Sobieski's Oak in Łężczok

The Sobieski Oak is a more than 400-year-old English oak (Quercus robur L.) growing in the Łężczok nature reserve, within the administrative boundaries of Racibórz. This tree is the thickest and oldest in the region and one of the three most impressive in the Cysterskie Kompozycje Krajobrazowe Rud Wielkich Landscape Park. It has two main trunks, as the third one, once present, broke off. Its circumference at ground level is about 850 cm, and its height is 33 m. The Sobieski Oak is associated with a legend claiming that King John III Sobieski stopped under this tree on his way to relieve Vienna, although this is untrue, as the tree already existed before that event. It was declared a natural monument in 1967, and numerous conservation efforts, including maintenance treatments, have been undertaken to protect the oak from rot and other damage. The oak grows in a unique avenue, named the Polish Hussars Avenue, along the route that John III Sobieski and his troops took in 1683. Near the oak, there is an historic 18th-century hunting lodge and a cross commemorating a forest guard. Conservation measures, such as the use of a metal chain to secure the trunks, have not always yielded positive results, highlighting the challenges of protecting such an ancient tree.