Raciąż is one of the oldest towns in the north part of Mazovia. The planting trucks and mentions about town date back to the 10th century. It was the castellan's seat between 13th and 17th century, which at the beginning was represented at the Duke Council, then in the big Royal Council called the Senate. The last Raciąż castellan was Tadeusz Antoni Mostowski h. Dołęga, the activist of the Four Years' Sejm and the Kościuszkowskie Uprising, the Minister of Internal Affairs of the Kingdom of Poland, the literary critic and the publisher.
The foundation charter, so called "Chelmno Rights", which was given to Raciąż by the duke Ziemowit on 15th December 1425, did not survive to our time. The alderman exercised authority over the city. The next foundation charter was granted by Prince Władysław in 1439. This document was found to be the confirmation of the town status and liberties that were contained in the foundation charter in 1425. Towards 1495, i.e. when the north part of Mazovia was incorporated into the Crown territories, and the city came into ownership of the royal, Raciąż became the seat of a district. In 1512, it becomes the property of the bishop of Płock.
Raciąż as the bishop's city, developed successfully. The town remained so far gained prerogative and consolidated the regional centre gained a long time ago. It was the seat of castellan and the county power, the place of the regional council and the knight's shows. The Mazovian gentry, from the whole district of Płock, met in Raciąż. There were elected the four Members of Sejm, and also edited resolutions for that having seats in the Sejm.
All that elements created favourable conditions for the development of the town, which had the population of one thousand in the middle of 16th century and became one of the most populated town in the Płockie province.
The years of the seventeenth-century wars and times of partitions the conditions of the city had disastrous result on the history of Raciąż as the administrative centre. During the partition period the town lost the title of the second level of the local government administration, and as it turned out, that changes were for good. After the January Uprising the town lost his town privileges. Those rights were returned at the beginning of the interwar period. However, that unpleasant events did not curb the economic development of the town and regions of it within the scope of agriculture, craft and trade. There was the proliferation of inhabitants. At the beginning of the 16th century with half of 1900, it counts 1.000, and form 4500 inhabitants in 1900 to 5300 in 1939.
The years of occupation is the darkest period of the history of the city. Especially the Jewish community. The Jewish population passed to 3500 inhabitants after the mass murder of Jews. The second world war was the biggest and the bloodiest war of the history of mankind. It caused serious losses and damage. The aim of the Nazi Germany's invasion from the west and the Soviet army form the east was the damage of the military power, the disintegration and occupation of Polish territory.
The Nazi German pursued the policy of nation's destroying. They launched a regime of terror in a country and the plundering policy subordinated to the aim of warlike. On the Polish land the German and Soviet regime ordered executions, deportation to the death camps, massive repressions and forced labour system of the hundreds of thousands inhabitants of Raciąż and the area.
A lot of the city dwellers and people living in the vicinity had a part in the direct fight. Many people were deported to the death camps and forced to work as slaves. The Polish nation made the significant contribution to the victory over an enemy of Nazi German and theirs allies. Polish people fought to the bitter end. They fought on all fronts of the second world war, on the land, on the sea and in the air. Well know events form the history are fights of Polish army, glorious page of the Home Army, Gwardia Ludowa and Peasants' Battalions, in which inhabitants of Raciąż and the area, took an active part.
The town is divided by the river of Raziążnica into two parts, the old on the south and the new on the north. Each part of the market square repeats evenly-spaced streets at right angles to the square and some of the nearest streets. The oldest building development is set around the market. As a result of the reorganization of country administration in 1973, Raciąż became the seat of administration of the town and the district, that spreads over action of four, remained close National Councils Gromadzka and one people's town council.
In 1975 into the administrative composition of the city and the district was incorporated the Groniewo district. Raciąż is the seat of the municipal authorities and the Raciąż district at the moment. As a result of the separation of common governor bodies of the town and the district, from 1 January 1992, there were two separate bodies with the new administrative and legal form.
Church of the Assumption of St. Mary built in the neo-gothic style in 1886, and also the presbytery which was built of brick in the 1920, are that which deserve attention.
Former architecture of wooden buildings, belongs to the unique monuments, came in existence in the middle of the 19th century and at the beginning of the 20th century. In the list of monuments you can find an early medieval castle so-called "wodna góra" ( the water mountain)