Średniowieczne młyny wodne i ich wpływ na przemiany stosunków wodnych na przykładzie zlewni Obry Skwierzyńskiej

Abstract

From the mid-13th century onwards, water provided energy to water mills located in the catchment of Obra Skwierzyńska. They did not only mill grain but also produced groats, malt, fulled cloth, tanned skin, cut wood, ground metal and produced paper. Their considerable growth in number in this area was observed at the end of the 14th century as a result of the Polish-Lithuanian Union. This area found itself on the main trade routes. During the period from the 13th to 19th century, water mills had a significant influence on the formation of the hydrological system of the catchment area. Their building and functioning was connected with the formation of mill-pond trough, dams, building weirs and mill ditches as well as bypass channels. The river network adaptation for the abovementioned purposes also includes: river mining, river bed cleaning, river banks strengthening with timber piles and boards, changes in the amount of water in watercourses. Water from lakes, springs and other water races was guided to watercourses on which several water -mills were built. Water mills were built in meadows or wetlands , trough-out canals and trenches gathering water in millponds were dug out. This kind of permanent dewatering of wet areas and changing them into meadows and pastures; also, water energy utilization for production influenced the evolution of society, forced it to optimize the utilization of surface water resources.