History of Augustow

The town was first mentioned in 1496 and was granted city rights by king Sigismund II Augustus in 1557, changing its name in his honor. It was redesigned and laid out in a very regular manner, with a spacious market-place.

Until 1569 Augustów belonged to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania when the Real union called Union of Lublin was signed between Poland, Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Royal Prussia. As a result, the town became a part of the Kingdom of Poland, while its cemetery was left in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Tatar invaders destroyed Augustów in 1656, and the second half of the 17th century saw the town