Chojnice
Encyclopedia
Chojnice AUD is a town in northern Poland
with 39 670 inhabitants (2004), near famous Tuchola Forest
, Lake Charzykowskie and many other water reservoirs. It is the capital of the Chojnice County
.
Chojnice is situated in the Pomeranian Voivodeship
(since 1999 and before 1975). It was in Bydgoszcz Voivodeship
from 1975 to 1998.
, Teutonic Order, Royal Prussia
, later Prussian Province of West Prussia. The center of the Kashub movement.
Duchy of Pomerelia or Eastern Pomerania
(POLISH: Pommerellen)
A
Najstarsza pośrednia informacja o Chojnicach zawarta jest w dokumencie wystawionym przez Mestwina II w 1275 roku augustianom z pobliskiej wsi Swornegacie. W testacji wymieniony został Mislibous Malowy de Choyniz[6], uważany za pierwszego znanego z imienia mieszkańca miasta. Już wcześniej istniał tu gród, o wybitnie obronnym położeniu na przesmyku między nieistniejącymi już jeziorami Jeleńcz i Zielonym. W roku 1309 miasto znalazło się pod władzą Krzyżaków, którzy w ciągu pierwszej połowy XIV wieku umocnili Chojnice, powiększyli obszar należący do miasta i wydali ostatecznie w roku 1360 nowy dokument lokacyjny.
Teutonic Order 1309 - 1466
Chojnice indirect information is contained in a document issued by Mestwina II in 1275 Augustinians of the nearby village of Swornegacie. As was mentioned testacji Mislibous Malowy de Choyniz [6], considered the first known inhabitant of the city name. Already existed a castle, a very defensive position on the isthmus between lakes Jeleńcz already densities and Green. In 1309 the town was under the rule of the Teutonic Knights, who during the first half of the fourteenth century fortified Chojnice, expanded the area belonging to the city and eventually released in the year 1360 a new foundation document.
Teutonic Order 1309 - 1466
1309 – German Teutonic Order rule: Eastern Pomerania (often known as Pomerelia), became much absorbed into the Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights
1340 - 1360 church Hl. Johannes Täufer; 14th century walls and 22 towers being erected by the Teutonic Order
1410 – Polish army occupies the town but has to return it to the Order according to the Treaty of Thorn
1417-1436 Konitz becomes an important centre for textile production
18.09.1454 – Polish army of King Kazimierz Jagiellończyk loses the Battle of Konitz
28.09.1466 – Teutonic Order has to surrender Konitz to the Polish army, after three month siege
Poland
1466 - 1772 (province of Royal Prussia
)
19.10.1466 Konitz being annexed by Poland according to the 2nd Treaty of Thorn
1555 – city council accepts reformation officially, the Protestants take over the church, the Roman Catholic priest Jan Siński dies in the following turmoil
1620 – the Jesuits fight the reformation movement
10.04.1627 - town burns
18.12.1657 - town burns
1655 - 1660 war against Sweden, see Battle of Chojnice (1656)
1700 - 1721 war
15.04.1742 - town burns third time
Prussia
1772 - 1871
12.09.1772 – Konitz becomes Prussian / First partition of Poland
1864 - telegraph to Stettin
German Empire
1871- 1920 (Province of West Prussia)
15.11.1871 – railway to Schneidemühl (Piła)
1870 – Gas power plant
1873 - railway to Dirschau (Tczew
)
1877 – railway to Stettin
1886 – hospital
1894 – railway to Nakel (Nakło)
1900 – water supply system and electricity power plant
1902 – railway to Berent (Kościerzyna
)
1900-1902 Konitz ritual murder case & antisemitic pogrom
1909 – used water system
1912 – ,,Gazeta Chojnicka" first Polish language newspaper in town
Poland
1920-1939
31.01.1920 – Polish troops enter the town according to the Treaty of Versailles
, town being renamed Chojnice
06.08.1932 – regional museum Chojnice
Third Reich 1939 - 1945 (Reichsgau Westpreußen)
01.09.1939 – 4.45 o´clock German Wehrmacht occupies Chojnice, town renamed Konitz (see Battle of Chojnice (1939)
)
15.09.1939 – execution of three Poles in the city forest (Stadtwald), followed by executions of around 500 more in October and November
Poland
1945
14.02.1945 – Red Army occupies the town, 800 soldiers die, town centre heavily damaged (45%). reconstruction by Polish authorities follows.
