map

Szprotawa is situated at an altitude of 120 m at the confluence of the rivers Szprotawa (Sprotte) and Bóbr (Bober) in southwest Poland. In the year 1000 Emperor Otto III met here with Duke Bolesław I Chobry ('the Brave'; later first King of Poland) while he, the emperor, was on a pilgrimage to Gniezno (Gnesen). In 1260 the place was mentioned as 'civitas Sprotav'; three years later, in 1263, Szprotawa was chartered as a town. During the Middle Ages the town flourished. During this period the town was ruled by Hungarian, Bohemian and Polish sovereigns before it became part of the Habsburg (Austrian) countries in 1526. Szprotawa suffered heavily during the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) and finally was destroyed by a devastating fire in 1672. After that the town was rebuilt and much of the town that we see today dates from that period. Together with most of Silesia, Szprotawa became part of Prussia in 1740. During the late 19th century the industrial development changed much of the town. After World War II Silesia became part of Poland. The entire German-speaking population was expelled and was replaced by Poles from the former east Poland (today Belarus).

The lower left picture on glass no.1454 shows the municipal bath (labelled in German: Stadtbad).

The lower right picture shows a view of the suburb towards Głogów (labelled in German: Glogauer Vorstadt).