Малі та середні міста Польщі

DocentX · Mar 22, 2010

WladYslaW said:
Bardo has somewhat reminded me Kremenets

Krzemieniec looks very nice :cheers::cheers1:

PS. Do you know that Juliusz Słowacki, fameous Polish Romantic poet, was born in Krzemieniec? :yes:

WladYslaW · Mar 22, 2010

DocentX said:
Krzemieniec looks very nice :cheers::cheers1:

PS. Do you know that Juliusz Słowacki, fameous Polish Romantic poet, was born in Krzemieniec? :yes:

Yes, I do. There is also a homestead. We went by this building, but did not come by

hno:

DocentX · Mar 22, 2010

WladYslaW said:
Yes, I do. There is also a homestead. We went by this building, but did not come by hno:

Nice :cheers:

DocentX · Mar 22, 2010

Ok - let's go back to the topic.

Bielsko-Biała (Бе́льсько-Бя́ла)

Bielsko-Biała (German: Bielitz-Biala; Czech: Bílsko-Bělá) is a city in southern Poland with 176,987 inhabitants.

Bielsko-Biała is composed of two former cities on opposite banks of the Biała River, Bielsko and Biała, amalgamated in 1951.

Both parts of the name stem from "biel" or "biała", which means "white" in Polish.

Between 1933 and 1938 an archaeological team discovered remains of a fortified settlement in what is now Stare Bielsko (Old Bielsko) district of the city. The settlement was dated to the 12th - 14th centuries. Its dwellers manufactured iron from ore and specialized in smithery.

The current center of the town was probably developed as early as the first half of the 13th century. At that time a castle (which still survives today) was built on a hill.

In the second half of the 13th century, the Piast Dukes of Opole invited German settlers to land between Silesia and Lesser Poland in order to colonize the Silesian Beskids. Nearby settlements west of the Biała River were Nikelsdorf, Kamitz, Alt-Bielitz (now Stare Bielsko), Batzdorf and Kurzwald. Nearby settlements east of the river Bialka were Kunzendorf, Alzen and Wilmesau. Nearby settlements in the mountains were Lobnitz and Bistrai.

After the partition of the Duchy of Oppeln in 1281, Bielsko passed to the Dukes of Cieszyn (Teschen). The town was first documented in 1312 when a Duke of Cieszyn granted a town charter. From 1457 the Biała River was the border between Silesia (within the Holy Roman Empire) and Lesser Poland. The town of Biała was established on the opposite bank of the Biała River in 1723.

During the First Partition of Poland in 1772, Biała was annexed by Austria and included in the crownland of Galicia. In 1918 both cities became part of a reconstituted Polish state.

The city of Bielsko-Biała was created on 1 January 1951 when the adjacent cities of Bielsko and Biała were unified.

Nowadays Bielsko-Biała is one of the best-developed parts of Poland. It was ranked 2nd best city for business in that country by Forbes. About 5% of people are unemployed (compared 9,6% for Poland). Bielsko-Biała is famous for its textile, machine-building, and especially automotive industry. In Bielsko-Biała there are four areas that belong to Katowice Special Economic Zone. Another reason for the low unemployment rate is that large numbers of young families have become economic migrants and have moved to the UK for employment. There are large communities originally from Bielsko-Biała now living in towns such as Slough and Southampton.

Bielsko-Biała is a beautiful city. It has a vibrant modernistic presence being a student-city with its associated nightlife, as well as having numerous historical sights.

DocentX · Mar 22, 2010

Hel (Хель)

Hel is a town located on the tip of the Hel Peninsula, some 33 kilometres from the Polish mainland.

The Kashubian village of Hel was first mentioned in 1198 as a centre of herring trade area named Gellen. In one of the Danish chronicles of 1219 it is mentioned that a damaged ship of King Valdemar II the Victorious was set ashore on an "Island of Hel". By 13th century the village became one of the most important trade centres of the area, competing with the nearby town of Gdańsk. It was then that the village was granted city rights by Duke Świętopełk II the Great of Pomerania. The privileges were later confirmed in 1378 when the town came under the rule of the Teutonic Knights.

