In the 18th century Sędziszów was frequently looted and burned - among others, during the Great Northern War and the Bar Confederation. In 1772 (see Partitions of Poland), Sędziszów was annexed by the Austrian Empire, and in a fire of 1817, large parts of the town were destroyed. Between 1856-1858 Sędziszów received rail connections with Kraków and Lwów, and in the First World War, the town was seized by the Russians in September 1914. The Austrians managed to push them out in May 1915, and the retreating Russians set the town on fire.