“We were reluctant to leave Wrocław”. Frederic Chopin in the Silesian capital

The first links to Silesia

The young composer and pianist stayed in Silesia a number of times, sometimes only really experiencing Wrocław as he passed through, whilst on other occasions he enjoyed longer sojourns. Chopin made his first trip to this region, specifically to the Bad Reinerz health resort (now Duszniki Zdrój), with his mother and his sisters Ludwika und Emilia in July and August 1826. It was the home town of his teacher Joseph Elsner, who was born in Grottkau (now Grodków) in 1769 and attended the renowned St Matthias Grammar School before going on to study theology and then medicine in the city on the Oder.

The first few times Chopin stayed in Wrocław, on the way to Bad Reinerz and on the way back, he is said to have delivered letters which Elsner had written to his friends in Wrocław – Friedrich W. Berner, the organist at the Church of St. Elizabeth, and Joseph I. Schnabel, the director of music at the cathedral. Presumably, he also offered his services as a pianist on these occasions. Although he visited the houses of God, it is not known whether he also visited the city’s other sights at the time.

In summer 1829, Chopin, accompanied by his friends Alfons Brandt and Ignacy Maciejowski, arrived in Wrocław for the third time on his way back from Vienna. More precise details about this visit have not been passed down. What we do know, however, is that the young men stayed the night in the “Zum Rautenkranz” hotel in Ohlauerstrasse (now ulica Oławska).

In November 1830, Chopin was in the city again. This time it was a stopover on a journey from which, as it would later turn out, he would never return to his homeland again. He arrived at the “Zur Goldenen Gans” hotel in Junkerstrasse (now ulica Ofiar Oświęcimskich) with his friend and travel companion, Tytus Woyciechowski (1808–1879), a political activist and pioneering farmer. ;