11.07.1959 – first regular bus service after World War II
01.10.1989 – catholic church "Mother of God Queen of Poland"
2002 – new J.-K.-Łukowicz-hospital
29.08.2002 - John the Baptist becomes patron of the city of Chojnice
13.10.2003 - new catholic church "Mary of Fatima"
The population of Chojnice has increased generally since 1901. However, events in history such as World War I
and World War II
reduced the town's population. This is evident in the 1921 census where the population was reduced by 300 people, due to the men having been sent to the World War I fronts and in 1920 to Poland's war against Soviet Russia
. Many of them were killed, while some ethnic Germans left the town after World War I.
Again, it is evident in the 1948 census that the population was reduced by 1,900 people compared to 1933. This was due to ethnic Germans having fled or being expelled
while parts of the Polish population was either forced to work in Germany or forced to leave during Nazi
rule.
A census has been conducted every decade since 1948 and the results show that the population has increased, however the increase has slowed since 1980. The reasons for this are unknown though may be related to emigration of many young people to the larger towns and cities where finding a job is much easier. The next census for the town is scheduled for 2010.
with:
Emsdetten
, Bad Bevensen
, Bayeux
, Waalwijk
, Mazyr
, Korsun-Shevchenkivskyi
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
with 39 670 inhabitants (2004), near famous Tuchola Forest
Tuchola Forest
The Tuchola Forest is a large forest near the town of Tuchola in northern Poland, and lies between the Brda and Wda Rivers. It contains the Tuchola Forest National Park, which is at the core of the Tuchola Forest Biosphere Reserve, designated by UNESCO in 2010.- Landscape :The area was formed...
, Lake Charzykowskie and many other water reservoirs. It is the capital of the Chojnice County
Chojnice County
Chojnice County is a unit of territorial administration and local government in Pomeranian Voivodeship, northern Poland. It came into being on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Polish local government reforms passed in 1998. Its administrative seat and largest town is Chojnice, which lies ...
.
Chojnice is situated in the Pomeranian Voivodeship
Pomeranian Voivodeship
Pomeranian Voivodeship, or Pomerania Province , is a voivodeship, or province, in north-central Poland. It comprises most of Pomerelia , as well as an area east of the Vistula River...
(since 1999 and before 1975). It was in Bydgoszcz Voivodeship
Bydgoszcz Voivodeship
Bydgoszcz Voivodeship was a unit of administrative division and local government in Poland in the years 1975–1998, superseded by Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship. Capital city: Bydgoszcz Area: Statistics : Population: inhabitants...
from 1975 to 1998.
History and Timeline
Part of Eastern PomeraniaPomerania
Pomerania is a historical region on the south shore of the Baltic Sea. Divided between Germany and Poland, it stretches roughly from the Recknitz River near Stralsund in the West, via the Oder River delta near Szczecin, to the mouth of the Vistula River near Gdańsk in the East...
, Teutonic Order, Royal Prussia
Royal Prussia
Royal Prussia was a Region of the Kingdom of Poland and of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth . Polish Prussia included Pomerelia, Chełmno Land , Malbork Voivodeship , Gdańsk , Toruń , and Elbląg . It is distinguished from Ducal Prussia...
, later Prussian Province of West Prussia. The center of the Kashub movement.
Duchy of Pomerelia or Eastern Pomerania
Eastern Pomerania
Eastern Pomerania can refer to distinct parts of Pomerania:*the historical region of Farther Pomerania, which was the eastern part of the Duchy, later Province of Pomerania...
(POLISH: Pommerellen)
A
Najstarsza pośrednia informacja o Chojnicach zawarta jest w dokumencie wystawionym przez Mestwina II w 1275 roku augustianom z pobliskiej wsi Swornegacie. W testacji wymieniony został Mislibous Malowy de Choyniz[6], uważany za pierwszego znanego z imienia mieszkańca miasta. Już wcześniej istniał tu gród, o wybitnie obronnym położeniu na przesmyku między nieistniejącymi już jeziorami Jeleńcz i Zielonym. W roku 1309 miasto znalazło się pod władzą Krzyżaków, którzy w ciągu pierwszej połowy XIV wieku umocnili Chojnice, powiększyli obszar należący do miasta i wydali ostatecznie w roku 1360 nowy dokument lokacyjny.