Initially the town was located some 1.5 kilometres from its present-day centre. It contained a church, hospital, city house, two market places, several guest houses and a small port. However, during the 15th century the peninsula started to shrink through marine erosion and soon the town was relocated to a safer location. In 1417 St Peter's Church was built in the town, devoted to the patron saint of fishermen. Hel experienced a period of growth, but was later left behind by the faster growing city of Gdańsk. In 1466 King Casimir IV of Poland granted the town as a fief to the rulers of Gdańsk, which ended the century-long struggle for economical domination over the Gdańsk Bay. In 1526 King Sigismund I the Old withdrew all privileges previously granted to Hel and sold the town and the peninsula to the city authorities of Gdańsk. Since then Hel's fate was tied to the fortunes of its bigger neighbour.

In the 17th and 18th centuries prolonged warfare and a series of natural disasters severely damaged the town. It was severely depopulated and in 1872 the government of the newly-formed German state abolished the city rights granted to Hel six centuries previously. After that the village of Hela (as it is called in German) lost much of its significance.

The period of decline was halted in 1893 when a fishing harbour was built in the village. It provided a shelter for fishing vessels, but also became a popular destination for weekend trips of the inhabitants of Gdańsk and Sopot. In 1896 the village was granted the status of a sea-side resort.

As a result of World War I and the Treaty of Versailles Poland was re-established as an independent nation, Hel became part of Poland. In 1921 a new railway was built along the peninsula connecting the town to the mainland. The authorities of the Pomeranian voivodship also planned to build a road to the village, but the peninsula was found too narrow at the time. Soon Hel became one of the most important tourism centres in Polish Pomerania. New suburbs of villas were built for tourists, as well as a new church, school, fishing institute and geophysical observatory. In addition, the village became one of the two main naval bases of the Polish Navy. The harbour was expanded and in 1936 the president declared the peninsula a "Fortified Area" under jurisdiction of the Polish Army. The naval base was expanded significantly and a battery of coastal artillery was built to provide cover for the military facilities.

During the Invasion of Poland the Hel Peninsula was one of the longest-defended pockets of Polish Army resistance. Approximately 3,000 soldiers of the Coastal Defence Group (Grupa Obrony Wybrzeża) units under Kapitan [Stanislaw Zwartynski]"The Defender of Hel" defended the area against overwhelming odds until October 2, 1939. Shortly before capitulation, Polish military engineers detonated a number of torpedo warheads, which separated the peninsula from the mainland transforming it into an island. During World War II the Kriegsmarine used the Hel naval base to train U-Boat crews. At the end of the war the village was the last part of Polish soil to be liberated: the German units encircled there surrendered on May 10, 1945, two days after Germany capitulated.

After the war the village yet again became a naval base. In 1960 a road linking Hel with Jastarnia on the mainland was built. Three years later city rights were reintroduced. Since then the tourist industry started to recover and several hotels, guest houses and pensions were built. In 1996 the Polish Navy sold all remaining parts of the peninsula to the civilian authorities and only a small naval base is located there today.

The harbour now serves primarily as a yacht marina. Hel houses a sea life biological laboratory and there are interesting examples of naval armament and equipment exhibited throughout the town.

The most easterly edge of Hel, which was once a military territory, can now be accessed by the general public making it possible to walk all the way around the peninsula.

DocentX · Mar 23, 2010

Kalisz (Каліш)

Kalisz is a city in central Poland with 107,910 inhabitants (2008). Situated on the Prosna river in the southeastern part of the Greater Poland Voivodeship, the city forms a conurbation with the nearby towns of Ostrów Wielkopolski and Nowe Skalmierzyce.

Kalisz is an important regional industrial and commercial centre. The city is also a centre for traditional folk art.

Kalisz has long been considered the oldest city of Poland because it was mentioned by Ptolemy in the 2nd century A.D. (cf. Calisia). The location mentioned by Ptolemy was situated in the territory of the Diduni (Vandals) on the Amber Trail. There are many artefacts of the Roman times in the area, pointing to the fact that it could have been one of the stops of the Roman caravans heading for the Baltic Sea.

