1.
Crown of the Kingdom of Poland
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The Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, or simply the Crown, is the common name for the historic Late Middle Ages territorial possessions of the King of Poland, including Poland proper. The kingdom has been dated back to c. 966, when Mieszko I and his pagan Slavic realm joined Christian Europe and his oldest son and successor, Prince Bolesław I Chrobry, Duke of Poland, became the first crowned King of Poland in 1025. The creation of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland was a milestone in the evolution of Polish statehood and it represented the concept of the Polish kingdom as distinctly separate from the person of the monarch. A related concept that evolved soon afterward was that of Rzeczpospolita, the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland was also related to other symbols of Poland, such as the capital, the Polish coat of arms and the flag of Poland. The concept of the Crown also had a geographical aspects, particularly related to the indivisibility of the Polish - Crown -territory. It can be seen as a unit of administrative division. Parts formed part at the early Kingdom of Poland, then, at the same time, the Crown also referred to all lands that the Polish state could claim to have the right to rule over, including those that were not within Polish borders. The term distinguishes those territories federated with the Crown Grand Duchy of Lithuania from various fiefdom territories, such as the Duchy of Prussia and the Duchy of Courland. Prior to the 1569 Union of Lublin, Crown territories may be understood as those of Poland proper, inhabited by Poles, with the Union of Lublin, however, most of present-day Ukraine, passed onto Polish administration, thus becoming Crown territory. During that period, a term for a Pole from the Crown territory was koroniarz - or Crownlander in English - derived from Korona - the Crown and this often meant a distinction between persons loyal to the elected King and persons loyal to Polish magnate. Crown lands were divided into two provinces, Lesser Poland and Greater Poland and these were further divided into administrative units known as voivodeships. Royal Prussia included Pomerelia, Chełmno Land, Malbork Voivodeship, Gdańsk, Toruń, Polish historian Henryk Wisner writes that Royal Prussia belonged to the Province of Greater Poland. The towns affected were, Biała, Lubica, Wierzbów, Spiska Sobota, Poprad, Straże, Spiskie Włochy, Nowa Wieś, Spiska Nowa Wieś, Ruszkinowce, Wielka, Spiskie Podgrodzie, Maciejowce, Twarożne. Wenceslaus I sold the Duchy of Siewierz to the Archbishop of Kraków, Zbigniew Cardinal Oleśnicki, after that point it was considered to be associated with the Lesser Poland Province and was the only ecclesiastical duchy in Lesser Poland. In 1641 it became part of the Pomeranian Voivodeship of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Duchy of Livonia was held as a condominium with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The Duchy of Courland and Semigallia was held as a condominium with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, jan Herburt, Statuta Regni Poloniae, in ordinem alphabeti digesta, Cracoviae 1563. Jan Dąbrowski, Korona Królestwa Polskiego w XIV wieku, studium z dziejów rozwoju polskiej monarchii stanowej, stanisław Szczur, Historia Polski Średniowiecze, Wydawnictwo Literackie 2002, ISBN 83-08-03272-9
2.
Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria
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From 1804 to 1918 it was a crownland of the Austrian Empire. After the reforms of 1867, it became an ethnic Pole-administered autonomous unit under the Austrian crown, the country was carved from the entire south-western part of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Among the many titles of the princes of Hungary was ruler of Galicia and Lodomeria. The name Galicia is the Latinized form of Halych, a principality of the medieval Ruthenia, Lodomeria, is also a Latinized form of Volodymyr-Volynsky that was founded in the 10th century by the Vladimir the Great and until the partitions of Poland was known simply as Volodymyr. King of Galicia and Lodomeria was a title that King of Hungary adopted during his conquest of the region back in the 12th century. This historical region in Eastern Europe is divided today between Poland and Ukraine, the nucleus of historic Galicia consists of the modern Lviv, Ternopil, and Ivano-Frankivsk regions of western Ukraine. In 1772, Galicia was the largest part of the area annexed by the Habsburg Monarchy in the First Partition of Poland. As such, the Austrian region of Poland and what was later to become Ukraine was known as the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria to underline the Hungarian claims to the country. However, after the Third Partition of Poland, a portion of the ethnically Polish lands to the west was also added to the province. During the first decades of Austrian rule, Galicia was firmly governed from Vienna, the aristocracy was guaranteed its rights, but these rights were considerably circumscribed. The former serfs were no longer mere chattel, but became subjects of law and were granted personal freedoms. Their labour obligations were defined and limited, and they could bypass the lords, at the same time, however, the Austrian Empire extracted from Galicia considerable wealth and conscripted large numbers of the peasant population into its armed services. The 1820s and 1830s were a period of bureaucratic rule overseen from Vienna, most administrative positions were filled by German-speakers, including German-speaking Czechs, although some of their children were already becoming Polonized. After the failure of the November insurrection in Russian Poland in 1830–31, in which a few thousand Galician volunteers participated, the insurrection occurred in the western, Polish-populated part of Galicia. In the same period, a sense of national awakening began to develop among the Ruthenians in the part of Galicia. In 1837, the so-called Ruthenian Triad led by Markiian Shashkevych, published The Nymph of the Dniester, alarmed by such democratism, the Austrian authorities and the Greek Catholic Metropolitan banned the book. In 1848, revolutionary actions broke out in Vienna and other parts of the Austrian Empire, in Lemberg, a Polish National Council, and then later, a Ukrainian, or Ruthenian Supreme Council were formed. Even before Vienna had acted, the remnants of serfdom were abolished by the Governor, Franz Stadion, eventually, Lemberg was bombarded by imperial troops and the revolution put down completely
3.
New Galicia
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New Galicia or West Galicia was an administrative region of the Austrian Habsburg Monarchy, constituted from the territory annexed in the course of the Third Partition of Poland in 1795. Austria, which had not participated in the Second Partition, now received a share that comprised the north of the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria gained in the First Partition of 1772. In 1803 it was merged with Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, despite the archdukes plans to move in as a national liberator he was challenged by the forces of Prince Józef Poniatowski at the Battle of Raszyn. Austria was finally defeated at the Battle of Wagram on 6 July, from 1797 the seat of the local government was located at Kraków. The province was divided into districts, A civil code was introduced in West Galicia. It contained little in the way of solving problems and was based on the laws of nature
4.
Sandomierz
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Sandomierz is a town in south-eastern Poland with 25,714 inhabitants, situated in the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship. It is the capital of Sandomierz County, Sandomierz is known for its Old Town, which is a major tourist attraction. In the past, Sandomierz used to be one of the most important urban centers not only of Lesser Poland, but also of the whole country. The name of the city might have originated from the Old Polish Sędomir, composed of Sędzi- and mir, or more likely from the given name Sędzimir. Sandomierz is known in German, Sandomir, Latin, Sandomiria, Yiddish, צויזמיר, Hungarian, Szandomir, Ukrainian, Сандомир or Судомир, Russian, Сандомир, Sandomierz is one of the oldest and historically most significant cities in Poland. Archeological finds around the city indicate that humans have inhabited the area since neolithic times, the city came into existence in the early Middle Ages, taking advantage of an excellent location at the junction of Vistula and San rivers, and on the path of important trade routes. The first known mention of the city comes from the early 12th-century. The testament of Bolesław III Wrymouth, in which he divided Poland among his sons, designated Sandomierz as the capital of one of the resulting principalities, in the course of the 13th century the city suffered grievous damage during raids by Tatars in 1241,1259 and 1287. The old wooden buildings of the town were completely destroyed, as a result, in 1286 the High Duke of Poland Leszek II the Black, effectively refounded the city under Magdeburg Law. The city archives preserve the founding document, after the re-unification of the Polish lands in the 14th century, the former principality became the Sandomierz Voivodeship, incorporating large areas of southeastern Poland. Until 1474, it was one of two voivodeships of Lesser Poland, together with Krakow Voivodeship, in 1474, Lublin Voivodeship was created from eastern part of Sandomierz Voivodeship. At this time Sandomierz had about 3,000 inhabitants and was one of the largest Polish cities, in the middle of the 14th century the city was burned again during a raid by the Lithuanians. It was rebuilt during the rule of king Casimir III of Poland, the layout of the city has survived practically unchanged since that time until the present day. The following three hundred years, running until the middle of the 17th century, were prosperous for the city. The most important historical buildings were built during this period and this golden age came to an end in 1655 when Swedish forces captured the city in the course of the Deluge. After briefly holding out in the city, the withdrawing Swedes blew up the castle, in the next 100 years the economy of Poland suffered a decline, which also affected the city. A great fire in 1757 and the First Partition of Poland in 1772, as a result, Sandomierz lost its role as an administrative capital. In 1809, during the Napoleonic Wars, fighting between the forces of Austria and of the Duchy of Warsaw caused damage to the city, after 1815 it found itself in the Russian Empire
5.