Teutonic Order 1309 - 1466
Chojnice indirect information is contained in a document issued by Mestwina II in 1275 Augustinians of the nearby village of Swornegacie. As was mentioned testacji Mislibous Malowy de Choyniz [6], considered the first known inhabitant of the city name. Already existed a castle, a very defensive position on the isthmus between lakes Jeleńcz already densities and Green. In 1309 the town was under the rule of the Teutonic Knights, who during the first half of the fourteenth century fortified Chojnice, expanded the area belonging to the city and eventually released in the year 1360 a new foundation document.
Teutonic Order 1309 - 1466
1309 – German Teutonic Order rule: Eastern Pomerania (often known as Pomerelia), became much absorbed into the Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights
Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights
The State of the Teutonic Order, , also Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights or Ordensstaat , was formed in 1224 during the Northern Crusades, the Teutonic Knights' conquest of the pagan West-Baltic Old Prussians in the 13th century....
1340 - 1360 church Hl. Johannes Täufer; 14th century walls and 22 towers being erected by the Teutonic Order
1410 – Polish army occupies the town but has to return it to the Order according to the Treaty of Thorn
1417-1436 Konitz becomes an important centre for textile production
18.09.1454 – Polish army of King Kazimierz Jagiellończyk loses the Battle of Konitz
28.09.1466 – Teutonic Order has to surrender Konitz to the Polish army, after three month siege
Poland
Kingdom of Poland (1385–1569)
The Kingdom of Poland of the Jagiellons was the Polish state created by the accession of Jogaila , Grand Duke of Lithuania, to the Polish throne in 1386. The Union of Krewo or Krėva Act, united Poland and Lithuania under the rule of a single monarch...
1466 - 1772 (province of Royal Prussia
Royal Prussia
Royal Prussia was a Region of the Kingdom of Poland and of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth . Polish Prussia included Pomerelia, Chełmno Land , Malbork Voivodeship , Gdańsk , Toruń , and Elbląg . It is distinguished from Ducal Prussia...
)
19.10.1466 Konitz being annexed by Poland according to the 2nd Treaty of Thorn
1555 – city council accepts reformation officially, the Protestants take over the church, the Roman Catholic priest Jan Siński dies in the following turmoil
1620 – the Jesuits fight the reformation movement
10.04.1627 - town burns
18.12.1657 - town burns
1655 - 1660 war against Sweden, see Battle of Chojnice (1656)
Battle of Chojnice (1656)
The Battle of Chojnice was a surprise nighttime attack followed by a run-and-chase battle during The Deluge.-Prelude:...
1700 - 1721 war
15.04.1742 - town burns third time
Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
1772 - 1871
12.09.1772 – Konitz becomes Prussian / First partition of Poland
1864 - telegraph to Stettin
Szczecin
Szczecin , is the capital city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in Poland. It is the country's seventh-largest city and the largest seaport in Poland on the Baltic Sea. As of June 2009 the population was 406,427....
German Empire
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
1871- 1920 (Province of West Prussia)
15.11.1871 – railway to Schneidemühl (Piła)
1870 – Gas power plant
1873 - railway to Dirschau (Tczew
Tczew
Tczew is a town on the Vistula River in Eastern Pomerania, Kociewie, northern Poland with 60,279 inhabitants . It is an important railway junction with a classification yard dating to the Prussian Eastern Railway...
)
1877 – railway to Stettin
1886 – hospital
1894 – railway to Nakel (Nakło)
1900 – water supply system and electricity power plant
1902 – railway to Berent (Kościerzyna
Koscierzyna
Kościerzyna is a town in Kashubia in Gdańsk Pomerania region, northern Poland, with some 24,000 inhabitants. It has been the capital of Kościerzyna County in Pomeranian Voivodeship since 1999; previously it was in Gdańsk Voivodeship from 1975 to 1998...
