Location

The Goszczanów Commune is located in the Łódź Voivodeship (Lodz Province), in the northern part of the Sieradz county, west to the Jeziorsko Reservoir and belongs to the oldest settlement centers within the Warta river basin.
The flora and fauna wealth treasures

On the commune land there is a Proposed Area , a Site of Community Importance to the Nature 2000 network – the Lipickie Mokradła (the Marshes of Lipice) with rich flora, being the place of refuge, feeding and reproduction site of many animal species.

The particularly noteworthy historic buildings

While visiting the Goszczanów Commune it is worthwhile visiting the following historic buildings, secular and sacred:

• the baroque St. Martin and St. Stanislaus church in Goszczanów, erected in 1666 as a votive offering – request for son’s return from the Turkish captivity 
• in the village Chlewo, a stone baroque church with some classical features, dedicated to the Saint Benedict the Abbot, built in 1778
• a manor house in Stojanów.

As the additional attraction on the commune’s grounds there is a hiking trail of the Insurgents of 1863, marked as red, leading from Warta to Wojkowo and connecting the places in the Sieradz county associated with the January Uprising.

Social Integration

The commune takes numerous actions with the aim of integrating residents, enhancing the sense of togetherness, enhancing respect for the natural environment and the cultivation of traditions in the region. The cyclic events are:

• The Days of Goszczanów (June) 
• the Communal Crop Feast (August) 
• The Drama Review of the school theatre groups (January, May) 
• the Polish Mardi Gras [Shrove Tuesday] – the last day of the Carnival 
• Ecology Happening (April) 
• the Communal Song Review (May) 
• The Indian Summer of Goszczanów (October / November) 
• the Communal Christmas Eve Meeting (December).

A noteworthy legend

There is a legend connected with the Goszczanów Commune, both heartbreaking and wrapped in mystery, about two Turkish girls, whose bodies are buried in the Church in Goszczanów. According to this legend, a son of the Goszczanów and Poniatów estates owner was taken captive by the Turks near Chocim. Two Turkish girls, sisters, helped him escape and the young Stanisław Poniatowski brought them to his father’s house in Poniatów. In the Christian Poland, having two wives was not possible. Wanting to avoid the loss of his position among the local gentry, he had to pledge that he would marry one of the Turkish girls, and the other one would be sent away. The Muslims were forced to accept baptism and to take Holy Communion. The parish of Goszczanów gave them the teachings. However, the sisterly love turned out to be stronger than their love for the man. The tragic conflict was settled by the shared suicide of the sisters. Today, in the vaults of the church in Goszczanów, with the local parish’s permission, one can see the coffins where the remains of the dead women rest. The embalmed corpse of one of them, in spite of the years passed, remains very well preserved. That is another mystery which does not allow forgetting the legend, and for which alone visiting Goszczanów Commune is well worthwhile.

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