Partitions of Poland
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The First Partition of Poland was decided on August 5,1772. Two decades later, Russian and Prussian troops entered the Commonwealth again, Austria did not participate in the Second Partition. The Third Partition of Poland took place on October 24,1795, with this partition, the Commonwealth ceased to exist. In Polish, there are two words for the two meanings. In Polish historiography, the term Fourth Partition of Poland has also been used, the term Fourth Partition in a temporal sense can also mean the diaspora communities that played important political role in re-establishing the Polish sovereign state after 1918. A single member of parliaments belief that a measure was injurious to his own constituency, even after the act had been approved and it became increasingly difficult to undertake action. The liberum veto also provided openings for foreign diplomats to get their ways and this applies particularly to the last Commonwealth King Stanisław August Poniatowski, who for some time had been a lover of Russian Empress Catherine the Great. Their alliance later became known in Poland as the Alliance of the Three Black Eagles, the Commonwealth could never be liquidated unless its long-time ally, Austria, allowed it, so Catherine had to use diplomacy to win Austria to her side. Frederick II retaliated by ordering enough Polish currency counterfeited to severely affect the Polish economy and this new constitution undid the reforms made in 1764 under Stanisław II. The liberum veto and all the old abuses of the last one, the irregular and poorly commanded Polish forces had little chance in the face of the regular Russian army and suffered a major defeat. In 1769 Austria annexed a small territory of Spisz and in 1770 – Nowy Sącz and these territories had been a bone of contention between Poland and Hungary, which was a part of the Austrian crown lands. In February 1772, the agreement of partition was signed in Vienna, early in August, Russian, Prussian and Austrian troops simultaneously invaded the Commonwealth and occupied the provinces agreed upon among themselves. The partition treaty was ratified by its signatories on September 22,1772, to Austria fell Zator and Auschwitz, part of Lesser Poland embracing parts of the counties of Kraków and Sandomir and the whole of Galicia, less the city of Kraków. Catherine of Russia was also very satisfied, by this diplomatic document Russia came into possession of that section of Livonia that had remained in Commonwealth control, and of Belarus embracing the counties of Vitebsk, Polotsk and Mstislavl. By this partition, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth lost about 30% of its territory and half of its population, by seizing northwestern Poland, Prussia instantly gained control over 80% of the Commonwealths total foreign trade. Through levying enormous customs duties, Prussia accelerated the collapse of the Commonwealth, after having occupied their respective territories, the three partitioning powers demanded that King Stanisław and the Sejm approve their action. By 1790 the First Polish Republic had been weakened to such a degree that it was forced into an unnatural and terminal alliance with its enemy, the Polish–Prussian Pact of 1790 was signed. The conditions of the Pact contributed to the succeeding and final two partitions of Poland–Lithuania, the May Constitution of 1791 enfranchised the bourgeoisie, established the separation of the three branches of government, and eliminated the abuses of the Repnin Sejm
6.
Powiat
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A powiat is the second-level unit of local government and administration in Poland, equivalent to a county, district or prefecture in other countries. The term powiat is most often translated into English as county, a powiat is part of a larger unit, the voivodeship or province. A powiat is usually subdivided into gminas, major towns and cities, however, function as separate counties in their own right, without subdivision into gminas. They are termed city counties and have roughly the same status as county boroughs in the UK. The other type of powiats are termed land counties, as of 2008, there were 379 powiat-level entities,314 land counties, and 65 city counties. For a complete listing, see List of Polish counties. For tables of counties by voivodeship, see the articles on the individual voivodeships, the history of Polish powiats goes back to the second half of the 14th century. They remained the basic unit of organization in Poland, then in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. After Poland regained independence in 1918, the powiats were again the territorial units. Powiats were abolished in 1975 in favor of a number of voivodeships. This reform also created 16 larger voivodeships, legislative power within a powiat is vested in an elected council, while local executive power is vested in the starosta, who is elected by that council. The administrative offices headed by the starosta are called the starostwo, however, in city counties these institutions do not exist separately – their powers and functions are exercised by the city council, the directly elected mayor, and the city offices. In some cases a powiat has its seat outside its own territory, for example, Poznań County has its offices in Poznań, although Poznań is itself a city county, and is therefore not part of Poznań County. Powiats have relatively limited powers, since many local and regional matters are dealt with either at gmina or voivodeship level, the Polish the name of an county, in the administrative sense, consists of the word powiat followed by a masculine-gender adjective. In most cases, this is the formed from the name of the town or city where the county has its seat. Thus the county with its seat at the town of Kutno is named powiat kutnowski, if the name of the seat comprises a noun followed by an adjective, as in Maków Mazowiecki, the adjective will generally be formed from the noun only. There are also a few counties whose names are derived from the names of two towns, from the name of a city and an adjective, or a mountain range. There is more one way to render such names into English
7.
Polish language
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Polish is a West Slavic language spoken primarily in Poland and is the native language of the Poles. It belongs to the Lechitic subgroup of the West Slavic languages, Polish is the official language of Poland, but it is also used throughout the world by Polish minorities in other countries. It is one of the languages of the European Union. Its written standard is the Polish alphabet, which has 9 additions to the letters of the basic Latin script, Polish is closely related to Kashubian, Silesian, Upper Sorbian, Lower Sorbian, Czech and Slovak. It is also the second most widely spoken Slavic language, after Russian, in history, Polish is known to be an important language, both diplomatically and academically in Central and Eastern Europe. Today, Polish is spoken by over 38.5 million people as their first language in Poland. It is also spoken as a language in western parts of Belarus and Ukraine, west and central Lithuania, as well as the northern parts of the Czech Republic. There are 55 million Polish language speakers around the world, Polish began to emerge as a distinct language around the 10th century, the process largely triggered by the establishment and development of the Polish state. With Christianity, Poland also adopted the Latin alphabet, which made it possible to write down Polish, the precursor to modern Polish is the Old Polish language. Ultimately, Polish is thought to descend from the unattested Proto-Slavic language, Poland is the most linguistically homogeneous European country, nearly 97% of Polands citizens declare Polish as their first language. Elsewhere, Poles constitute large minorities in Lithuania, Belarus, Polish is the most widely used minority language in Lithuanias Vilnius County and is found elsewhere in southeastern Lithuania. There are significant numbers of Polish speakers among Polish emigrants and their descendants in many other countries, in the United States, Polish Americans number more than 11 million but most of them cannot speak Polish fluently. The largest concentrations of Polish speakers reported in the census were found in three states, Illinois, New York, and New Jersey. Enough people in these areas speak Polish that PNC Financial Services offer services available in Polish at all of their machines in addition to English and Spanish. According to the 2011 census there are now over 500,000 people in England, in Canada, there is a significant Polish Canadian population, There are 242,885 speakers of Polish according to the 2006 census, with a particular concentration in Toronto and Montreal. The geographical distribution of the Polish language was affected by the territorial changes of Poland immediately after World War II. Poles settled in the Recovered Territories in the west and north and this tendency toward a homogeneity also stems from the vertically integrated nature of the authoritarian Polish Peoples Republic. The inhabitants of different regions of Poland still speak standard Polish somewhat differently, first-language speakers of Polish have no trouble understanding each other, and non-native speakers may have difficulty distinguishing regional variations
8.
