Town · Duchy of Silesia · as at first light, 1 January 1200

Sobótka

A market under the holy mountain of Ślęża; its name means the Saturday market.

Piotr Włostowic's canons lived on the mountain before moving to Wrocław about 1148, and Celestine III's bull of 9 April 1193 confirms to them the mountain with its villages and 'the market at Sobótka'. No ducal castellany at Sobótka is attested in the sources consulted.

Who holds it

Name
The Augustinian canons of St Mary on the Sand, Wrocław (Abbot Alard), under the duke
Title
Lord
Confidence
medium

Lord in 1200

The Augustinian canons of St Mary on the Sand, Wrocław (Abbot Alard), under the duke

How things stand that morning

The canons' market under the duke's overlordship.

Charter

No town charter and no German town law in 1200: a ducal castle (gród) with a market settlement (suburbium) under the castellan's court and Polish law.

Council

None. The castellan or the duke's officers judge and collect dues.

Communities

Polish castle folk, craftsmen and traders; no foreign community pinned for 1200.

Militia

None as a town; the castle folk and the knights of the district.

Walls and castle

No castle of note; open market village.

Trade and crafts

A weekly market (the name), the canons'.

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: The 1193 bull names the market at Sobótka among the canons' possessions.

Primary sources for Silesia (Bolesław the Tall)

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

Sources and studies

  1. Bolesław I the Tall, en.wikipedia
  2. Celestine III for St Mary on the Sand, 9 April 1193, dokumentyslaska.pl

Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.