)
1900-1902 Konitz ritual murder case & antisemitic pogrom
Konitz Affair
The Konitz Affair was an accusation of ritual murder, based on the unexplained assassination of the student Ernst Winter in Konitz, West Prussia. Winter, the son of an architect of Prechlau, attended the gymnasium of Konitz. Although only nineteen years old, he was known for his licentiousness. On...
1909 – used water system
1912 – ,,Gazeta Chojnicka" first Polish language newspaper in town
Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
1920-1939
31.01.1920 – Polish troops enter the town according to the Treaty of Versailles
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June 1919, exactly five years after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The other Central Powers on the German side of...
, town being renamed Chojnice
06.08.1932 – regional museum Chojnice
Third Reich 1939 - 1945 (Reichsgau Westpreußen)
01.09.1939 – 4.45 o´clock German Wehrmacht occupies Chojnice, town renamed Konitz (see Battle of Chojnice (1939)
Battle of Chojnice (1939)
Battle of Chojnice during the 1939 German invasion of Poland occurred on the first day of the hostilities, September 1. A detached unit of the Polish army, Chojnice Detached Group under col...
)
15.09.1939 – execution of three Poles in the city forest (Stadtwald), followed by executions of around 500 more in October and November
Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
1945
14.02.1945 – Red Army occupies the town, 800 soldiers die, town centre heavily damaged (45%). reconstruction by Polish authorities follows.
11.07.1959 – first regular bus service after World War II
01.10.1989 – catholic church "Mother of God Queen of Poland"
2002 – new J.-K.-Łukowicz-hospital
29.08.2002 - John the Baptist becomes patron of the city of Chojnice
13.10.2003 - new catholic church "Mary of Fatima"
Population
| Date | Number of inhabitants |
|---|---|
| 1921 | 10,400 |
| 1933 | 14,300 |
| 1948 | 12,400 |
| 1960 | 19,600 |
| 1970 | 23,500 |
| 1980 | 32,000 |
| 1990 | 37,700 |
| 2000 | 40,600 |
| 2004 | 39,670 |
The population of Chojnice has increased generally since 1901. However, events in history such as World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
reduced the town's population. This is evident in the 1921 census where the population was reduced by 300 people, due to the men having been sent to the World War I fronts and in 1920 to Poland's war against Soviet Russia
Polish-Soviet War
The Polish–Soviet War was an armed conflict between Soviet Russia and Soviet Ukraine and the Second Polish Republic and the Ukrainian People's Republic—four states in post–World War I Europe...
. Many of them were killed, while some ethnic Germans left the town after World War I.
Again, it is evident in the 1948 census that the population was reduced by 1,900 people compared to 1933. This was due to ethnic Germans having fled or being expelled
Expulsion of Germans after World War II
The later stages of World War II, and the period after the end of that war, saw the forced migration of millions of German nationals and ethnic Germans from various European states and territories, mostly into the areas which would become post-war Germany and post-war Austria...
while parts of the Polish population was either forced to work in Germany or forced to leave during Nazi
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
rule.
A census has been conducted every decade since 1948 and the results show that the population has increased, however the increase has slowed since 1980. The reasons for this are unknown though may be related to emigration of many young people to the larger towns and cities where finding a job is much easier. The next census for the town is scheduled for 2010.
People
- Nathanael Matthaeus von Wolf born here
- Willi ApelWilli ApelWilli Apel was a German-American musicologist.Apel was born in Konitz, West Prussia. He studied mathematics from 1912 to 1914, and then again after World War I from 1918 to 1922, in various universities in Weimar Germany. Throughout his studies, he had an interest in music and taught piano lessons...
(1893–1988), German-US musicologist; born here - Hartwig CasselHartwig CasselHartwig Cassel was a chess journalist, editor and promoter in Great Britain and the United States of America....
(1850–1929), journalist - Emil Albert FriedbergEmil Albert FriedbergEmil Albert Friedberg was a German canonist.Friedberg was born at Konitz, Province of Prussia. His Jewish parents had joined the Evangelical Church in Prussia before his birth, letting him baptised Protestant. Friedberg was educated at Berlin and Heidelberg...