Poland
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Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe, situated between the Baltic Sea in the north and two mountain ranges in the south. Bordered by Germany to the west, the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south, Ukraine and Belarus to the east, the total area of Poland is 312,679 square kilometres, making it the 69th largest country in the world and the 9th largest in Europe. With a population of over 38.5 million people, Poland is the 34th most populous country in the world, the 8th most populous country in Europe, Poland is a unitary state divided into 16 administrative subdivisions, and its capital and largest city is Warsaw. Other metropolises include Kraków, Wrocław, Poznań, Gdańsk and Szczecin, the establishment of a Polish state can be traced back to 966, when Mieszko I, ruler of a territory roughly coextensive with that of present-day Poland, converted to Christianity. The Kingdom of Poland was founded in 1025, and in 1569 it cemented a political association with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania by signing the Union of Lublin. This union formed the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, one of the largest and most populous countries of 16th and 17th century Europe, Poland regained its independence in 1918 at the end of World War I, reconstituting much of its historical territory as the Second Polish Republic. In September 1939, World War II started with the invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany, followed thereafter by invasion by the Soviet Union. More than six million Polish citizens died in the war, after the war, Polands borders were shifted westwards under the terms of the Potsdam Conference. With the backing of the Soviet Union, a communist puppet government was formed, and after a referendum in 1946. During the Revolutions of 1989 Polands Communist government was overthrown and Poland adopted a new constitution establishing itself as a democracy, informally called the Third Polish Republic. Since the early 1990s, when the transition to a primarily market-based economy began, Poland has achieved a high ranking on the Human Development Index. Poland is a country, which was categorised by the World Bank as having a high-income economy. Furthermore, it is visited by approximately 16 million tourists every year, Poland is the eighth largest economy in the European Union and was the 6th fastest growing economy on the continent between 2010 and 2015. According to the Global Peace Index for 2014, Poland is ranked 19th in the list of the safest countries in the world to live in. The origin of the name Poland derives from a West Slavic tribe of Polans that inhabited the Warta River basin of the historic Greater Poland region in the 8th century, the origin of the name Polanie itself derives from the western Slavic word pole. In some foreign languages such as Hungarian, Lithuanian, Persian and Turkish the exonym for Poland is Lechites, historians have postulated that throughout Late Antiquity, many distinct ethnic groups populated the regions of what is now Poland. The most famous archaeological find from the prehistory and protohistory of Poland is the Biskupin fortified settlement, dating from the Lusatian culture of the early Iron Age, the Slavic groups who would form Poland migrated to these areas in the second half of the 5th century AD. With the Baptism of Poland the Polish rulers accepted Christianity and the authority of the Roman Church
9.
Lesser Poland
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Lesser Poland is a historical region of Poland, its capital is the city of Kraków. It should not be confused with the modern Lesser Poland Voivodeship, historical Lesser Poland is much bigger than the current voivodeship which bears its name, stretching from Bielsko-Biała in the south-west as far as to Siedlce in the north-east. It consisted of three voivodeships with the capitals in Kraków, Sandomierz and Lublin and it is almost 60,000 km2 in area and has about 9,000,000 inhabitants. Its landscape is hilly, with Karpaty mountains in the south. It has been famous for its mighty aristocracy and rich nobility, in the wider sense, Lesser Poland from the 14th century also encompassed Red Ruthenia, and from the 16th century Podlachia, Podolia and parts of modern Ukraine. In the era of partitions, its part was Galicia, was sometimes also called Lesser Poland. As a result of this division, many inhabitants of the northern part of the pre-partition region of Poland dont recognize their Lesser Polish identity. Although, Lublin has been declared independent Voivodeship as early as in 1474, flat are northern and central areas of the province – around Tarnobrzeg, Stalowa Wola, Radom and Siedlce, also valleys of the main rivers – the Vistula, the Pilica, and the San. Apart from Rysy, there are other peaks located in the province – Pilsko, Babia Góra, Turbacz. Southern part of the province is covered by the Carpathian Mountains, which are made of smaller ranges, such as Pieniny, Tatry, almost whole area is located in the Vistula Basin, with the exception of western and southern parts, belonging to the Odra and Dunaj Basins. Main rivers of the province are the Vistula, upper Warta, Soła, Skawa, Raba, Dunajec, Wisłok, Wisłoka, San, Wieprz, Przemsza, Nida, Kamienna, Radomka, and Pilica. Major lakes of the province are, Lake Rożnów, Lake Czchów, Lake Dobczyce, Lake Czorsztyn, Lake Czaniec, Lake Międzybrodzie, Lake Klimkówka, most of them are man-made reservoirs. Lesser Poland stretches from the Carpathians in the south to Pilica and it borders Mazovia to the north, Podlaskie to the northeast, Red Ruthenia to the east, Slovakia to the south, Silesia to the west, and Greater Poland to the northwest. In Silesian Voivodeship, the border between Silesia and Lesser Poland is easy to draw, because with few exceptions, it goes along boundaries of local counties. In the south, it goes along western boundary of ancient Duchy of Teschen, with the borderline along the Biała river, where Zwardoń, Milówka, and Rajcza are in Lesser Poland. Bielsko-Biała is a city made of two parts – Lesser Polands Biala, makes eastern half of the city, and only in 1951 it merged with Silesian Bielsko. Further north, the border goes along boundaries of cities of Jaworzno. Then it goes northwest, leaving Czeladź, Siewierz, Koziegłowy, Blachownia, Kłobuck, from Krzepice, the border goes eastwards, towards Koniecpol, and along the Pilica river, with such towns as Przedborz, Opoczno, Drzewica, Białobrzegi, and Kozienice within Lesser Poland
10.
Lublin
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Lublin is the ninth largest city in Poland and the second largest city of Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the center of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 349,103, Lublin is the largest Polish city east of the Vistula River, and is located approximately 170 kilometres to the southeast of Warsaw by road. One of the events that contributed to the citys development was the Polish-Lithuanian Union of Krewo in 1385. In 1474, Lublin, which was part of the Sandomierz region. Lublin also witnessed the early stages of Reformation in the 16th century, a Calvinist congregation was founded and certain groups of radical Arians also appeared in the city, making it an important national centre of Arianism. Until the partitions at the end of the 18th century, Lublin was a city of the Crown Kingdom of Poland. Its delegates and nobles had the right to participate in the Royal Election, although Lublin was not spared from severe destruction during World War II, its picturesque and historical Old Town has been preserved. The district is one of Polands official national Historic Monuments, as designated May 16,2007, the city is viewed as an attractive location for foreign investment and the analytical Financial Times Group has found Lublin to be one of the best cities for business in Poland. The Foreign direct investment ranking placed Lublin second among larger Polish cities in the Cost-effectiveness category, Lublin is also noted for its green spaces and a high standard of living. Archaeological finds indicate a presence of cultures in the area. A complex of settlements started to develop on the site of Lublin and in its environs in the 6th-7th centuries. Remains of settlements dating back to the 6th century were discovered in the center of todays Lublin on Czwartek Hill, the next period of the early Middle Ages was marked by intensification of habitation, particularly in the areas along river valleys. The settlements at the time were centered around the stronghold on Old Town Hill, when the tribal stronghold was destroyed in the 10th century, the center shifted to the north-east, to a new stronghold above Czechówka valley, and after the mid-12th century to Castle Hill. At least two churches are presumed to have existed in Lublin in the medieval period. One of them was most probably erected on Czwartek Hill during the rule of Casimir the Restorer in the 11th century. The castle became the seat of a Castellan, first mentioned in sources from 1224. The oldest historical document mentioning Lublin dates from 1198, so the name must have come into use some time earlier. The location of Lublin at the borders of the Polish lands gave it military significance
11.