The modern Kalisz was most probably founded in 9th century as a provincial capital castellany and a minor fort. The name itself stems from the Celtic term cal which means stream, or Slavic term kal, meaning swamp or marsh. In 1106 Bolesław Krzywousty captured the town and made it a part of his feudal domain. Between 1253 and 1260 the town was incorporated according to the German town law called Środa Śląska Law after Środa Śląska in Silesia, a local variation of the Magdeburg Law, and soon started to grow. One of the richest towns of Greater Poland, during the feudal fragmentation of Poland it formed a separate duchy ruled by local branch of the Piast dynasty. After Poland was reunited, the town became a notable centre of weaving and wood production, as well as one of the cultural centres of Greater Poland. The economical development of the area was aided by a large number of Protestant Czech Brothers, who settled in and around Kalisz after being expelled from Bohemia. Also, Jewish settlement of Kalisz dates back to 1139.

In 1282 the city laws were confirmed by Przemysł II of Poland and in 1314 it was made the capital of the Kalisz Land, one of the provincial capitals Voivodeships of Poland, by king Władysław Łokietek. A notable centre of trade, Kalisz was also located more or less in the centre of Poland back then. Because of its strategic location, in 1343 king Casimir III signed there a peace treaty with the Teutonic Order. As a royal town, the city managed to defend much of its initial privileges and in 1426 a new town hall was built. The Polish king Mieszko the Old was buried in Kalisz.

In 1574 the Jesuits were brought to Kalisz and in 1584 they opened a Jesuit College there, one of the most notable centres of education in Poland back then. However, with time the importance of Kalisz declined and its place was taken by nearby Poznań.

In 1792, fire destroyed much of the city centre. The following year, in the second partition of Poland, the Kingdom of Prussia absorbed the city, called "Kalisch" in German. In 1801, Wojciech Bogusławski set up one of the first permanent theatre troupes in Kalisz.

In 1806 Kalisz became a provincial capital within the Duchy of Warsaw. During Napoleon's invasion of Russia, following Yorck's Convention of Tauroggen of 1812, von Stein's Treaty of Kalisz was signed between Russia and Prussia in 1813, confirming that Prussia now was on the side of the Allies.

After the defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte, Kalisz became a provincial capital of the Congress Kingdom of Poland and then the capital of a province of the Russian Empire Russia. The proximity to the Prussian border accelerated economic development of the city and Kalisz ("Калиш" in the Russian Cyrillic alphabet) started to attract many settlers, not only from other regions of Poland and other provinces of the Russian empire but also from German states. In 1902, a new railway linked Kalisz to Warsaw and Łódź.

After the outbreak of the Great War, the proximity of the border proved disastrous for Kalisz, as it was one of the first cities destroyed in 1914. The German army German artillery shelled Kalisz. Between August 7 and August 22, 1914, Kalisz was destroyed almost completely after the entry of the German units led by Hermann Preusker. 800 men were arrested and then several of them slaughtered, while the city was set on fire and the remaining inhabitants were expelled. Out of roughly 68,000 citizens in 1914, only 5,000 remained in Kalisz a year later. However, by the end of the Great War much of the city centre was more or less rebuilt and many of the former inhabitants were allowed to return.

After the war Kalisz became part of the Republic of Poland, which regaine dits independence. The reconstruction continued and in 1925 a new city hall was opened. In 1939 the population of Kalisz was approximately 89,000. After the German invasion of Poland in 1939, Invasion of Poland (1939),World War II, the proximity of the border proved once again disastrous. Kalisz was captured by the Wehrmacht almost instantly and without much fighting, and the city was annexed by Nazi Germany. By the end of World War II approximately 30,000 local Jews had been murdered. An additional 20,000 local Catholics were either murdered or expelled to the German-occupied territories General Government or to Germany as slave workers. In 1945 the population of the city was only 43,000, approximately half of the pre-war population.

Today's Kalisz is, after Poznan, the most important administrative, economic and socio-cultural center of Greater Poland. Despite major damage suffered during World War I, it managed to preserve many remnants of its past – including a pleasant Old Town with Gothic and Baroque churches and fragments of city walls.

Important monuments:
» Emplacement of Zawodzie - IX-X centuries - archeological reservation.
» Scraps of fortified walls.
» St. Nicholas Cathedral - built in 1253 thanks to the foundation of prince Boleslav Pious.
» Basilica under the invocation of The Holy Virgin Assumption with the miraculous picture of The Holy Family - built in 1353.
» Franciscan monastery - founded in 1257 by the prince Boleslav Pious and his wife Jolanta.
» Bernardine monastery - XV-XVII centuries with the polichromy from XVIII century.
» Church formerly belonging to the Jesuits - built for the Jesuits in 1587-1595 according to the project of Italian architect Jan Maria Bernardoni.
» St. Wojciech Church - in XI century already was a parish of former Kalisz borough.
» Stone bridge - monument of engineering art., built in 1824-25.
» The Wojciech Boguslawski theatre.
» Park in Kalisz - the oldest town’s park in Poland.

DocentX · Mar 23, 2010

Gniew (Гнев)

Gniew (German: Mewe; Kashubian: Gniéw) is a town situated on the left bank of the Vistula River, in the Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland.

The first recorded mentions of Gniew appear in written documents from the first half of the 13th century, one of which refers to the region as Terra Gymeu. The earliest name for the settlement was Gmiew, however, during the Middle Ages the name Wońsk was also used. The German name of Mewe for the town is still reflected on the coat of arms of the city, which bears the presence of a seagull (Möwe in German).

Beginning in the 10th century, the region belonged to the Polan tribe and was part of Gdańsk Pomerania. After the division of Poland by Bolesław Krzywousty, Gniew fell to the castellany of Starogard Gdański. The land later fell to the Princes of Świecie and in 1229 Prince Sambor and Swantopolk II of Pomerania granted it to the Cistercian abbey in Oliwa. In the second half of the 13th century, Sambor retook Gniew from the Cistercians and in 1276 bestowed it on the Teutonic Knights. Their claim was formally recognized by Mestwin II of Pomerania in 1282, and the city became the first stronghold of the Teutonic Order on the left riverside of the Vistula. A castle was built as a result of this important strategic location, and in 1297 the Teutonic Knights gave Gniew town privileges.

The city exchanged hands various times between 1410-1466 until it became part of the Polish province of Royal Prussia following the Second Peace of Thorn (1466). In 1626, during the Swedish-Polish War, a battle between the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Swedish forces was fought in the area of Gniew, resulting in a victory for the army of King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden, and only the second historic defeat for the Polish hussars. In the second half of the 17th century, prior to becoming King of Poland, John III Sobieski served as the local district governor (starost) of Gniew and built the Marysienka Palace for his wife, Maria Kazimiera.

Gniew was annexed by the Kingdom of Prussia during the Partitions of Poland and became part of the German Empire in 1871. With the defeat of Imperial Germany in World War I, Gniew became part of the Polish Corridor according to the Treaty of Versailles. During World War II the castle was used by Nazi Germany as a relocation camp for the population of Tczew and the surrounding area.

The most notable landmark of the town is the Ordensburg castle built by the Teutonic Order at the turn of the 14th century, as well as Marysienka's Palace, built during the second half of the 17th century. The city also boasts a well preserved medieval old town, with buildings dating from the 15th to 19th century and a Gothic church dating to the 14th century.

DocentX · Mar 24, 2010

Bolków (Болькув)

Bolków (German: Bolkenhain) is a town in Jawor County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland.

First mentioned as Hain in a 1276 deed, Bolków was named after Polish Duke Bolko II of Świdnica, who died in 1368. His duchy was incorporated into the Lands of the Bohemian Crown of the Holy Roman Empire. Since 1945 the town belongs to Poland.

Above the town stand the ruins of Bolków Castle, built in the 13th century. Devastated in the Thirty Years' War it became a property of Grüssau Abbey in 1703, though restoration efforts did not begin until 1905. Since 1994 the ruin is the site of the annual "Castle Party" Gothic rock festival.

The Bolkow Castle was built in XIII century during the reign of prince from Polish Piast dynasty - Bolko I.

This medieval building is one of the oldest castles in Poland. The castle is divided into two parts: inner built in Gothic style, and outer – build in Renaissance.

The castle had many owners and its walls had witnessed many bloody battles. During one of such battles in the 16th century the castle fell in the hands of the bishop of Wroclaw, who build the outer – Renaissance part of it.

DocentX · Mar 24, 2010

Szydłowiec (Шидло́вець)

Szydłowiec is a town in Mazovian Voivodeship with 15,243 inhabitants.

From the 12th century the environs of Szydłowiec belonged to the powerful knightly family of Odrowąż. In the 13th century the site of the present castle was occupied by a stronghold on an artificial island with wood and earth defences and by a village called Szydłowiec.

The present town came into being in the early 15th century and together with the neighbourigh estate was the property of the Szydłowiecki and Radziwiłł families until the 19th century.

The town flourished in the 16th and the first half of 17th centuries. It was then an important centre of trade and crafts, mainry stone-masonry based on the exploatition of the local sandstone which was easy to work. This stone was used to carve architectural sculptural elements and to make tools for agriculture. It was also a building material for the local Saint Sigsmunt Church, Castle in Szydłowiec and the Town hall in Szydłowiec; moreover, it was sent to Kielce, Cracow and Warsaw. Among the goods traded in vere agricurtular products.

The period of wars 1648-1717 and numerous epidemics and fires brought abought a decline of Szydłowiec,which persisted for centuries, its state being yet aggravated after the partitions of Poland. The town owes this present cheracter to transformations in urban design and architecture which took place in the second half of the 19th century and in the 20th century.

DocentX · Mar 24, 2010

Szydłów (Шидлув)

Szydlow is small town in Poland. If fact the city lost its city status and now is a village with a population slightly above 1000 people.

Szydłów's history dates to the 12th century.

It gained its city rights in 1329 and lost them in 1869. It has several very interesting tourist attractions, the 16th-century Szydłów Synagogue, several buildings and churches dating to the 14th century and the ruins of a castle from the same period.

The whole city is surrounded by gothic stone walls.

DocentX · Mar 24, 2010

Radom (Ра́дом)

Radom is a city in central Poland with 227,309 inhabitants. It is located on the Mleczna River in the Masovian Voivodeship 100 km south of Poland's capital, Warsaw.

The oldest traces of human habitation at the Mleczna River reach back to late earlier stone age (approx. 10 000 years BC). These include remains of a silex processing workshop. Archeologists have discovered over a hundred sites where historic populations left traces of their activity.

Radom proper and its history began in early Middle Ages.A rural settlement existed in the Mleczna valley in the 8th and 9th centuries. The second half of the 10th century saw construction of a fortified burgh with a double ring of walls and a moot. In time, it became a chatelain's seat. The first written mention of Radom can be found in pope Hadrian IV's bull of 1155. The name of Radom is usually derived from the proper name Radomir or the name of the tribe Radomierzanie.

During the 13th century, the so-called market setlement with St. Wenceslaus church grew on the extensive headland. Radom district is believed to have received Środa municipal rights at the time.

The 14th century witnessed a period of development and changes. Foundation of New Radom is associated with king Casimir the Great and his efforts to strengthen the position of towns and cities. The New Town, which received Magdeburg rights in 1364, was built on medieval principles. Walls with defence turrets, three entrance gates, a town hall, church, and castle were erected. The town had self-government and a loal court.

The city flurished under the Jagellonian dynasty. Most privileges were granted in the 15th and 16th centuries. Guilds of weavers, tanners, and other crafts were established. Trade and services grew owing to the convenient situation at an intersection of roads.

Radom and its castle frequently hosted royal guests, meetings of parliament and the state weight and measures office.

In 1401, the first deed of a union between Poland and Lithuania, the so-called 'Radom and Vilnius union', was signed here. In 1481-82, Kazimierz, son of king Kazimierz Jagiellończyk and governor of the state, resided in Radom. In 1505, 'Nihil novi' constitution and a collection of Polish laws, called Jan Łaski statutes, were approved in the city. In 1613, Radom became the seat of the Royal Treasury Tribunal.

The 17th century was not beneficial to the city, visited by 'the plague' and invaded by Swedes, who burnt down the town and the castle. 37 households and approximately 375 residents survived the military operations.

Radom Confederation of 1767, convened under the auspices of duke Karol Stanisław Radziwiłł, was a later historical event worthy of note. Epidemies, a great fire, and marches of Polish and foreign troops brought decay of the city.

Radom was then occupied by Austria and subsequently Russia. It continued to fulfill important administrative functions as the capital of West Galicia District, Warsaw Duchy department, Sandomierz voivodship of the Polish Kingdom, and finally Radom gubernya.

The town continued to gradually develop thanks to growth of leather, metal, and food industries. A highway was built to Warsaw, as well as a railroad route Dęblin - Radom – Dąbrowa Górnicza, streets were lit with electricity.

Local population took part in national uprisings, independence and revolutionary efforts, struggles for Polish education (1904-1908).

Colonel Dionizy Czachowski's part in the January Uprising of 1864, death of the student assassin Stanisław Werner in 1906, civic courage of the teacher Prosper Jarzyński, principal of the first Polish school, are memorable events of that time.

