History of Piotrkow Trybunalski

record of Piotrkow is included in a document issued in 1217 by the Prince of Krakow, Leszek I the White, where there is a mention of the prince's tribunal held "in Petrecoue". Medieval Piotrkow was a trading place on trade routes from Pomerania to Russia and Hungary, and later from Masovia to Silesia.

During the 13th century, apart from the tribunals, Polish provincial princes made Piotrkow a seat of a few assemblies of the Sieradz knights, which according to historical sources were held in 1233, in 1241, and in 1291. It might have been during the 1291 assembly that the Prince of Sieradz, Władysław I the Elbow-high, granted Piotrkow civic rights, because in documents from the beginning of the 14th century he mentions "civitate nostra Petricouiensi".

The first foundation certificate and the other documents were burnt in a great fire which destroyed the city ca. 1400. The privileges and rights were re-granted by King Wladysław II Jagiello in 1404. The city walls were built during the reign of King Casimir III, and after the great fire they were rebuilt at the beginning of the 15th century. During the reign of Casimir III, many expelled German Jews from the Holy Roman Empire immigrated to the town, which grew to have one of the largest Jewish settlements in the kingdom.

Between 1354 and 1567 the city held general assemblies of Polish knights and general or elective meetings of the Polish Sejm (during the latter Polish kings of the Jagiellon dynasty were elected there). It was in the city of Piotrkow that the Polish Parliament was given its final structure with the division into Upper House and Lower Chamber in 1493. King John I Albert published his "Piotrków privilege" on May 26 1493, which expanded the privileges of the szlachta at the expense of the bourgeoisie and the peasantry.

Piotrkow became part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1569. When the seat of the Parliament was moved to Warsaw,