Seniorate Province
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For the state of Cracow between 1846 and 1918, see Grand Duchy of Cracow. Fore more modern division of Kraków region, see Kraków Voivodeship. It existed during the period of fragmentation of Poland until 1320, the Seniorate Province was supposed to be ruled by the rotating head of the royal Piast dynasty, a principality that he held as overlord of the other Polish dukes. The High Duke resided at Kraków, Polands capital since 1038, the Seniors prerogatives also included control over the Duchy of Silesia and his Pomerelian vassals at Gdańsk in eastern Pomerania. The Senior was tasked with defense of borders, the right to have troops in provinces of other Dukes, carrying out the policy, supervision over the clergy. Kraków was an addition to the resources of the incumbent, whoever it was. The duchy neighboured originally each of the four partition duchies of Masovia at Płock, Sandomierz, Silesia at Wrocław, even after many of those were further partitioned, it bordered on several principalities, and was at least close to all. Upon the exile of High Duke Władysław II the rule was assumed by Władysławs II eldest brother Bolesław IV the Curly, Duke of Masovia, who died without issue in 1173. He was followed in the Seniorate by the second eldest Mieszko III the Old, while Masovia, a long-term struggle between the brothers followed, whereby Mieszko III was able to incorporate the northwestern lands of Gniezno and Kalisz into his Duchy of Greater Poland. In the long-term struggle Leszek I was killed in 1227 and the Pomerelian lands got lost, when Duke Swietopelk II of Gdańsk declared himself independent. In 1232 the Silesian duke Henry I the Bearded finally prevailed, re-uniting the thrones of Wrocław, after an interregnum he was succeeded by Leszeks I son Bolesław V the Chaste, who upon his death in 1279 appointed Konrads grandson Leszek II the Black of Kuyavia. The Seniorate was again contested between the dukes Przemysł II of Greater Poland and Władysław I the Elbow-high of Kuyavia, Przemysł II brought the royal Přemyslid dynasty of Bohemia into the Polish affairs, when he allied with King Wenceslaus II, whom he ceded the throne at Kraków. In 1295 however, he switched sides and had himself crowned as King of Poland at Greater Polish Gniezno, in 1320 Władysław I, against the fierce resistance of King John of Bohemia, reached the consent by Pope John XXII to have himself crowned Polish king at Kraków. The Duchy of Kraków was finally incorporated into the Lands of the Polish Crown as Kraków Voivodeship, Władysławs I successor King Casimir III the Great had to buy off the Bohemian claims by renouncing Silesia in the 1335 Treaty of Trentschin. In this list, titular claims are not noted, not as rule, only true
12.
Administrative division of Congress Poland
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The administrative division of Congress Poland changed several times. Immediately after its creation, 1815-1816, the Congress Kingdom of Poland was divided into departments, in 1816 the administrative divisions were reformed into the more traditionally Polish voivodeships, obwóds and powiats. Over the next decades, various smaller reforms were carried out. On January 16,1816 the administrative division was reformed from the departments of the Duchy of Warsaw into the more traditionally Polish voivodeships, obwóds, there were 8 voivodeships, Augustów Voivodeship Kalisz Voivodeship Kraków Voivodeship. In 1844 several governorates were merged with others, and some others renamed and it divided larger governorates into smaller ones. A new lower level entity, gmina, was introduced and this time 10 governorates were formed, A minor reform of 1893 transferred some territory from the Plotsk and Lomzha Governorates to Warsaw Governorate. The 1912 reform created a new governorate - Kholm Governorate - from parts of the Sedlets, however this was split off from the Vistulan Country and made part of the Southwestern Krai of the Russian Empire. What is the history of the gubernias of Poland, zygmunt Gloger, Geografia historyczna ziem dawnej Polski, Rodział15, W wieku XIX
13.
Sandomierz Governorate
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Sandomierz Governorate was an administrative unit of the Congress Poland. It was created in 1837 from the Sandomierz Voivodeship, and had the same borders and its lower levels of administration were also mostly unchanged, although renamed from obwóds to powiats. Reform of 1844 merged the governorate with Kielce Governorate, creating a new entity, geographical Dictionary of the Kingdom of Poland
14.
Krosno
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Krosno is a town and county in Subcarpathian Voivodeship, Poland with 47,140 inhabitants, as of 30 June 2014. Krosno is a fortified town, a former Royal Free Town. Until recently it was a provincial capital, today it is a medium-sized town with a population of fifty thousand, ranking sixth among Polish towns with the best living conditions. This evident success appears understandable when one looks at the history of the town, center of regional and subregional levels. Notably Krosno is the site of the first oil well in the world, Krosno is on the river Wisłok. Slovakia is about 35 kilometres south, and Ukraine is about 85 kilometres east of the city and it is located in the heartland of the Doły, and its average altitude is 310 metres above sea level, although there are some hills located within the confines of the city. Neighbouring municipalities are, Korczyna, Krościenko Wyżne, Miejsce Piastowe, Chorkówka, Jedlicze, situated in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship, previously it was the capital of Krosno Voivodeship. It is the capital of Krosno County, Krosno covers an area of 45 km2, and has seven separate town quarters and 5 housing estates. The historical centre is situated on a hill between the fork of the Lubatówka and Wisłok Rivers. The first mention of the town, which names Krosno as one of 34 estates in Małopolska granted to the Lubusz Bishopric, appears in a document signed by Leszek II the Black, Duke of Kraków, in 1282. However, the oldest traces of settlement in the fork of the Wisłok and Lubatówka Rivers, found during archaeological research, today it is difficult to clearly determine the etymology of the place-name of Krosno. Scholars give several versions explaining the origin of the name, finally an opinion was adopted that the original Polish name disappeared and the existing name is the result of a transformation of the German name Krossen. Krosno, a town from its origin, used the coat of arms of the Piasts from Kujawy and. During the reign of Casimir III the Great the construction of fortifications was begun to encircle the hill. But it was only under King Ladislaus Jagiello that the full-length stone, two gates led into the town, the Hungarian one from the south-east and the Kraków one from the north-west. The well-fortified and secure town provided perfect conditions for the development of craft, Krosno became an important production centre of cloths and fustians. The medieval town had waterworks and a system, which is evidence of its importance. The privilege granted by King Casimir IV Jagiellon in 1461 shows that Krosno, the archaeological research conducted recently, based on the dendrochronological method, enabled scholars to move the date of the systems installation back to the middle of the 14th century
15.