After WW1 ended and Poland regained independence in 1918, growth of the city decidedly accelerated. Radom became part of the Central Industrial District. In effect, the State Weapon Factory, the most up-to-date in Poland, and Planty housing estate for its employees were built.

A telephone factory, cooperating with Ericsson of Sweden, wood and tobacco plants were created. Water and gas supply and sewage disposal systems, an airfield were constructed. That was accompanied by growth of culture: theatre, cinemas, comunity centres, museums, libraries, and periodical publications. Victory of the socialist party PPS in local elections translated into welfare campaigns, child care, building of workers' accommodation.

Radom district was established in the time of German occupation during WW2. 1939 – 1945 witnessed terror, executions at Firlej, sending to concentration camps, extermination of Radom Jews.

Freedom from the Nazi occupation came on 16 January 1945. The city had not been destroyed. The after-war years saw dynamic industrial growth and urbanisation of suburban areas by emergence of new hiousing estates and population growth. Theatre, museum, libraries, and community centres continued, and still continue, to develop.

DocentX · Mar 24, 2010

Frombork

Frombork is a little town (about 3000 inhabitants) located in the North of Poland in the Warmia Region on the Vistula Lagoon.

Frombork is known as “The Jewel of Warmia” because of its many historical sites. The Museum of Copernicus in Frombork holds exhibitions related to the astronomer, as well as to astronomy in general, and includes a planetarium.

The town was first mentioned in the 13th century. On 8 July 1310, Bishop Eberhard of Neisse granted the town Lübeck city rights, as used by many member cities of the Hanseatic League. In 1329-1388, the magnificent Brick Gothic cathedral was built.

In 1414 the city was plundered and burned during the Hunger War between the Teutonic Knights and Poland. In 1454, during the Thirteen Years' War, the hill and its cathedral were occupied by Jan Skalski. By the Second Peace of Thorn (1466), it became an important city of the Prince-Bishopric of Warmia and part of the Polish province of Royal Prussia. The city was also devastated after a raid by Albrecht of Brandenburg in 1520.

In the Middle Ages, the inhabitants were mainly merchants, farmers and fishermen. The most famous resident was the astronomer and mathematician Nicolaus Copernicus, who lived and worked here as a canon (1512–16 and 1522–43). In 1519 Copernicus wrote to the King of Poland, asking for help against the Teutonic Knights who were threatening the city. The letter however was intercepted, and the Teutonic Knights took and burned the city (Copernicus and other canons had left the city shortly before).

The city also suffered destruction and heavy population losses during the Polish–Swedish wars. Between 1626 and 1635 it was occupied by Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden who looted the cathedral and shipped many cultural artifacts, including Copernicus' manuscripts to Sweden. Further destruction followed during the Deluge (Swedish invasion of Poland), the Great Northern War and the War of the Fourth Coalition.

After the first partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (1772) the town was taken over by the Kingdom of Prussia. Subsequently, in 1871 Frauenburg became part of the German Empire. The Preußische Ostbahn railway line was opened in 1899 connecting Elbing (Elbląg) and Braunsberg (Braniewo) via Frauenburg, leading further to the Russian border at Eydtkuhnen (Chernyshevskoye). Passenger services on the railway line ceased in early 2006.

At the end of World War II, 173 years after the partitons, the city along with the rest of southern East Prussia became again part of Poland.

Today, Frombork is regaining its importance as a tourist destination, abetted by its key location just south of the frontier with the Russian district of Kaliningrad. Although the railway through Frombork closed in 2006, the port has seasonal ferry connections with Elbląg, Krynica Morska and Kaliningrad.

In 2005 a world-wide sensation spread from Frombork: the archaeologists at last found the grave of the famous astronomer in the Cathedral. The archaeological search for Copernicus was very difficult (this demands a separate story). Finally, his upper scull was found and sent to the Central Forensic Laboratory in Warsaw. It was not said whose it presumably was. It was just said – a scull of an elderly man from the 16th century. The scientist who worked on it – said that from the beginning he supposed that it was a Very Special scull. When he reconstructed the face of the long dead – he was sure it was Copernicus. The scar on his forehead and the broken nose gave the certainty.

