List of World Heritage Sites in Poland facts for kids

There are thirteen UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Poland. The first properties were added to the World Heritage List in 1978. Two of the sites are shared with neighboring countries.

World Heritage Sites

Name	Image	Location	Date	UNESCO data	Description
Cracow's Historic Centre		Kraków Kraków 50.067°N 19.96°E / 50.067; 19.96 (Cracow's Historic Centre)	11th–19th century	0029 29; 1978; iv	Kraków Old Town is the historic central district of Kraków, Poland. It is one of the most famous old districts in Poland today. It was the center of Poland's political life from 1038 until King Sigismund III Vasa moved his court to Warsaw in 1596. The entire medieval old town is one of the first sites picked for the UNESCO's World Heritage List.
Wieliczka Salt Mine		Wieliczka Wieliczka 49.979167°N 20.063889°E / 49.979167; 20.063889 (Wieliczka Salt Mine)	13th-20th century	0032 32; 1978; iv	The Wieliczka Salt Mine, in the town of Wieliczka in southern Poland, is in the Kraków metropolitan area. The mine continuously produced table salt from the 13th century until 2007. It was one of the world's oldest operating salt mines. It is believed to be the world's 14th-oldest company.
Auschwitz Birkenau, German Nazi Concentration and Extermination Camp (1940–1945)		Oświęcim Oświęcim 50.035833°N 19.178333°E / 50.035833; 19.178333 (Auschwitz Birkenau German Nazi Concentration and Extermination Camp (1940–1945))	1940-1945	0031 31; 1979; vi	Auschwitz was a network of Nazi concentration and extermination camps built and operated by the Third Reich in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany during World War II. It was the largest of the German concentration camps.
Belovezhskaya Pushcha / Białowieża Forest		Belarus and Poland 52.666667°N 23.833333°E / 52.666667; 23.833333 (Belovezhskaya Pushcha / Białowieża Forest)	N/A	0033 33; 1979; vii	The Białowieża Forest is an ancient woodland across the border between the two countries. It is 70 km (43 mi) north of Brest (Belarus) and 62 km (39 mi) south-east of Białystok (Poland). It is one of the last and largest remaining parts of the large primeval forest which once went across the European Plain. The first recorded piece of legislation on the protection of the forest dates to 1538. King Sigismund I the Old would give the death penalty for poaching a wisent (European bison).
Historic Centre of Warsaw		Warsaw Warsaw 52.2498°N 21.0122°E / 52.2498; 21.0122 (Historic Centre of Warsaw)	13th–20th century	0030 30; 1980; ii, vi	Warsaw's Old Town was formed in the 13th century. At first it was surrounded by an earthwork rampart. Before 1339 it was fortified with brick city walls. The town first grew up around the castle of the Dukes of Mazovia. It later became the Royal Castle.
Old City of Zamość		Zamość Zamość 50.720556°N 23.258611°E / 50.720556; 23.258611 (Old City of Zamość)	1582–17th century	0564 564; 1992; iv	Jan Zamoyski had the Italian architect Bernardo Morando design the city. The main features of the Old Town that make it different have been well preserved since it was built. It includes the regular Great Market Square of 100 x 100 meters with the splendid Townhall and so-called Armenian houses, as well as the fragments of the original fortress and fortifications, including those from the period of the Russian occupation in the 19th century.
Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork		Malbork Malbork 54.039722°N 19.027778°E / 54.039722; 19.027778 (Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork)	13th-14th century	0847 847; 1997; ii, iii, iv	The Castle in Malbork is the largest castle in the world by area. It was built in Prussia by the Teutonic Knights, a German Roman Catholic religious order of crusaders, in a form of an Ordensburg fortress. The Order named it Marienburg (Mary's Castle). The town which grew around it was also named Marienburg. The castle is a classic example of a medieval fortress, and on its completion in 1406 was the world's largest brick Gothic castle.
Medieval Town of Toruń		Toruń Toruń 53.033333°N 18.616667°E / 53.033333; 18.616667 (Medieval Town of Toruń)	12th–15th century	0835 835; 1997; ii, iv	Toruń has many monuments of architecture beginning from the Middle Ages, including 200 military structures. The city is famous for having kept almost intact its medieval layout and many Gothic buildings, all built from brick, including monumental churches, the Town Hall and many burgher houses. In 1236, due to frequent flooding, the city was moved to the present site of the Old Town. In 1264 the nearby New Town was founded. In 1280, the city (or as it was then, both cities) joined the mercantile Hanseatic League, and became an important medieval trade centre.
Kalwaria Zebrzydowska: the Mannerist Architectural and Park Landscape Complex and Pilgrimage Park		Kalwaria Zebrzydowska Kalwaria Zebrzydowska 49.860319°N 19.670719°E / 49.860319; 19.670719 (Kalwaria Zebrzydowska: the Mannerist Architectural and Park Landscape Complex and Pilgrimage Park)	1605-1632	0905 905; 1999; ii, iv	The town is named after the religious complex (calvary) founded by Governor of Kraków Mikołaj Zebrzydowski on December 1, 1602. The complex is known as the Kalwaria Zebrzydowska park. The city of Zebrzydów was formed in 1617 in order to house the growing number of pilgrims visiting the religious complex.
Churches of Peace in Jawor and Swidnica		Jawor Jawor, Świdnica Świdnica 51.054°N 16.196°E / 51.054; 16.196 (Churches of Peace in Jawor and Swidnica)	1654-1657	1054 1054; 2001; iii, iv, vi	The Churches of Peace in Jawor and Świdnica in Silesia were named after the Peace of Westphalia of 1648. The let the Lutherans in the Roman Catholic parts of Silesia to build three Evangelical churches from wood, loam and straw outside the city walls, without steeples and church bells. The construction time was limited to one year.
Wooden Churches of Southern Lesser Poland		Lesser Poland Voivodeship Lesser Poland Voivodeship 49.859444°N 20.274722°E / 49.859444; 20.274722 (Wooden Churches of Southern Lesser Poland)	15th-18th century	1053 1053; 2003; iii, iv	The wooden church style of the region originated in the late Medieval, the late sixteenth century, and began with Gothic ornament and polychrome detail. Because they were timber construction, the structure, general form, and feeling is entirely different from the gothic architecture or Polish Gothic (in stone or brick).
Muskauer Park / Park Mużakowski		Germany and Poland 51.550278°N 14.726667°E / 51.550278; 14.726667 (Muskauer Park / Park Mużakowski)	1815-1844	1127 1127; 2004; i, iv	The Muskau Park is the largest and one of the most famous English gardens of Germany and Poland. It is in the historic Upper Lusatia region. It covers 3.5 square kilometers (1.4 sq mi) of land in Poland and 2.1 km2 (0.81 sq mi) in Germany.
Centennial Hall		Wrocław Wrocław 51.107222°N 17.076944°E / 51.107222; 17.076944 (Centennial Hall)	1911-1913	1165 1165; 2006; i, ii, iv	The Centennial Hall (formerly People's Hall) is a historic building in Wrocław. It was constructed according to the plans of architect Max Berg in 1911–1913, when the city was part of the German Empire. It was an early landmark of reinforced concrete architecture.

Images for kids

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  Poland Turzansk - wooden church