Ryczywół, Masovian Voivodeship
Ryczywół is a village (a town in 1409–1869) in Masovian Voivodeship, Poland, located in the northern edge of the historic region of Lesser Poland. The village is located along National Road Nr. 79, which goes from Warsaw to Bytom. Ryczywół lies near the confluence of the Radomka and Vistula rivers at the border of Puszcza Stromecka wilderness. The name of the village probably comes from two Polish words - ryczy (bellow) and wół (ox), and comes from herds of cattle, which used to be moved through Ryczywół on the way from Red Ruthenia towards the west. Jan Długosz wrote that in the 13th century Ryczywół already had St. Catherine parish church. In the 14th century, the village belonged to Polish kings, and a royal court was located here. In 1407 it was the seat of a starosta, located in Sandomierz Voivodeship, and two years later Ryczywół was granted town rights by King Władysław Jagiełło. The town, which in the 15th and 16th centuries belonged to several private owners, was famous in the region for a bridge on the Radomka river. Merchants had to pay a toll to cross it. In 1655 during the Swedish invasion of Poland, Ryczywół was destroyed