The Polish town of Dukla is located approximately 17 km from the Dukla Pass, which crosses the border between Slovakia and Poland.

Dukla was founded on the so-called Hungarian Road, along which mainly wine was imported into Poland. The first written mention of Dukla comes from 1366, but just 14 years later it acquired town privileges. The town was fortified until the 18th century, and it survived several incursions. Dukla was at first a trading town on the route leading from Poland through the Dukla Pass to Hungary and survived mainly on the wine trade. The development of Dukla was mainly helped by the Mniszech family, which tried to make it into an important cultural and political centre. The building of the older bastion was converted into a representative palace with a park.

A visit to the city offers many cultural and historical attractions. Among the most significant are the parish Church of St. Mary Magdalene, the Bernardine Fathers’ Monastery Complex, the Mniszech Palace-Park Complex and several other architectural and urban gems.

Pustovňa sv. Jána z Dukly Z...

Monastery Church of St. John of Dukla

A stone statue of the Virgin Mary of the Immaculate Conception stands on the square in front of the Church of St. John of Dukla, who lived as a hermit in the nearby Cergowa and Zaśpit hills. For this reason Pope John Paul II visited the town in 1997. In front of the parish church is a statue of the saint himself from the time of his youth. The idea of building a pilgrimage church in the family town of the future Saint arose after his beatification in 1733. The present church was built between 1761 – 1764 as a late-Baroque basilica.

Kláštorný kostol sv. Jána...

Historical Museum in Dukla

The historic complex of the palace and park from the second half of the 18th century, which houses the historical museum, is the most impressive building in Dukla. Over the centuries, this building has undergone three phases of complete reconstruction, which has changed its shape, style and size. The palace was once a centre of cultural, social and political life in Poland. Despite the fact that the building was destroyed and its furnishings distributed as a result of the Second World War, the complex retains its historical and artistic values ​​and is one of the valuable monuments of Polish national culture. The museum contains exhibits on the history of Dukla, the Dukla Palace and park complex and the fighting in the Carpathians during the First and Second World Wars. Several thematic exhibitions are also organized here each year. The courtyard contains an open-air museum of heavy armour.

Historické múzeum. Zdroj fo...