It is one of the few surviving structures of this kind in the Lublin region and remains a valuable source of information about the medieval motte-and-bailey castles that had once been a common sight in this area.

Location and description

The motte, known locally as “Zamczysko” (The Burgstall), is located to the south-east of the village proper, about 250 metres west of the Uherka riverbed when calculating in a straight line. The mound rises among the waterlogged meadows which had once formed part of an extensive marshland.

All that remains of the now-vanished castle is an earthen mound (motte) in the form of an irregular quadrangle with rounded corners, its total surface being about 300 square metres. It is surrounded by a moat about 3.5 metres deep (in relation to the surface of the mound) and 7 metres wide. The dimensions of the site calculated from the outer line of the moat are 30 x 35 metres. The top of the motte is almost flat, with three small hollows or depressions in its southern, eastern and central part. Today, the site remains disused and is overgrown by trees and blackthorn shrubs. The north-western section of the site has been partially destroyed as a result of tillage.

History

Based on the results of the research performed, one may conclude that a motte-and-bailey castle existed in Czułczyce between the 14th and the 15th century, as evidenced by traces of what had probably once been wooden structures of an undetermined nature. It appears that by the 16th century the castle has already been abandoned, which might have been the consequence of the fact that Czułczyce ceased to be a private village and was taken over by the crown.

The very first mentions of the village in written sources date back to years 1424/1425, when a reference was made to a man known as Śmietanka, who is believed to have held the title of the łowczy (master of the hunt) of Czułczyce. The reference most likely pertains to Czułczyce near Sambor, since the links between Piotr Śmietanka and Czułczyce near Chełm have only been documented in the 1450s. What is certain is that a man called Małyszka had evident links with the village, for in 1441 king Władysław III conferred the ownership of Czułczyce upon him, with the charter based on the German town law following one year afterwards. Anna, Małyszka’s widow, is known to have owned the land in 1447; it was more or less during that time that she sold the village to Maciej Smok of the Ślepowron coat of arms, originating from Sielec and holding the title of the standard-bearer (chorąży) of Chełm. In 1543, Czułczyce became a royal village after Hieronim Smok bequeathed it to prince Zygmunt August.

According to the information dating back to 1543, a manor house surrounded by fortifications - “fortalitium eandem villae intromissio” - stood in the middle of the village during those times. A mention of a burgstall in Czułczyce appears in a land register for the Chełm region from 1846.

The site was first discovered by Stanisław Skibiński, who also conducted initial surveys during the 1940s and the 1950s. According to the conclusions which he has reached, the site was usually referred to in older professional literature as an early medieval hillfort.

Condition and results of archaeological research

Verification activities and surveys were conducted in 1979 by Jerzy Cichomski, with the participation of Andrzej Hunicz. The survey covered an area of 37.5 square metres in the central and northern sections of the mound as well as at the bottom of the moat. In addition, a total of 12 boreholes were made, more or less on the north-south axis.

Surface surveys of the site within the framework of the ‘Archaeological Picture of Poland’ project were carried out by Andrzej Bronicki in the year 2000.

In the course of excavations, an arrangement of layers has been discovered which proves that the motte was erected on an almost completely flat surface, with the material used for its construction being the soil that was taken from the area in its immediate vicinity, extracted in the course of digging the moat. No traces of any residential structures have been discovered on site; however, the layer of charcoal identified inside the excavation located in the southern section of the site as well as large quantities of moveable artefacts clearly confirm that some kind of residential structures must have existed here at some point. Numerous fragments of clay vessels, pot-shaped oven tiles (including two with openings shaped as a four-leaf clover with a lip) as well as flat tiles adorned with geometric decorations (rosettes, tracery) have been found on the site. Other findings include a single flat tile adorned with the Pilawa coat of arms as well as one metal object (a tin spoon), originating from the 14th or 15th century.

Unlimited access to the historic site.

compiled by Ewa Prusicka, Regional Branch of the National Heritage Board of Poland in Lublin, 18-10-2015.

Bibliography

• Nosek S., Materiały do badań nad historią starożytną i wczesnośredniowieczną międzyrzecza Wisły i Bugu, “Annales UMCS”, vol. VI, sec. F, 1951(1957), p. 349.
• Skibiński S., Obiekty archeologiczne z terenu powiatu Chełm w opisach archiwalnych, “Wiadomości Archeologiczne”, vol. XXXV, 1970, issue 1, pp. 107-108.
• Skibiński S., Zabytki powiatu chełmskiego (Katalog - inwentarz), part I, Archeologia, Chełm 1964, (typescript available at the archive of the District Museum in Chełm), item 737
• Gurba J., Z problematyki osadnictwa wczesnośredniowiecznego na Wyżynie Lubelskiej, “Annales UMCS”, 1965, Vol.20, sec. F, p. 50
• Gurba J., Grodziska Lubelszczyzny, Lublin 1976, p. 16
• Dzieńkowski T., „Poleskie" pogranicze kulturowe w XI-XIII wieku [in:] Badania archeologiczne na Polesiu Lubelskim, collective work, E. Banasiewicz-Szykuła (ed.), Lublin 2006, pp. 119-134.
• Skibiński S., Średniowieczne grodzisko w Czułczycach - Przysiółku, pow. Chełm, “Wiadomości Archeologiczne”, vol. XXVI, 1959-60, pp. 310-312.
• Cichomski J., Czułczyce, gm. Sawin, woj. chełmskie, “Informator Archeologiczny. Badania rok 1980”, Warsaw 1981, p. 191
• Cichomski J., Wczesnośredniowieczne osadnictwo obronne na terenie województwa chełmskiego. Katalog grodzisk. Vol. I, Lublin 1980 (typescript available at the Archive of the Regional Monuments Protection Office in Lublin, Chełm branch), pp. 35-38.