Kłodzko - www.klodzko.pl

The Kłodzko Town Square is an integral part of the historical old town developments, which hide certain charming locations worth visiting. The most presentable and grandest building is the City Hall, which no longer fulfils its commercial functions of the past. It continues to astonish with the diversity of its architectural styles with its preserved historical elements. The building is graced by a clock, which is held by a sculpture of the lion from the city’s coat of arms, a testament to its relations with Bohemia. Like those in numerous other cities, the Kłodzko City Hall stood out among other public buildings.

We do not know when the first hall was built exactly but sources point to the year of 1324 when the voytship was bought out. We do not know what it looked like because – according to the city’s chronicles – it was burned down in 1366. In later years, the building would suffer two more fires, the last on 20 September 1886. Construction work on the new hall started one year later. The renaissance revival building was designed by Ewald Berger, a prominent architect from Nowa Ruda. The City Hall was expanded to the north and now covers almost the entire central section of the square. The only thing preserved from the former hall is the square tower, which dates back to the turn of renaissance and baroque. The hall’s elevations are not uniform in style and combine various architectural elements. The hall served as the central point of the city for centuries. It was the home of the city’s authorities. The newly founded museum occupied two of its rooms for a certain time from 1906. Today, the city hall is also home to a library and reading room.

The fountain - stands in front of the main entrance to the city hall. The first well in this location was installed by the people of Kłodzko back in mid-16th century. The current well dates back to the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries. It has a large conch supported on four dolphins and holds a blazon with the crowned Bohemian lion standing on top. The lion also appears in the coat of arms of Kłodzko. It comes from the royal Přemyslid dynasty of Bohemia as Kłodzko was a part of the Bohemian state from the 12th century until its dissolution in the 17th century and is exceptionally beautiful in evening light.

The city pillory used to stand somewhat near the well to its south. It was installed in the years 1551-1552 and became the symbol of law and order in Kłodzko. According to chronicles, it was used to enforce numerous lashing sentences. Many of the convicts, especially thieves, were subsequently banished from the city forever. The pillory was ultimately taken down in early 19th century, but reappeared in the town square in 2011 in the same location where it stood in the middle ages. The Kłodzko pillory is crowned with the statue of a thief carrying a bag full of loot on his back.

The votive statue of the Virgin Mary stands to the west of the hall. It commemorates two of the city’s tragedies. In 1676, a horrible fire broke out in the city and destroyed numerous buildings, including the Kłodzko Tavern. Then, in the spring of 1680, the plague arrived and took the lives of 1479 locals in less than ten months. To prevent further misfortune, the local Jesuits, city authorities, and Jerzy Ignacy Pachy – the head of the Różanka parish – decided to found a column with the statue of the Virgin Mary in the Town Square. This theme was a common one throughout almost all of Europe in the baroque era. The first such column was commissioned by Pope Paul V and appeared back in 1614 in Rome. Emperor Ferdinand III of Habsburg also founded two columns of the Virgin Mary when he released the decree on surrendering the empire’s states to her: in 1647 in Vienna and in 1650 in Prague. The latter most likely served as the inspiration for the artists of the one in Kłodzko. The baroque Marian Column was an element of the extensive architectural plan of Kłodzko’s Jesuits. It presents Mary praying during the Annunciation, which was no coincidence. This was a request of its founders because the fire broke out in the city on the Annunciation holiday. The statue was therefore a votive offering for rescuing the city from the plague and the fire. The column is surrounded with a stone balustrade with a gate in the middle and four stone pedestals holding the statues of saints: Francis Xavier, Charles Borromeo, Roch, and Sebastian, who were considered to be patrons protecting from contagious diseases. There is a niche in the central point below with the lying figure of Saint Rosalia guarded by the statues of Archangel Gabriel, the Guardian Angel of the City, Saint Florian, and Saint Joseph. The most important part of the structure is the tall column with a separate pedestal holding the statue of the Virgin Mary. The balustrade was initially locked behind bars, which bore two Habsburg eagles. The bars are currently located at the Museum of the Kłodzko Land. The statue was created by local sculptor Jan Adam Bayerhoff and metalworker Jan Scholz. This is one of the oldest such structures in the region of Kłodzko.

Until the end of the early modern era, all the wars and epidemics produced a true demographic catastrophe for Kłodzko. The Thirty Years’ War cut the population of the county’s capital almost in half. The plague, which broke out in the county in 1633, took 4284 victims in less than 16 weeks.

The current location of the Bank Spółdzielczy building was once home to the Tavern. Its date of origin is unclear; it may have been an old ducal tavern early on. As the oldest inn of the urban commune, it played an important role in the development of local brewing. But the Kłodzko tavern was not just an ordinary beer house. It also made considerable contributions to the city’s culture. It was the home of the city’s first secular library and a separate “gentlemen’s chamber”, which served as the workplace of the local councillors. In the 18th century, the Tavern also began to host various theatrical performances and was referred to as the “Kłodzko temple of muses”. It was here that the “local educated classes” looked for recreation, which was provided by the numerous operettas and plays. On 2 March 1881, the building hosted the general assembly of the Kłodzko Mountain Society “GLATZER GEBIRGS VEREIN”, an event commemorated by the plaque mounted on the external building elevation.

The first documents concerning brewing in Kłodzko date back to the 14th century. The main advantage of the quality of Kłodzko’s beer was due to the fact that it could mature in the deep multi-storey cellars. For centuries, it was also the main source of income of the local townsmen. Kłodzko would continue to serve as a prominent brewing centre in the province until the end of the 19th century.