Ścinawa

Poland, Poland

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Ścinawa is a town in southwestern Poland's Lower Silesian Voivodeship, Lubin County, situated on the left bank of the Oder River near the Kaczawa River confluence, about 16 km east of Lubin and serving as the seat of an urban-rural gmina with around 5,500 residents.

First documented in 1202 as a possession of Trzebnica Abbey and granted town privileges between 1248-1259 by Duke Konrad I of Głogów, it became the capital of an independent Piast duchy under Konrad II the Hunchback from 1316 until reunited with Głogów in 1290, later fragmenting among Silesian dukes before Habsburg control after 1675.

A medieval trade hub with a church from 1209, castle from 1251, and walls rebuilt after Casimir the Great's 1343 raid, it thrived on linen production under Czech, Prussian, and German rule until 1945, preserving a historic center despite WWII destruction amid its scenic riverine location.