Red Ruthenia
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Red Ruthenia, Red Rus is a historic term used since the Middle Ages for southeastern Poland and Western Ukraine. First mentioned in a 1321 Polish chronicle, Red Ruthenia was the portion of Rus incorporated into Poland by Casimir the Great during the 14th century. From the 14th century, after the disintegration of Rus, Red Ruthenia was contested by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the Kingdom of Poland, the Kingdom of Hungary and the Kingdom of Ruthenia. After the Galicia–Volhynia Wars, for about 400 years most of Red Ruthenia became part of Poland as the Ruthenian Voivodeship, there are at least three theories concerning the origins of the name Red Ruthenia. A popular belief that it was derived from the associations of particular colours with cardinal points of the compass. This originated with mythology of the pre-Christian god Svetovid, who had four faces, his face was white, the southern black, eastern green. According to a theory, many place names in Red Ruthenia start in cherv-. These include the so-called Cherven Cities, the first known inhabitants of Red Ruthenia were Lendians, with Boykos and Lemkos on its perimeters. Later Walddeutsche, Jews, Armenians and Poles also made up part of the population, according to Marcin Bielski, although Bolesław I Chrobry settled Germans in the region to defend the borders against Hungary and Kievan Rus the settlers became farmers. Maciej Stryjkowski described German peasants near Rzeszów, Przemyśl, Sanok, Casimir the Great settled German citizens on the borders of Lesser Poland and Red Ruthenia to join the acquired territory with the rest of his kingdom. In determining the population of late medieval Poland, colonisation and Polish migration to Red Ruthenia, Spiš, during the second half of the 14th century, the Vlachs arrived from the southeastern Carpathians and quickly overspread southern Red Ruthenia. Although during the 15th century the Ruthenians gained a foothold, it was not until the 16th century that the Wallachian population in the Bieszczady Mountains, from the 14th to the 16th centuries Red Ruthenia underwent rapid urbanization, resulting in over 200 new towns built on the German model. During the Middle Ages, the region was part of the Ruthenian Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia and it came under Polish control in 1340, when Casimir the Great acquired it. During his reign from 1333 to 1370, Casimir the Great founded several cities, the name Ruś Czerwona has been used for the territory extending to the Dniester, centring on Przemyśl. Since the reign of Władysław Jagiełło the Przemyśl Voivodeship was called the Ruthenian Voivodeship, the voivodeship consisted of five regions, Lwów, Sanok, Halicz, Przemyśl, and Chełm. The town of Halych gave its name to Galicia, in October 1372, Władysław Opolczyk was deposed as count palatine. Although he retained most of his castles and goods in Hungary, as compensation, Opolczyk was made governor of Hungarian Galicia. In this new position, he contributed to the development of the territories entrusted to him
16.
Kielce
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Kielce is a city in south central Poland with 199,475 inhabitants. It is also the city of the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship since 1999. The city is located in the middle of the Świętokrzyskie Mountains, at the banks of the Silnica River, the history of Kielce dates back over 900 years and the exact date when the town was founded remains unknown. The name of the city derives from the migrating Celts, who stopped here during their journey across the European continent. The area was inhabited at the beginning of the 11th century by hunters and beekeepers. It was then that a marketplace was established, where forest products were exchanged for agricultural produce, at the turn of the 12th century, the bishops of Kraków became the owners of the settlement and began constructing a castle on a nearby hill. Under the influence of Vincent Kadłubek, a school was established in the town. Kielce was mentioned in documents for the first time in 1212. In the 13th century, Tatar raids on Poland destroyed the city completely, at the end of 15th century, Frederick Jagiellon granted the town its official symbols, a golden crown on a red shield with the letters CK - Civitas Kielcensis, Latin for the City of Kielce. Between 1637 and 1642, due to the initiative of bishop Jakub Zadzik, a Renaissance palace was erected, the city was burned to the ground during the Swedish Deluge in the 17th century. After the Partitions of Poland, Kielce became part of the Austrian Empire, in 1809, the city was incorporated into the Duchy of Warsaw and after 1815 into the Congress Kingdom of Poland. During World War II, Kielce was the sight of German Nazi atrocities, after the war the city saw an outbreak of violence against the Jewish community, which later became known as the Kielce pogrom. Kielce was once an important centre of mining and the vicinity is famous for its natural resources like copper, lead and iron. The area of Kielce has been inhabited since at least the 5th century BC, until the 6th or 7th century the banks of the Silnica were inhabited by Celts. The lands of Wiślanie were at first subdued by Bohemia, however they came under the control of the Piast dynasty. According to a legend, Mieszko, son of Boleslaus II of Poland dreamt he was attacked by a band of brigands in a forest. In the dream he saw a vision of Saint Adalbert who drew a line which turned into a stream. When Mieszko woke up, he found the Silnica River whose waters helped him regain strength and he also discovered huge white tusks of an unknown animal
17.
Kolbuszowa
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Kolbuszowa is a small town in south-eastern Poland, with 9,190 inhabitants. Situated among the forests of Sandomierz Wilderness in the Subcarpathian Voivodship, Kolbuszowa belongs to historic Lesser Poland, near its border with another historic region, Red Ruthenia. The name of the town comes from the land owner Kolbusz and it appeared for the first time in 1503 in place where Poręby Wielkie used to exist. The town, which belonged to Sandomierz Voivodeship, was founded before 1683. Kolbuszowa was located on an important trade route from Sandomierz to Przemyśl, as the owners of the area were the Leliwa Tarnowski, Kolbuszowa belonged to the Sandomierz County. With regards to the Roman Catholic Church Kolbuszowa was under the Kraków diocese, during the partitions of Poland the town was in the Rzeszów district of the Austrian Galicia and in 1867 it became the seat of its own county. Before World War II, half of Kolbuszowas population was Jewish, during the war, German troops burned down part of the town and about half of the Jewish population perished. In September 1941 Germans established a ghetto and interned 2500 people, in September 1942 the ghetto was emptied and its entire population was moved to a ghetto in Rzeszów. On September 9,1939 a 2-day battle between the Polish Army and the German 2nd Panzer Division took place here. During the war units of Polish Armia Krajowa and BCh operating in this area discovered testing sites for the German V-1, the Red Army entered Kolubuszowa in July 1944 and local Polish AK units attacked retreating German units, several dozen partisans died in the operation. After World War II, Kolbuszowa was rebuilt, new school districts were created, as well as a library and Museum of Culture. In 1964, a new link was established, Rzeszów – Głogów Małopolski – Kolbuszowa. In 1971, it was extended to Nowa Dęba and Tarnobrzeg and this connected Kolbuszowa to all the major cities in Poland including the capital, Warsaw. It was a culmination of decades of preparations which started when this part of Poland was under the control of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, jan Bytnar, Scoutmaster, Polish Scouting resistance activist and Second Lieutenant of Armia Krajowa Marian Krzaklewski, Polish politician, was born in Kolbuszowa
18.
Kozienice
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Kozienice is a town in central Poland with 21,500 inhabitants. Located four miles from the Vistula, it is the capital of Kozienice County, the name of the town first appeared in records in 1429, when it was spelled in Latin Coszinicze. In 1569 it was called Kozienycze – the name comes from the given name Kozina, even though Kozienice is part of Lesser Poland, it is situated in the Masovian Voivodeship, previously, it was in Radom Voivodeship and in Kielce Voivodeship. North-west of Kozienice, in Świerże Górne, Polands second largest coal-fired thermal Kozienice Power Station is located, history of the town dates back to 1206, when – together with neighboring villages, Kozienice was owned by the Norbertine Nuns from Płock. Subsequently, it used to belong to Polish crown, and remained so until the Partitions of Poland, in 1326 Kozienice was incorporated by King Władysław I the Elbow-high. Located on the ancient road from Kraków to Vilnius and on the edge of the Kozienice Forest, the town one of favorite retreats of King Władysław II Jagiełło. In 1467, future King Sigismund I the Old was born in Kozienice at a manor house, Kozienice was incorporated as a city in 1549, by King Sigismund II Augustus. In 1652, the town was decimated by an outbreak, and four years later, during the Deluge. In 1782 Kozienice burns in a fire, and due to the efforts of King Stanisław August Poniatowski, the town was rebuilt, in 1784-1788, a manufacture, producing rifles, was founded in Kozienice. In 1867, for the first time in history, Kozienice became the seat of a county, a road to Radom was built, as well as barracks of the Imperial Russian Army. In 1897 it was inhabited by 6391 people, Kozienice gives its name to the protected area called Kozienice Landscape Park. Kozienice had a Jewish community with a history dating back to 1596. Kozienice is pronounced as Kozhnitz in Yiddish, in the early 19th century, the Kozhnitzer Magid Yisroel Hopsztajn was one of the pioneers of Hasidism in Poland. In 1856, there were 2,885 people in Kozienice with 1,961 Jews, before World War II, about 15,000 souls lived in this region. The Jewish community lived there for about 400 years, the two main industries there were tourism, with Jewish pilgrims visiting the Maggids tomb, and shoe manufacturing. Kozienice had approximately 5,000 Jews before World War II, during the invasion of Poland in September 1939, the Germans forced 2,000 Jews into a small local church, where many of them died of suffocation. The Germans established a ghetto in the Fall of 1940 in an area of three streets. A Jewish Judenrat council was established by the Germans, but most prominent Jews refused to serve, on September 27,1942,8,000 Jews from Kozienice and nearby towns were sent to the Treblinka death camp, where they were murdered on arrival
19.