Although born in Torun, Copernicus after studies in Cracow and Padua, spent 33 years in Frombork, which he described as “the remote place of the Polish Kingdom, forgotten by God and people”. He was not only a canon priest, but also an administrator of Warmia, and therefore a colonizer. He settled people and established several still existing villages. He also worked on “Bread Regulations” unifying the weight as well as both the price and the recipe of bread in the whole region. He was also a doctor – and a well known one. Duke Albrecht von Ansbach (the former Teutonic Grand Master) of Koenigsberg - called for him specially.

-PePe- · Mar 24, 2010

DocentX said:
Radom (Ра́дом)
Radom is a city in central Poland with 227,309 inhabitants. It is located on the Mleczna River in the Masovian Voivodeship 100 km south of Poland's capital, Warsaw.

The original settlement dates back to 8th–9th century. It was an early mediaeval town in the valley of the Mleczna River (approximately on the location of present-day Old Town). Around the 2nd half of 10th century, it turned into a fortified town called Piotrówka.

Not approximately, it's in different place.

Radom was founded in 1340, and it belonged to the Sandomierz Voivodeship (part of Little Poland) of the Kingdom of Poland, later Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. During the partitions of Poland it was held successively by Austria and Russia in the 19th century before returning to Poland after World War I in 1918. The main industries include leather, glass, and chemicals.

Not Radom but the New Radom was founded in 1340, city Radom has already existed next to it (look down

). The main industries are quite different too.

Niezwykle lakoniczny opis jak na jedno z najstarszych polskich miast o bardzo bogatej historii, zwłaszcza na tle Grudziądza, Fromborka, Mikołajek, Szydłowca itd. Nie jest on najszczęśliwszy.

Unlikely place this thread for Radom to be found.

DocentX · Mar 24, 2010

-PePe- said:
Not Radom but the New Radom was founded in 1340, city Radom has already existed next to it (look down). The main industries are quite different too.

Niezwykle lakoniczny opis jak na jedno z najstarszych polskich miast o bardzo bogatej historii, zwłaszcza na tle Grudziądza, Fromborka, Mikołajek, Szydłowca itd. Nie jest on najszczęśliwszy.

Unlikely place this thread for Radom to be found.

If you have more detailed description of Radom's history feel free to post, but please remeber it's not a thread about Radom only :cheers:

heniek79 · Mar 24, 2010

Radom with its population reaching 250k doesn't quite match this thread. It's kinda weird. But well it's just like my opinion.

DocentX · Mar 24, 2010

heniek79 said:
Radom with its population reaching 250k doesn't quite match this thread. It's kinda weird. But well it's just like my opinion.

I've already posted some pic from other not so small cities like Płock and Bielsko-Biała, but you are right that the title can be misleading - I'll try to stick to places below 100.000 people :cheers:

DocentX · Mar 25, 2010

Łeba (Леба)

Łeba is a town in Middle Pomerania, Poland, located near Łebsko Lake and the mouth of the river Łeba on the coast of the Baltic Sea.

Leba is one of the biggest and most famous resorts in Poland. Leba has a wonderful microclimate. Wide beaches, proximity to the Slowinski National Park where you can watch the famous moving sand dunes. Leba is also ideal for sports, especially windsurfing and horse riding.

In the proximity of Łeba there is a large testing area for long-range rocket weapons. On this area the German long-range rocket Rheinbote was tested between 1941 and 1945. Also the V-1 flying bomb was tested here from 1943 to 1945. Between 1963 and 1973 33 Polish sounding rockets of the type Meteor were launched in Łeba.

Allegedly, the German general Erwin Rommel practiced desert warfare in the vast dunes of Łeba.

Sand dunes near Łeba

-PePe- · Mar 25, 2010

DocentX said:
If you have more detailed description of Radom's history feel free to post, but please remeber it's not a thread about Radom only :cheers:

I'll try to look for something better on net (or write) and I'll send you PM.

Anyway I find your threads about polish towns very interestning, so many beautiful places to visit:cheers:

DocentX · Mar 25, 2010

Ruciane-Nida (Руцяне-Ніда)

area of Great Mazurian Lakes:

Ruciane-Nida a town in Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, Poland, with 4,934 inhabitants (2004).

The town was formed in 1966 by uniting 3 villages: Ruciane, Nida (German: Nieden) and Wola Ratajowa.

lakes around Ruciane-Nida:

DocentX · Mar 26, 2010

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