłodzka River, is the centre of one of the

largest poviats (counties) in Poland. National roads and railway

lines go via Kłodzko – from Wrocław towards Międzylesie, Kudowa,

Stronie and Wałbrzych, which makes the city an excellent starting

point for tourists visiting this region of Poland.

The town sits on the border of Silesia and the Czech

Republic, along one of the most important trade routes in Europe

leading from south to north. Historically, that same trail used to be

a branch of the “amber road” dating back to the Roman Empire

times. All that is reflected in the city’s long and turbulent history.

Kłodzko was granted city rights in the third quarter of the 13th

century, while a fortified township was present much earlier here.

The first chronicle mention dates back to 981, but archaeological

findings allow us to assume that settlement in this place occurred

already in the period of Roman influence. In the 11th century, the

Kłodzko Land was the arena of frequent Polish-Czech skirmishes

and armed conflicts, until a peace treaty in 1137 awarded the area

to the rulers of Bohemia.

The periods of robust growth and the flourishing of crafts and

trade placed Kłodzko among the region’s richest and most

important towns. The times of splendour resonate in numerous

monuments, well preserved with their high artistic merit: the bridge

on Młynówka and the Assumption of Virgin Mary parish church

from the Gothic period, as well as baroque complexes of the Jesuit

college with boarding school, Franciscan or post-Bernardine

monasteries (now Poor Clares) with temples.

Prosperous centuries were interrupted by violent episodes of

religious armed conflicts. The Hussite Wars (15th century) and the

Thirty Years’ War (17th century) brought great havoc and

destruction to the city which had to recover over following

decades. The 18th and 19th centuries saw the transformation of

Kłodzko into a fortified stronghold. The process was initiated by the

Habsburg emperor and continued by Prussian authorities. The

city’s new military functions blocked expansion of the suburbs until

the mid-nineteenth century, and additionally burdened the residents

and local government with extra tax and duties. It was only after

the liquidation of the garrison in 1867 that the urban development

was free to rebound. In fact, the city never regained its former glory.

However, it gained a unique monument of military architecture,

which now attracts crowds of tourists to Kłodzko.