Lipsko
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Lipsko is a town in Poland, in northern Lesser Poland, Mazowsze Voivodship. It is the capital of Lipsko County, Lipsko’s coat of arms is the Dębno, which was used by previous owners of the town. Lipsko is located on two hills, divided by the Krępianka river, first mention about it comes from April 1589, when the village belonged to the Krępski family. In 1613 it was granted rights, and quickly developed, due to the location along the “oxen road”, from Red Ruthenia to Greater Poland. In 1614, Holy Trinity Church was built, founded by Lord Mikołaj Oleśnicki, in the 18th century Lipsko, located in Sandomierz Voivodeship belonged to several families - the Denhoffs, the Sanguszkos, and the Kochanowskis. After the Partitions of Poland, the town stagnated, with the population not more than 100, in 1868, as a punishment for participation of residents in the January Uprising, the Russians took away Lipsko’s town rights, turning it into a village. During World War II, German occupiers committed mass murders - on September 8,1939, on January 1,1956, Lipsko became the seat of a county in Kielce Voivodeship. The town is home to a sports club Powiślanka, founded in 1964, history of Lipsko Official town webpage Jewish Community in Lipsko on Virtual Shtetl
20.
Mielec
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Mielec is a city in south-eastern Poland, with a population of 60,979 inhabitants, as of June 2009. It is located in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship, previously it was in Rzeszów Voivodeship, Mielec is the capital city of Mielec County. The first mention of a place called Mielec occurs in the century in the 1229 bull of Pope Gregory IX. In the second half of the century, Mielecka was mentioned in a list of parishes. The city of Mielec, part of Sandomierz Voivodeship, was founded on 17 March 1457, for unknown reasons John Mielecki did not go on to found the city, it was eventually established by his two sons, John and Bernard, by an Act of 18 December 1470. The Mielecki family owned the town of Mielec until the last of the Mieleckis died in 1771, under their rule, there was intensive development of craft industries. In 1522, the first guild was founded and it was followed by guilds of tailors, cobblers, potters, spinners, and weavers. The next owners of Mielec were the Ossolinski and Morsztyn families, in 1775, Anna Ossilinska married John Pieniazek, bringing as a dowry her share of part of the city. The next owner was Ignatius Suchorzewski, who married Pieniazek’s daughter Paulina, Suchorzewski sold Mielecs property to Louis Starzenski in 1847, who then disposed of it ten years later to a Jewish family named Gross. The last owner of Mielec was the Oborski family in 1891, in 1853, the county town of Mielec governed an area in which there were 106 settlements and 91 castral municipalities. In 1892, on Kosciuszko Street a new City Council building, the development of the county town was interrupted by a huge fire, which destroyed three quarters of the city. This catastrophe caused the city to apply for a loan of 12 crowns. By the beginning of the century, the market place in Mielec was surrounded by brick houses, and in 1902. In 1912, a gymnasium and the office of County Council were established, World War I caused much damage to the infrastructure and economy of city of Mielec and the county. In the interwar years many streets were paved with cobbles, in addition, a private power plant, various craft workshops, and retail businesses were established. In 1934, the Mielec region suffered a flood that destroyed more than 11,000 households. Mielecs economy has been based for the last 70 years around an industrial enterprise. This process began in the 1930s, when Poland launched a significant expansion of its armaments industry, in 1936, a state-owned factory making airplane chassis was established on the outskirts of the town, an area then known as Cyranka
21.
Nisko
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Nisko pronounced is a town in Nisko County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, Poland on the San River, with a population of 15,534 inhabitants as of 2 June 2009. Together with neighbouring city of Stalowa Wola, Nisko creates a small agglomeration, Nisko has been situated in the Subcarpathian Voivodship since 1999. Nisko was first mentioned in a document dated 15 April 1439, in which King Władysław III of Varna handed the villages of Nysky, furthermore, Nisko was also mentioned by Jan Długosz, in his work Liber beneficiorum dioecesis Cracoviensis. The establishment of the village was probably the result of catastrophic Mongol Invasion of Poland, residents of burned villages and towns resettled in the areas north of the enormous Sandomierz Wilderness. Probably in the half of the 13th century, a village was established on a hill near the San river. In the 1570s, peasants from Nisko and other locations rebelled against the Starosta of Sandomierz, in 1578, they met with King Stefan Batory, who stayed in Tarnogród, asking him for justice. The king supported the peasants, urging Firlej to come to Warsaw, on 10 November 1583, Batory issued a bill, in which he backed demands of the peasants. For centuries Nisko remained a village, whose development was halted during the Swedish invasion of Poland. On 28 March 1656, Stefan Czarniecki fought here Swedish troops, following the First Partition of Poland, Nisko was annexed by the Habsburg Empire, and remained within Austrian Galicia until November 1918. In 1867 Count Eugene Kinsky bought the Nisko estate to give it to his daughter Countess Marie Kinsky of Wchinitz and Tettau as a wedding present, which took place in Vienna on 21 September 1868. From 1868 to 1912 under Count Oliver Rességuier de Miremont and his family, a railroad station, a hospital, a church, schools, factories, Austrian Army Base and a palace were built. Most of these buildings are still in use, the village was also the capital of administration unit, Nisko County. In 1914, when World War I began, many buildings in Nisko were destroyed by the Russian Army, in 1918, local Poles gained control over the government in Nisko and the village became part of the new-formed Second Polish Republic. In newly restored Poland, Nisko was the seat of a county in Lwów Voivodeship, in 1921, its population was over 5000. On 19 January 1937 in Warsaw, a bill was signed, on 20 March 1937, first pine trees were cut in a forest in the village of Plawo, a few kilometers north of Nisko. In two years, a new city of Stalowa Wola was established around the plant. It was a milestone in history of the town, because several projects were started in the area, such as a foundry, the programme of industrialization was stopped with the invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany and Soviet Union in September 1939. Chief architect of the Holocaust, Adolf Eichmann, set up a camp in Nisko
22.
