Introducing Tykocin
Like so many of the region’s sleepy towns, Tykocin’s (ti-ko-cheen) importance lies in its past. It started life as a stronghold of the Mazovian dukes, but its real growth didn’t begin until the 15th century and was further accelerated after the town became the property of King Zygmunt II August in 1543. It was during this period that Jews started to settle in Tykocin, their community growing rapidly to define the town’s character for the next four centuries. They also built the town’s greatest monument, a 17th-century synagogue that miraculously survived WWII.
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By the end of the 18th century Tykocin’s fortunes had changed and the town gradually slid into decline. During WWII it lost all its Jews – half of the town’s population – and then in 1950 it was deprived of its town charter, to become an ordinary village. It recovered its charter in 1994, but otherwise nothing has changed; only a few historic buildings survive as evidence of the town’s illustrious past.
Last updated: Oct 3, 2008
Thorn Tree forum discussion
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RE: Lopochova Forest, Tykocin
by runningpotato 20 January 2011
There are no such tours, i think, so the train+bus combination is the only choice. First train from Warsaw departs at 7.35 and arrives…
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Lopochova Forest, Tykocin
by shasha 17 January 2011
Are there organised day tours from Warsaw to Lapochova Forest or do we have to make our own arrangements and go by train to Bialystok…
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Re: Advice for Trip: Prague-Krakow-Bialystok
by MartinLunnon 02 December 2007
I fully appreciate your desire to visit Bialystok because of your boyfriend's family connections. However, I must warn you that the city…
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