(1837–1910), jurist - Johann Ernst GotzkowskyJohann Ernst GotzkowskyJohann Ernst Gotzkowsky was a Prussian merchant with a successful trade in trinkets, silk, taft and porcelain. A relief on Meissen porcelain introduced in 1740s was named after him. Moreover he acted as a diplomat and art dealer...
, a manufacturer, diplomat and art trader - Hans KrügerHans KrügerHans Krüger was a former member of the NSDAP party and other Nazi organizations who served as a judge in occupied Poland during Second World War. After the war he became West German politician of the Christian Democratic Union...
, German Nazi party activist - Rudolf Arnold NieberdingRudolf Arnold NieberdingRudolf Arnold Nieberding was a German jurist and politician.-Biography:Nieberding was born in Konitz to Karl Nieberding, a teacher and later director of the “Gymnasium Petrinum” in Recklinghausen....
(1838–1912), jurist and politician - Johann Daniel TitiusJohann Daniel TitiusJohann Daniel Titius was a German astronomer and a professor at Wittenberg.Titius was born in Konitz , Royal Prussia, and died in Wittenberg...
, German astronomer - Michał Kazimierz Radziwiłł, Polish-Lithuanian noble and magnate
- Burkhard von SchwandenBurkhard von SchwandenBurchard von Schwanden was the 12th Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, serving from 1282 or 1283-1290.Burchard hailed from a patrician part of Berne in Switzerland. He was a monk in Hitzkirch before becoming the Komtur of Konitz and advancing in 1277 to the rank of a regional Komtur of...
, Grand Master of the Teutonic Order between 1283 and 1290 - Elisabeth (Boehm) Ronget (1893–1972), post-cubist painter
See also
- Chojnice (PKP station)Chojnice (PKP station)Chojnice is a PKP railway station in Chojnice , Poland.-Lines crossing the station:- External links :*** at Google Local- References :*Chojnice article at , URL accessed at 7 March 2006...
- Battle of ChojniceBattle of ChojniceThe Battle of Chojnice occurred on September 18, 1454 by the town of Chojnice between Poland and the Teutonic Knights during the Thirteen Years' War, it was won by the latter. The Teutonic army had around 9000 cavalry and 6000 infantry under Bernard Szumborski...
(1454) - Battle of Chojnice (1656)Battle of Chojnice (1656)The Battle of Chojnice was a surprise nighttime attack followed by a run-and-chase battle during The Deluge.-Prelude:...
- Battle of Chojnice (1939)Battle of Chojnice (1939)Battle of Chojnice during the 1939 German invasion of Poland occurred on the first day of the hostilities, September 1. A detached unit of the Polish army, Chojnice Detached Group under col...
Twin towns — sister cities
Chojnice is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with:
Emsdetten
Emsdetten
Emsdetten is a town in the district of Steinfurt, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.- Geography :Emsdetten is situated on the river Ems, approx...
, Bad Bevensen
Bad Bevensen
Bad Bevensen is a town in the north of the district Uelzen in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated to the east of the Lüneburg Heath . The Ilmenau river, a tributary of the Elbe, flows through Bad Bevensen...
, Bayeux
Bayeux
Bayeux is a commune in the Calvados department in Normandy in northwestern France.Bayeux is the home of the Bayeux Tapestry, which depicts the events leading up to the Norman conquest of England.-Administration:Bayeux is a sub-prefecture of Calvados...
, Waalwijk
Waalwijk
Waalwijk is a municipality and a city in the southern Netherlands.It is a member of the Langstraat.It has a population of around 38,920 and is located near the motorways A59 and N261...
, Mazyr
Mazyr
Mazyr, also Mozyr is a city in the Homiel Province of Belarus on the Pripyat River about 210 km east of Pinsk and 100 km northwest of Chernobyl and is located at approximately . The population is 111,770 . The total urban area including Kalinkavičy across the river has a population of...
, Korsun-Shevchenkivskyi
Korsun-Shevchenkivskyi
Korsun-Shevchenkivskyi is a city located in the Cherkasy Oblast in central Ukraine. The city rests on the banks of the Ros' River, and is the administrative center of the Korsun-Shevchenkivskyi Raion ....
External links
- Chojnice city website
- Chojnice city portal website
- www.miastochojnice.pl
- Officers, addresses, phone numbers
- Chamber of Commerce/Tourism
- