Not Berlin, not Paris. You will find the centre of Europe in Poland. It was designated 250 years ago

The tiny town in Podlasie gained exceptional position thanks to the calculation of the royal cartographer. That is where the geographical centre of Europe is. However, this is not only a point on the map, but besides a place full of past and culture.
Suchowola, a quiet and picturesque town in Podlaskie Voivodeship, lies about 60 km north of Białystok and 230 km from Warsaw. Although inconspicuous, it attracts tourists, due to the fact that right here, according to the 18th century calculations, is the centre of our continent. Surrounded by nature and multicultural heritage, Suchowol is simply a place where history, discipline and local identity form a harmonious whole.

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See video Miracle Podlasie looks like an island in the Pacific


Drywood - the mediate of Europe. Point that designated the royal cartographer over 250 years ago
Although respective cities in Europe apply for this title, Suchowola has 1 of the oldest technological confirmations of this thesis. In 1775 the royal cartographer and astronomer Szymon Antoni Sobierodewski, acting at the court of King Stanisław August Poniatowski, appointed the centre of Europe right here. Based on the method of intersecting lines connecting the most utmost points of land, he determined the mediate of the continent excluding islands. He applied parallel distances between Cape St Vincent in Portugal, Ural, Nordkinne and Matapan. Today, this discovery resembles a powerful 20-ton boulder in a city park.


A boulder with the inscription 'Medium of Europe' in Drywola Fig. Krzysztof Kundzicz, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons


What's Drywola celebrated for? It is the center of many cultures
Visiting Suchowola, the Center of 3 Cultures, which tells the communicative of the coexistence of Catholics, Jews and Tatars in the town since the 17th century, deserves peculiar attention. Tourists can see the first prayer books, photos, papers and the destiny of local communities.


Right next door is the Tatar Cultural Centre of Islam hosted by the imam Ramil Chajrow. It is simply a place of prayer, meetings and exhibitions, including exhibitions devoted to Tatar calligraphy or archival photographs of families from the region. In the surrounding villages it is worth visiting dozens of roadside chapels and restored judaic cemetery with lapidarium.