Settlement in the area of Wądroże Wielkie, located on the border of the Jawor Plain, Strzegom Hills, and Środa Śląska Plateau, dates back to the late Lusatian culture (4th century BC). In the 11th-12th centuries, there was a hillfort here, where the church now stands. The beginnings of the village date back to the 13th century. In the 14th century, intensive gold prospecting took place in the vicinity, but mining turned out to be unprofitable, and the mining industry soon collapsed.
In the subsequent centuries, the village developed as an agricultural settlement. The local church dates back to the mid-13th century, was expanded in the 14th century, and a tower was added in the 19th century. The cemetery wall next to the church mimics the outline of the former hillfort. In the northern part of the village, there is a palace-park complex that evolved from a Renaissance manor. The current form of the palace, recently renovated, dates from the turn of the 19th/20th century. Next to the palace, you can find the remnants of a landscape park and farmstead buildings, including residential and agricultural outbuildings, stables, barns, and more.
At the entrance from the direction of Mierczyce, in a small grove, quartz blocks were once extracted. In one of the remaining blocks, two longitudinal indentations, each about 10-15 cm long, are noteworthy. In local legends, these indentations are interpreted as the footprints of Saint Hedwig, hence the name “Kamień Świętej Jadwigi” (Stone of Saint Hedwig). The former gneiss quarry in the northern part of the village is now filled with water and used as a fishing pond.
Description: Piotr Migoń