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The Legend of Mirów & Bobolice Castles

Poland Traditions & Interest

Tim Firkowski

Saturday, 13 August 2016

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Bobolice CastleAfter making a stop at the construction site of Łukasz & Ania's future new house. we went to see two castles which are only 1.5
kilometers apart. The castles Mirów and Bobolice are connected by a picturesque rocky trail. It is only about a 1/2 hour walk between the two. Both these castles were built in the 14th century.

The castle in Bobolice was built by King Casimir III the Great in the middle of the 14th century, probably in place of an earlier wooden structure. The castle was a part of the defense system of royal strongholds protecting the western border of Poland on the side of Silesia.

There is a legend about these two castles and it goes some thing like this.

A long time ago twin brothers Miron and Bobol lived in their castles Mirów and Bobolice. The castles were connected with underground passages, where they would put treasure, guarded by a witch and a dog. After military conquests, Bobol brought home his spoils of war and a lady of high birth. The brothers divided the spoils and cast lots to decide the fate of the girl. She became the wife of Bobol, although she eventually fell in love with Miron. The lovers met for a secret dates in the underground passage, when the witch was out flying on her broom on the Sabbath. One night they woke up the dog. It barked very loudly and Bobol went to see what was happening. He found the pair of lovers in a passionate hug, so he killed his brother and let his wife to die by bricking her up in the tower. To this day, when the witch is flying on the Sabbath, in the tower, there is a woman in white dress standing and staring into the distance.

Bobolice castle has been renovated and you can take tours & it has a hotel and restaurant inside. Mirów castle is presently under reconstruction, so you can only view it form the outside.

Mirów Castle

Rocky Outcrops everywhere

Mirów Castle being renovated

Rocky outcrops on the trail to Bobolice castle

Mirów Castle

Interesting rock near the entry to Bobolice Castle

Bobolice Castle

Bobolice Castle

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About the author

Tim Firkowski

I have been doing genealogy research since 2002 & have worked full time as a Professional Genealogist since 2008. I specialize in Polish and American-Canadian Genealogy. As a member of APG, I was the 2010/2011 President of the New England Chapter of the Association of Professional Genealogists (NEAPG). I have Certificates of Completion for studies in "Foundations of Forensic Genealogy" and "Advanced Forensic Genealogy Techniques". I have been a volunteer librarian at the local Family History Center, and a genealogy research consultant at “Ask the Expert” Ancestry Road Shows. I have traveled to Poland numerous times & researched in churches and archives. At conferences and special events, you may find me dressed up in my Sherlock Holmes outfit, or my Kujawy (the folk costume from the region in Poland where my ancestors came from).