Niemcza

Niemcza occupies an old fortified hill in Lower Silesia. Its stronghold resisted Emperor Henry II in 1017 and later became the centre of a Piast castellany. The medieval town grew within the old ramparts; a stone castle and walls replaced earlier defences before the end of the thirteenth century, while the parish church served both Polish and German inhabitants.

In 1331 Niemcza successfully resisted an invasion by King John of Bohemia. A century later the Hussites captured it and held it for several years. After repeated unsuccessful sieges, the town was recovered in 1434 and destroyed by the burghers of Wrocław. Duchess Hedwig of Legnica confirmed its town rights again in 1455, and Niemcza remained under the Silesian Piasts until their line ended in 1675.