New Town, Warsaw

The historic district of the New Town was formed at the turn of the 14th century as an independent city. The official recognition of the New Town occurred in 1408, when it was separated from the Old Town by an act issued by Janusz I the Old, Duke of Masovia. At that time the new city encompassed the territory of the New Town Market Square and streets - Freta, Kościelna, Koźla, Przyrynek, Stara and Zakroczymska. It was independent from the Old Town authorities and had its own vogt, council and a town hall. In 1411 the Parish Church of St. Mary was erected, and according to the 1546 mensuration there were 204 estates in the Warsaw New Town. The largest investment of that time was the Sigismund Augustus bridge built between 1568 and 1573 by Erazm Cziotko (c. long). Unfortunately it was destroyed in 1603 by the drifting ice floes. near St. Hyacinth's Church The disastrous time of the Swedish-Brandenburgian invasion (1655–1660), left the predominantly timber buildings of the New Town burned, but because of those events many beautiful and more permanent buildings were erected (the Town Hall, built in 1680; St. Kazimierz Church, 1688–1692; the Kotowski Palace, 1682–1684; the Holy Spirit Church, 1707–1717; and the ornate chapel of the Kotowski family, constructed between 1691 and 1694) by the most prominent Warsaw architects (especially Tylman Gamerski). Many historic edifices, that served as hospitals and shelters for the inhabitants were razed to the ground. ==Symbols==

As a separate territorial entity, the New Town was using its own seal with a coat of arms. A version known from 1648 features a female figure and a unicorn standing on its back feet. It can be found in the Central Archive of Historical Records. The inscription in the rim is in Latin: "SIGILLUM * NOVA * CIVITATIS * VARSCHOVIENSIS". In the Middle Ages, the image of a virgin with a unicorn on her knees was a frequent motif of Christian art as a symbol of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the unicorn itself symbolized Christ. After the incorporation of the New Town into Warsaw, the Warsaw Mermaid began to be used as the coat of arms. The image of a girl with a unicorn can still be found in the main square, it decorates the top of the well in front of the St. Kazimierz Church. An eclectic cast-iron well from the second half of the nineteenth century set up there around 1957. ==Gallery==

Historical images Image:Bellotto New Town Market Square.jpg|The New Town by Bernardo Bellotto Image:Ratusz New Town.jpg|The Nowe Miasto Town Hall in 1784 Image:Norblin Warsaw New city Square.jpg|The New Town by Jan Piotr Norblin Churches Image:Kościół Nawiedzenia Najświętszej Marii Panny - 02.jpg|''St. Mary's Church, 1411'' Image:Kościół św. Jacka w Warszawie 2020.jpg|''St. Hyacinth's Church, 1603-1639'' Image:Kościól Świętego Benona w Warszawie.jpg|St. Benno Church, 1669 Image:Saint Kazimierz Church in Warsaw - New Town.jpg|St. Kazimierz Church, 1688-1692 Image:Kościół św. Ducha w Warszawie.jpg|Holy Spirit Church, 1717 Image:Kościół św. Franciszka w Warszawie 2021.jpg|St. Francis Church, 1733 Others Image:VarsaviaVecchiaPolveriera.jpg|Old Bridge Gate, 1582 Image:Pałac Sapiehów w Warszawie elewacja frontowa 20202.jpg|Sapieha Palace, 1731-36 Image:Pałac Sierakowskiego w Warszawie 2019.jpg|Sierakowski Palace, 1784 Image:Pałac Raczyńskich w Warszawie 2023.jpg|Raczyński Palace, 1786 Image:Historyczne centrum warszawy.png|The historical center of Warsaw Well at Rynek Nowego Miasta.png|The unicorn well at the main square ==See also==