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Leszek the Black’s dream

A prophetic dream of a prince under an old oak tree

The thirteenth century was marked by numerous enemy invasions, especially from pagan Lithuania. Once, something extraordinary happened in Lublin. We can see the traces of it indirectly to this day.

It was summer of the year 1282. Lithuanians and Yotvingians tyrannize the Lublin region. Leszek the Black, Duke of Cracow, hastened to the relief of our town. The road from Cracow was long. When the troops finally reached the Bystrzyca river, the enemy was no longer there, having left in face of challenge from the mighty prince. A tired Leszek fell asleep under an oak tree.

In a dream, St. Michael Archangel came to him. He handed him a royal sword and said: Leszek, son of Kazimierz, follow the enemy!

Leszek and his troops immediately followed the invader. The Duke defeated the Lithuanians and the Yotvingians. As token of gratitude for the victory, Leszek the Black cut the oak tree under which he had his dream, and turned its trunk into an altar base. The altar becomes part of a church funded by the Duke, which then serves Lublin’s burghers for six centuries.

Today, the St. Michael parish church is no longer there, but we know exactly where the tree once grew, under which Leszek the Black had a dream. The church itself is reflected in the foundations visible at Po Farze Square

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