★ History and art · Gniezno and the Piast RouteLednogóraAn island in Lake Lednica with the ruins of a 10th-century palace and chapel, where Poland's first ruler may have been baptised.
The storyAt the end of the 10th century the island was a Piast stronghold, linked to the shores by two long wooden bridges, with a stone palace and a chapel: one of the oldest masonry buildings in Poland. In the chapel archaeologists found two baptismal pools, and many historians believe that this is where Mieszko I was baptised in 966, the act that marks Poland's entry into the Christian world. The island was destroyed in 1038 by a Bohemian invasion. You reach it on a small ferry; on the shore is the Greater Poland open-air museum, with windmills and wooden houses.
Full page, why go and what's nearby →★ History and art · Gniezno and the Piast RouteLądA Baroque abbey on the Warta, with a Gothic chapel frescoed in the 14th century that few people know about.
The storyCistercian monks settled at Ląd in the second half of the 12th century, at the invitation of the dukes of Greater Poland, on a rise above the Warta valley. In the 18th century the abbey was rebuilt in a rich Baroque style, with a frescoed dome and carved choir stalls. The Gothic Chapel of St John the Baptist preserves a cycle of frescoes with dozens of knights' coats of arms, among the oldest in Poland. After the dissolution of the monasteries in the 19th century the abbey served as a Russian prison; today it belongs to the Salesians.
Full page, why go and what's nearby →★ History and art · Kalisz and the southAntoninA cross-shaped wooden hunting lodge, with a great central hall rising several storeys around a single chimney column, where Chopin was a guest twice.
The storyThe lodge was designed by the great Berlin architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel and built between 1822 and 1824 for Prince Antoni Radziwiłł, governor of the Grand Duchy of Posen, a cellist and amateur composer. The young Fryderyk Chopin stayed here in 1827 and 1829, gave lessons to Princess Wanda and composed a polonaise for cello and piano for the prince. Today the lodge is a hotel and cultural centre, and in September it hosts the festival “Chopin in Autumn Colours”.
Full page, why go and what's nearby →★ History and art · Western Greater PolandWolsztynA railway depot with a roundhouse and dozens of steam locomotives, where steam trains ran in regular service longer than anywhere else in Europe.
The storyWhen steam locomotives had long since been replaced by diesel and electric trains all over Europe, at Wolsztyn steam engines went on hauling regular passenger trains to Poznań and Leszno: from 1997 you could even pay to drive one. Regular service ended in 2014, but the depot has remained active as a living museum, with working locomotives. Every year, in late April or early May, the Steam Locomotive Parade draws enthusiasts from all over Europe.
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