Opoczno
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Opoczno is a town in south-central Poland, in eastern part of Łódź Voivodeship, previously in Piotrków Trybunalski Voivodeship. It has a long and rich history, and in the past it used to be one of the most important urban centers of northwestern Lesser Poland. Currently, Opoczno is an important road and rail junction, its patron saint is Saint Cecilia, Opoczno lies on the Wąglanka river, in northwestern corner of historic Lesser Poland, on the boundary between Lesser Polish Upland, and Mazovian Lowland. On December 31,2008, its population was 22,744, the town and its commune have a total area of 190 km2, which makes it one of the largest communes in the voivodeship. The town is an important communication hub and it lies near the Central Rail Line, which connects Silesia and Kraków with Warsaw. Opoczno has a station, along the line nr. 25, with connections to Tomaszów Mazowiecki and Skarżysko-Kamienna, furthermore, the town lies along National Road Nr. 12, which creates a connection between western and eastern parts of Poland, and has a connection with the nearby A1 Motorway. First mention of Opoczno comes from 1284, when Prince Leszek II the Black wrote in documents that the village belonged to the Sandomierz Collegiate church. According to historian F. Kiryk, the history of Opoczno as a date from the mid-13th century. For unknown reason, Opoczno declined in the late 13th century, the prosperity for Opoczno began during the reign of King Kazimierz Wielki. In the year 1347 he decided to move the village to another location, the New Opoczno had the original area of 6 hectares, and was surrounded with a defensive wall. Staromieście, together with the ancient Mary Magdalene church remained outside of the wall, a new church of St. Bartholomew was built, together with a royal castle, located in southwestern part of the town. Opoczno gained its Magdeburg rights in 1365, and its first starosta was Sobek z Wyszkowic, the defensive wall had the length of 940 meters, with two gates. Opoczno quickly developed, due to convenient location along two busy merchant routes - from Kiev to Wrocław, and from Toruń to Sandomierz, there are speculations that King Kazimierz Wielki favored Opoczno over other towns because it was the birthplace of his favorite mistress, the legendary Esterka. 1405, the complex of a hospital together with a Holy Spirit church was built, in 1405, a hospital was opened here, and in 1550, with the permission of King Sigismund II Augustus, waterworks were built. In 1599, the gate in the defensive wall was added. At that time, Opoczno had as many as 90 artisans, with several guilds, such as shoemakers, blacksmiths, saddlers, in 1646, a synagogue was opened for the Jewish minority
23.
Pionki
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Pionki is a town in Radom County, Masovian Voivodeship, central Poland with 20063 inhabitants. Previously it was in Radom Voivodeship and in Kielce Voivodeship, surrounded by the Kozienice Wilderness, Pionki is located in northern part of historic province of Lesser Poland,20 kilometres from Radom, and 105 kilometres from Warsaw. The town is home to a sports club Proch, established in 1926, until 1932, the settlement was a village named Zagożdżon. Its development was associated with Chemical Plant Pronit, founded in 1923 as State Manufacturer of Gunpowder. After World War II, the Chemical Plant Pronit began manufacturing glue, plastic, in the interbellum period, Pionki prospered due to government contracts, as demand for explosives of its chemical plant was high. In 1925, a new station was opened, three years later - a post office. In 1929, overhead power line joined Pionki with Skarżysko-Kamienna, later on, a new police station was opened, and in 1937, the construction of a hospital was initiated. In 1939, Pionki was bombed by the Luftwaffe, in 1919 -1939, and after the war, until 1975, Pionki belonged to Kielce Voivodeship. Punk rock band The Bill comes from Pionki, jewish Community in Pionki on Virtual Shtetl
24.
Radom
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Radom is a city in east-central Poland with 219,703 inhabitants. It is located 100 kilometres south of Polands capital, Warsaw, on the Mleczna River, in the Masovian Voivodeship, despite being part of the Masovian Voivodeship, the city historically belongs to Lesser Poland. For centuries, Radom was part of the Sandomierz Voivodeship of the Kingdom of Poland and it was an important center of administration, having served as seat of the Crown Council. The Pact of Vilnius and Radom was signed there in 1401, in 1976, it was a center of anti Communist street protests. The city is home to the biennial Radom Air Show, the largest and best-attended air show in Poland, held during the last weekend of August. Radom is also the unofficial name for a semiautomatic 9 mm Para pistol of Polish design which was produced from 1935 to 1944 at the national arsenal located in the city. The Łucznik Arms Factory continues to modern military firearms. The international Radom Jazz Festival and the International Gombrowicz Theater Festival are held in the city, Radoms original settlement dates back to the 8th–9th century. It was a mediaeval town in the valley of the Mleczna River. In the second half of the 10th century, it became a gord, called Piotrówka, which was protected by a rampart, Piotrówka was probably named after St. Peter church, which in 1222 was placed under the authority of a Benedictine Abbey in nearby Sieciechów. The church no longer exists, the oldest still-extant church in Radom is St. Wacław, the first documented mention of Radom comes from the year 1155, in a bull of Pope Adrian IV. By 1233, Radom was the seat of a castellan, the name of the city comes from the ancient Slavic given name Radomir, and Radom means a gord, which belongs to Radomir. In the second half of the 13th century, Radom was granted a Środa Śląska town charter by Prince Bolesław V the Chaste, although no documents exist to confirm the exact date of this event. The town prospered in the 14th century, when in 1350 King Kazimierz Wielki established the so-called New Town, with a castle, a defensive wall. There was also a square and a grid plan of the streets. The area of New Town was 9 hectares, and the length of the wall was 1,100 meters. Radom had three gates, named after main merchant roads, Iłża Gate, Piotrków Trybunalski Gate, the defensive wall was further protected by 25 fortified towers. New Town had the Church of John the Baptist, and the Royal Castle was built between the church and the moat, in 1364, Radom’s obsolete Środa Śląska rights were replaced with more modern Magdeburg rights, and residents gained several privileges as a result
25.
Ropczyce
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Ropczyce is a town in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship in south-eastern Poland, situated in the valley of the Wielopolka River. The town has a population of 15,098. and is the seat of Ropczyce-Sędziszów County, situated in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship, it is the capital of Ropczyce-Sędziszów County. Ropczyce is located east of Kraków and west of Rzeszów, the coordinates for Ropczyce, Latitude 50°0500 and Longitude 21°6167. In DMS or Degree, Minutes, & Seconds, Latitude 50°260N and its elevation is 240 metres above sea level. The time zone for Poland is UTC+1, Ropczyce has a total population of 26,055 according to the Polish Official Census 2008 of whom 15,098 live in the Ropczyce urban area and 10,957 live in the surrounding rural areas. It is the seat of Ropczyce-Sędziszów County, which has a population of 71,3350 people. The first reference to Ropczyce comes from a document of 1252, around this time Ropczyce was damaged by a Tatar raid. In 1266 the settlement was destroyed by an army composed of Ruthenians, Tatar and Lithuanian troops, led by the Ruthenian prince ‘Ioann Shvarn’, Ukrainian, Ropczyce became a town on 3 March 1362, when the Polish king, Casimir III the Great, gave it city rights. At the same time, he made two brothers, Jan and Mikolaj Gielnic the first ‘wójts’ or advocates of the new town and he also made Ropczyce a parish, separate from the parish of Sędziszow. Within six years a church was built in the new ‘royal’ town of Ropczyce. King Casimir III the Great, king Kazimierz IV Jagiellończyk and king Władysław II Jagiełło were regular visitors to Ropczyce, under the patronage of the Polish Royals and subsequent trade agreements with Ruthenia, the towns future started to look very good. It could then grow and develop, also due to its location on an important trade route from Silesia. Ropczyce was severely damaged during a Tatar raid in 1504, since its formation Ropczyce has been known by several different names, although these appear to be phonetic variations of the same name. In the 16th century Ropczyces churches were influenced by The Reformation, around the 1550s the Parish Church was under the control of the Polish Brethren for over a decade. The earliest information about Jews settling in Ropczyce dates back to 1564. It was noted then that four Jewish families, i. e. about 30 people, lived on the farm of the Gryf family. ’ The 17th century was the time of the town’s stagnation and downfall. Ropczyce was plundered by Swedish troops in 1655 and conclusively devastated in 1657 by the army of George II Rákóczi, many houses in the town were deserted and ruined after the wars. As nobody paid for them, the authorities tried to occupy the houses with new inhabitants
26.
