Gopło [ˈɡɔpwɔ] is a ribbon lake in Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, north-central Poland, near the city of Gniezno. It gives its name to the protected area called Gopło Landscape Park.

Gopło
View from the Mouse Tower of Kruszwica
Gopło is located in Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship
Gopło
Gopło
LocationKuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship
Coordinates52°35′08″N 18°21′15″E / 52.58556°N 18.35417°E / 52.58556; 18.35417
Primary inflowsNoteć
Primary outflowsNoteć
Basin countriesPoland
Max. length25 km (16 mi)
Max. width3.5 km (2.2 mi)
Surface area21.8 km2 (8.4 sq mi)
Average depth4.7 m (15 ft)
Max. depth16.6 m (54 ft)
Surface elevation77 m (253 ft)

In early Middle Ages, the shores of Lake Gopło were home to a Lechitic tribe known as the Goplans. At the northern end of the lake stands the "Mice Tower" of Kruszwica. Its name derives from a legend of the corrupt Prince Popiel, who fled to the tower from his rebelling population, and was devoured there by mice. Some historians and archaeologists consider the area the heart of the first state of the Polans, the "founding" tribe of Poland.[1]

Notes

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  1. ^ Lozny, "Transition to Statehood", p. 283.

References

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  • Lozny, Ludomir (2004), "The Transition to Statehood in Central Europe", in Grinin, Leonid E, et al. (eds.), The Early State, Its Alternatives and Analogues, Saratov: Uchitel Publishing House, ISBN 5-7057-0547-6, pp. 278–87