The Defensive Walls

Chojna was surrounded with defensive walls at the turn of the 14th and the 15th century. The mediaeval walls were complemented with three gates, several towers and lookout posts. In spite of massive war destruction in Chojna, the fortifications of the old town were almost intact.

Two gates have survived up to the present day. The first is known as Brama Barnkowska [the Barnkowo Gate], whose name derives from the village of Barnkowo (presently, a district of Chojna). The gate was built in the 14th-15th centuries, on a quadrangular plan; the upper part of the gate is octagonal, and the building is topped with a pointed cupola. The gate has a crenellated defensive wall and an open viewing deck.

The second gate that has survived to our times is Brama Świecka [the Świecie Gate] (from the name of the town of Świecie/Schwedt) erected in the 15th century. Brama Świecka is regarded as one of the most beautiful Gothic-style defensive gates in Poland. Likewise the first gate, this one was also build on a quadrangular plan (its base is square-shaped); it is decorated with three rows of blind windows and a decorative frieze. There is also a crenellated defensive gallery located by the gate. At the top of the gate, there is an octagonal tower with four turrets. Both gates are made of brick on a field stone foundation.

The Chojna’s fortifications also included towers – three of them have survived up to this day – Baszta Piekarska [the Baker’s Tower], Baszta Więzienna [the Prison Tower], and Baszta Bociania [the Stork Tower]. Baszta Więzienna – also known as Wieża Prochowa [the Gunpowder Tower] – is located in the northern part of the walls. It was erected on a square-shaped plan. From the outside, the building is semicircular, topped with a conical cupola. Baszta Bociania is situated near the Augustinian monastery. It was built on a quadrangular plan and has a pitched roof. Also a quadrangle is the base of a plan on which Baszta Piekarska was built. By the tower, there is a well-preserved lookout post. Both buildings have pitched roofs.

How important and huge the fortifications of Chojna were tells us the fact that the town repulsed all attacks until the Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648). In the 19th century, a part of the walls, including one of the gates, was pulled down. Removing the fortifications was motivated by the town’s spatial development. Also, the initial role of the mediaeval fortifications changed.

The mediaeval defensive walls surround almost the entire area of the old town of Chojna, which was entered into the register of historic monuments as a whole. The monuments in Chojna are located along the European Route of Brick Gothic. Since 2009, there has been in Chojna the Terra Incognita Association, whose aim is to promote the history and culture of the region of Chojna and its vicinity.