The history of the southern part of the region is particularly rich in events of great significance. Near the town of Nowe Miasto Lubawskie (with the unique Saint Thomas church), on two opposite banks of the river two armies, which had been waging a war since 1409, had a momentous encounter, followed by the greatest war of medieval Europe which took place on 15 July1410 and went down in history as the Battle of Grunwald. The united forces of the Polish, Lithuanian and Tatar armies defeated the army of the Teutonic Order.One of the most impressive attractions of the area is the Museum of Folk Architecture in Olsztynek. It was first founded in Konnigsberg in1909 and then removed to Olsztynek in 1941. The open air museum prides itself on a rich display of typical folk households from the regions of Varmia, Masuria, Powiśle and Prussian Lithuania. The museum in Olsztynek is still being expanded and it is one of the biggest of this kind in Poland and whole Europe. The school, which has been seated in the Teutonic castle in Olsztynek for the last two centuries, was once a place of education of a renowned German bacteriologist, the first Nobel Prize Laureate in medicine – Emil Behring, the inventor of tetanus vaccine. Masuria, however, is not only the land of great history, but first and foremost of unusually picturesque nature. You are bound to indulge in this beauty if you decide to take a stroll in the reserve of the Łyna springs, near Nidzica. Nidzica itself is a town well worth a visit, as it is picturesquely situated at the foot of the hill with a splendid Teutonic castle, which at present serves as a museum and a cultural centre, as well as a hotel. The tower overlooks the marvellous vicinity, with the popular landmark, the so-called Tatar Stone – a huge erratic boulder in the village of Tatary. The name of the boulder brings back memories of the Tatar attack successfully warded off by local people in 1556.
Worth seeing
The Landscape Park of Dylewskie Hills with the peak Dylewska Góra (312 m above the sea level) .
Olsztynek – The Museum of Folk Architecture
tel. +48 89 519 21 64, www.muzeumolsztynek.com.pl
Stębark – the museum and the battlefield tel. +48 89 647 22 28, www.grunwald.info.pl
Działdowo – theTeutonic castle from the 14th century
Jeleń near Lidzbark – the Museum of Nature seated in the office of the Welski Lanscape Park
tel. +48 23 698 10 36, www.powiatdzialdowski.pl
Lidzbark Welski – The Museum of Firefighting
tel. +48 23 696 22 43, www.powiatdzialdowski.pl
Łyna – the Prof. Roman Kobendza reserve “The Springs of the River Łyna”
Nowe Miasto Lubawskie – two Gothic gates – the Brodnicka and Lubawska Gate, the Gothic church from the first half of the 14th century with rich interior, for instance the unique brass gravestone from the 14th century.
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