Communes

Świdnica Commune

Świdnica Commune is situated in the west part of the County. Nearly the whole area is covered with the picturesque hills of the Zielonogórski Range, on which villages are scattered.

From the northern slopes of the hills spreads out a vast plain, which reaches up to the Odra valley. The southern edge of the commune is an area of wet grassland and marshland. The whole stretch along the Śląska Ochla river remains under landscape protection.

More and more residents of Zielona Góra are settling down in the commune. The reason is simple – each of the 11 villages is located off the beaten track. People live here in the peace and quiet of unspoilt nature, where one can listen to the singing of birds. The forest with its pine-fragrance infused air is only a few hundred metres away. Heaven on earth indeed. And all that only a 15-, 20-minute drive to Zielona Góra at the most. What else may one desire?

In Buchałów forest district one can admire a scenically situated 22-hectare protected nature zone – the ‘Źródlana Dąbrowa’ ( the ‘Spring Oak Grove’ ) spring complex. Its hills are overgrown with moss and fern and at their feet one can see little brooks winding their way among a thicket of deciduous trees. There are 66 monuments of nature within the administrative borders of the commune. Most of them grow in forests and historic parks. These are mostly pedunculate oak, small-leaved limes, red oaks and maples, but one can also come across other species. Also in Buchałów, at the entrance to the forester’s lodge, one can have a stroll in the 18th-c. park complex.

One is also recommended to see the historic park surrounding the Archeological Museum of the mid-Odra Region in Świdnica. The beautiful and mysterious park dates from the 18th c. It houses a skansen – the town of metallurgists from Wicina from before 2,500 years ago. Also in Świdnica a landscape park from the 19th c. is growing. In the park, there is an amphitheatre boasting very good acoustics, which in the summertime  attracts concert and recital lovers.    

Undoubtedly, the biggest attractions of the commune are its two museums: the Archeological Museum of the mid-Odra Region in Zielona Góra, located in Świdnica and the Lubuskie Military Museum in Zielona Góra, located in Drzonów. However, these are not the only assets of Świdnica Land.

The oldest historic monument in the commune is the stone-made 14th-c. St. Martin’s Church in Świdnica. Its Baroque altar is adorned with a most beautiful sculpture of the Madonna and Child, dating from 1735. In the church walls, Renaissance tombstones of the Kietlicz family, the former owners of Świdnica, have been mounted. In the side altar there is a late-14th-c. Gothic sculpture of the Holy Mother and Child. The St. Jadwiga Church in Koźla was probably also built in the 14th c. Preserved to this day, it is a masonry structure with the presbytery closed with a straight wall. The brick recessed portal on the ground floor of the tower deserves special attention. It may point to a much earlier origins of the structure’s, perhaps even the 2nd half of the 13th c. Of the old furnishings of the church, the following have been preserved: two Neo-Gothic altars from 1816, an 18th-c. canvas by an unknown author picturing St. Anna with her daughter Maria, and a paiting by Wilhelm Thiel presenting St. Joseph, dating from 1906.

In the northern part of the village of Letnica there is a 16th-c. palace. It is a masonry structure covered with a gable roof finished with a hip, which squares off the top of the roof on both sides. The palace is surrounded with a park, which was transformed into a landscape park in the early-19th c. Today, it is a place of residence of Henryk Krakowiak, an artist. Nearby, there is a Classicistic post-Evangelical church erected in 1819. From 1945 till the mid-60ies it served as a Roman Catholic church. Despite numerous break-ins and the changing of its function (it used to serve as a warehouse), its interiors have preserved decorative and colouristic details. Thanks to its very good acoustics and the exceptional ambience, the building is used for theatrical performances and concerts. Next to the church, a tombstone of the local villagers killed in World War I was preserved. The Evangelical Church and the palace both constitute the Letnica Artistic Estate. 

Another unusual attraction of the commune is the Bismarck Tower, situated on the highest elevation of the Zielonogórski Range and the Piastowskie Hills – 221 M.A.S.L.
It is ‘competed with’ by two bunkers from World War II situated about 2 km to the south-west of Świdnica. Equipped with power generators and fuel tanks, they probably used to serve as an engine room. One of them now houses the Sport and Recreation Centre and … a climbing wall. The bunker and its surroundings perfectly lend themselves to organizing all kinds of school trips, festivals, picnics,  company events or integration parties.

Walking fans may enjoy hiking along the tourist trails: the Black Trail - from Góra Wilkanowska to Podgórzyce ( from the Bóbr River to the Odra River ); the Green Trail also known as ‘the Small Zielona Góra Loop’ - from Zielona Góra, through Drzonków, Jędrzychów, the Skansen in Ochla, Góra Wilkanowska, back to Zielona Góra ( 28 km ). It is also a horse-riding trail; the Blue ZG 3001 Trail – the Monuments of Nature Trail, also known as ‘the Big Zielona Góra Loop’ – from the amphitheatre in Zielona Góra, through the Piasowskie Hills, the Wilkanów Tower, Ochla, ‘the Cold Water Reserve’, Zatonie, the Country Park in Zatonie to the railway station in Niedoradz ( 24.5 km ).
Also cycling trails pass trough Świdnica Commune: the Red Trail from Bytom Odrzański to Miedzichowo ( 188.5 km ) and the already mentioned Black Trail from Góra Wilkanowska to Podgórzyce ( from the Bóbr River to the Odra River ).

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The so called Bismarck Tower built in the forest near Wilkanowo in 1902, at present an observation centre

A bunker from World War II

A bunker from World War II

The exhibits at the Archeological Museum of the mid-Odra Region in Świdnica enjoy great popularity with the visitors

The Archeological Museum of the mid-Odra Region - Świdnica

The Archeological Museum of the mid-Odra Region in Zielona Góra, located in Świdnica is housed in a Renaissance Kietlicz manor erected in 1602.

The Lubuskie Military Museum - Drzonów

The Lubuskie Military Museum in Zielona Góra, located in Drzonów (Świdnica Commune) is the second largest and second in order of importance collection of  militaria in Poland.