History
The construction of brick fortifications began in Lidzbark Warmiński (German: Heilsberg) after the town was founded under Chełmno law in 1308 at the initiative of Bishop Eberhard of Nysa, who collaborated with a group of settlers brought from Silesia. Around 1320, the town’s area was expanded on the northern side, a change that had already been taken into account when enclosing Lidzbark with a fortifications. Walls were first recorded in 1357, although it is possible that the construction work, carried out with the support of the Warmia bishops, had been completed to a basic extent a dozen or so years earlier.
The first major test for the Lidzbark fortifications occurred during the Hunger War of 1414, when the town was besieged by the forces of Władysław Jagiełło. In 1440, the townspeople joined the Prussian Confederation. Several years before the outbreak of the Thirteen Years’ War, Lidzbark became the site of anti-Teutonic riots, and in 1454, it recognized the superior authority of the Polish King Kazimierz IV Jagiellon. The defeat of the royal and confederation forces at the Battle of Chojnice enabled the Teutonic Knights to undertake offensive operations and to hand over Lidzbark castle to Czech mercenaries as pledge for overdue wages. Their seven-year stay, painful for the townspeople, was ended in 1461 by Bishop Paulus Legendorf of Warmia, who purchased the castle. After the end of the Polish-Teutonic War, under the Second Peace of Toruń, Lidzbark, along with all of Warmia, became a fief of the Polish state, with the bishop as territorial ruler.
In the 1470s, based on the experiences of the Thirteen Years’ War and the development of firearms, the Lidzbark town walls were modernized, raising the height of the curtains and strengthening the High Gate. These actions may have saved the defenders in 1478, when Lidzbark was unsuccessfully besieged by Polish forces during the so-called Popes War, during which King Kazimierz IV Jagiellon attempted to expel Bishop Nicholas Tungen from Warmia. Lidzbark was besieged again in 1520 and 1521, this time by the Teutonic forces of the last Grand Master, who attempted to capture the town three times. The damage to the fortifications sustained at that time could only be repaired in 1532, when repairs were reported in the northern part of the defensive wall, although the foregate of the High Gate had been raised two years earlier.
In the early modern period, the town was devastated by the Swedish Wars of the 17th century, during which Lidzbark was besieged in 1626. Even more devastating was the Great Northern War in the first half of the 18th century, when the medieval fortifications lost their significance. The dilapidated walls were largely removed in the 19th century. In 1817, the Church Gate was demolished, followed by the Mill Gate in 1818, and in 1868 the High Gate and adjacent sections of wall. Of the latter, only the impressive foregate remained, which took over the name High Gate. The remaining sections of wall, particularly in the northern part of the town, were used as walls for new residential and economic buildings. Due to the dire housing conditions, they were demolished around 1930, freeing up a significant section of the former defensive wall.
Architecture
Town’s location on a low hill and natural borders, such as the Łyna River, were used when the fortifications were built. The perimeter of the defensive walls had an irregular shape, adapted to the form of the hill and the bend of the Łyna River, which protected Lidzbark from the south, partially from the west and, together with the bishop’s castle, from the east. Thanks to the tight bend of the river, the external fortifications were limited only to the northern side, where a moat was dug and an earth rampart was built. The town occupied an area of approximately 5.6 hectares within a defensive wall with a total length of approximately 1,000 meters. A street likely ran along its inner side, adjoining the cemetery and parish church in the southern corner of the town. The castle was a structure independent of the town, separated by the riverbed.
The town wall of Lidzbark Warmiński was built of bricks in the monk and Flemish bond, set on a fieldstone foundation. The height of the curtains originally reached 5 meters, and after expansion in the 15th century it reached 7 meters. Then the crown of the wall was topped with a straight parapet with loopholes adapted for small firearms. The northern side of the perimeter, which was most at risk of attack due to the lack of natural barriers, was reinforced with half towers, opened from the town side. It protruded in front of the neighboring curtains and initially were probably equal to them in height. Single towers could also be located in the corners of the southern part of the fortification ring, which were sensitive for defensive reasons.
Lidzbark had three gates: the Mill Gate connecting the northern outer bailey of the castle with the town, the High Gate from the north-west and the Church Gate (also called Dobromiejska) from the south-west. In addition, there was a postern called the Castle Gate and a postern located behind the parish church of St. Peter and Paul. Of the three main gates, only High Gate faced the street leading directly to the corner of the market square. Mill Gate was not on the market square street axis, while Church Gate led to a street that connected to market square at a right angle. In the 1470s, High Gate was the only one in the town to be preceded by a foregate, projecting significantly towards the moat, where the passage was flanked by two rounded towers connected to the central gate structure. In 1530, the foregate building was raised by an additional third story.
Current state
A section of the northern part of the defensive wall, along with two half towers, has survived to this day. This section, with a total length of approximately 90 meters, is located on the eastern side of Wiślana Street. Until recently, it was visible from Hoża Street, but is now obscured by new residential development. On the outer side, the former moat is still visible, along with high escarpments and a partially preserved counterscarp wall. On the western side of Wiślana Street, there is also a section of the defensive wall with two half towers, but these have been adapted for residential buildings, and the wall forms part of subsequent houses. A poorly preserved section of the defensive wall can still be seen on Dębowa Street, and a short section on the western side of the parish church. The most impressive element of Lidzbark’s former fortifications remains the impressive foregate of the High Gate in the northwestern part of the Old Town.
bibliography:
Atlas historyczny miast polskich, tom I Prusy Królewskie i Warmia, red. R.Czaja, R.Golba, zeszyt 12, Lidzbark Warmiński, Toruń 2024.
Czubiel L., Domagała T., Zabytkowe ośrodki miejskie Warmii i Mazur, Olsztyn 1969.
Wółkowski W., Zamek biskupów warmińskich w Lidzbarku Warmińskim, Olsztyn 2016.