Stalowa Wola
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Stalowa Wola is the largest city and capital of Stalowa Wola County with a population of 64,353 inhabitants, as of June 2008. It is located in southeastern Poland in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship, the city lies in historic Lesser Poland, near the confluence of the Vistula and San rivers and covers an area of 82.5 km2. Stalowa Wola is one of the youngest cities of Poland and it was built from scratch in the late 1930s, in the forests surrounding the village of Pławo. The city was designed to be a settlement for workers of Huta Stalowa Wola, Stalowa Wola is home to the sports club Stal Stalowa Wola. Stalowa Wola lies in the lowlands of the Sandomierz Basin, near the San river, on January 1,2010, the area of the town was 82 square kilometres and 60% of Stalowa Wola was covered by pine forests, remnants of the once enormous Sandomierz Wilderness. The area of todays Stalowa Wola belongs to historic Polish province of Lesser Poland, in the Kingdom of Poland, it was located in south-eastern corner of the Sandomierz Voivodeship, near the border with Red Ruthenia. The city of Stalowa Wola was built on the site where the village of Pławo once stood, the first mentions of Pławo come from the first half of the 15th century. At the nearby village of Przyszów, there was a lodge of King Władysław Jagiełło. In the late 15th century, Pławo was a royal village, in 1656, the area of Pławo was the site of a battle between Polish and Swedish armies. Here, in the confluence of the San and Vistula, Swedish troops of King Charles Gustav were surrounded by Stefan Czarniecki, until the Partitions of Poland, Pławo belonged to Sandomierz Voivodeship. From 1772 to 1918, it was part of the Austrian province of Galicia and remained an insignificant, before the outbreak of World War II, some departments of the mill were operational and several blocks of flats were built. Construction of the Southern Works, as the mill was called, was started in dense pine forests around Pławo in March 1937. Among other things, the plant manufactured artillery cannons, during World War II, Stalowa Wola was one of the centres of the Home Army. The settlement was captured by the Red Army in August 1944, in 1948, the mill was renamed as Huta Stalowa Wola and in 1953, a separate urban county of Stalowa Wola was created. In 1973, the town of Rozwadów was annexed, followed in 1977 by the village of Charzewice, at its peak in the 1970s, the mill employed 35,000 people, with branches scattered across southern Poland, from Radomsko to Strzyżów. Apart from the mill, Stalowa Wola has a power plant. In 1988, the city was one of the centres of workers protests, currently, Stalowa Wola is the third city of the province, with population of 115,000. The Rozwadów suburb of Stalowa Wola was a thriving Jewish shtetl prior to World War II and was associated with Tarnobrzeg and other nearby shtetls including Ulanów, Mielec
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Starachowice
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Starachowice is a town in south-central Poland, with 51,532 inhabitants. Starachowice is situated in the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, it was formerly in the Kielce Voivodeship and it is the capital of Starachowice County. It is situated upon the River Kamienna, a tributary of the Vistula River, among hills, in the location of present-day Starachowice, a forge existed, which in the 16th century belonged to the Starzechowski family. A settlement, which was built around the forge, belonged until 1817 to the Cistercians from Wąchock Abbey and it was the monks who in 1789 initiated construction of a blast furnace. In 1815, the furnace was taken over by the government of Congress Poland, and in the following years, according to a plan devised by Stanisław Staszic, metal industry was developed along the Kamienna river, and the settlement of Starachowice was its center. After Poland regained independence in 1918, the government in Warsaw decided to build a factory in Starachowice. On October 12,1920, The Society of Starachowice Mining Company signed a contract with Main Office of Supplying the Army, soon afterwards, works on construction of artillery ammunition factory began. Zakłady Starachowickie, which was a complex including ammunition factory, artillery equipment factory. It also manufactured Bofors 37 mm guns, used by the Polish Army in 1939, the very town of Starachowice was not created until April 1,1939, when the ancient town of Wierzbnik was merged with the settlement of Starachowice Fabryczne and the village of Starachowice Górne. At first, the new town was named Starachowice-Wierzbnik, and in 1952 the name was changed into Starachowice, during the Holocaust, the ghetto in Wierzbnik was liquidated on October 27,1942, and many of its prisoners were sent to the death camp Treblinka. The remaining Jewish residents of Starachowice and Wierzbnik were sent to camps in the vicinity. Those camps were liquidated in the summer of 1944, the remaining survivors were deported to Auschwitz where many of them met their deaths at the hands of the Schutzstaffel. There was a plant there where Jewish slave labor was used. During World War II, Starachowice was an important center of the Home Army, after the war, the town prospered as an important industrial center. Besides Starachowice Works, truck producer FSC Star was opened in 1948, a Star truck was used as the basis for the first Popemobile for Pope John Paul IIs during his first visit to his home country as Pope of the Roman Catholic Church. When capitalist system was reintroduced in 1989, the situation in Starachowice worsened, the town currently has a special economy zone with lower tax rates to help the settlement of new industry. Star Starachowice, a club which for several years played in the Second Division
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Tarnobrzeg
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Tarnobrzeg is a city in south-eastern Poland, on the east bank of the river Vistula, with 49,419 inhabitants, as of December 31,2009. Situated in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship since 1999, it had previously been the capital of Tarnobrzeg Voivodeship, Tarnobrzeg lies in the Sandomierz Basin, and directly borders the town of Sandomierz. Its history dates back to the year 1593, when it was granted Magdeburg rights, for centuries Tarnobrzeg remained a small town, which did not develop until the post-World War II period, when it became center of an industrial area, based on rich sulfur deposits. The name Tarnobrzeg refers to the founders of the town, the Tarnowski family, other names were suggested, such as Tarnodwor, Nowo Dwor, and Nowy Tarnów. Finally, Tarnobrzeg prevailed, and other towns, founded by the Tarnowski family, were named in a similar fashion, such as Tarnogród. Until the 20th century, however, the name Tarnobrzeg was not popular among residents, in common use were such names, as Dzików and Miechocin, as these two locations were older, larger and more important. After opening of a station called Tarnobrzeg, and creation of the Tarnobrzeg County. Nevertheless, patron saint of the region, is still called Our Lady of Dzików, Tarnobrzeg lies along National Road nr. 9, which also makes Polish part of the European route E371, the town also is a railroad hub, with five stations located within its limits. Rail lines stem from Tarnobrzeg into four directions, southwards towards Dębica, southeast towards Rzeszów, east towards Stalowa Wola, currently Tarnobrzeg is one of the largest towns of Poland in terms of territory. It covers the area of 85 square kilometres, and the distance between its northern and southern locations reaches 20 kilometres. This is because in 1975, Tarnobrzeg unexpectedly became the capital of a newly created province, to expand the town, local authorities initiated a policy of annexation of local villages. As a result, in the late 1970s the size of the town quickly grew, the Old Town and historic center of Tarnobrzeg covers a very small area of the town, as 80% of Tarnobrzeg was built after the war. Tarnobrzeg was founded in 1593, during the age of Poland. In that year, King Zygmunt III Waza granted Magdeburg rights to the village, the founder of the town was Stanislaw Tarnowski, Castellan of Sandomierz. In 1772, it part of the Austrian Empire and remained in the province of Galicia until November 1918. Tarnobrzeg, located close to the Russian-Austrian border, sustained heavy damage during World War I by invading armies. In the aftermath of World War I, the short-lived Republic of Tarnobrzeg was declared here, and in 1919, the city suffered significant emigration within the former Austrian empire and elsewhere during the interbellum years
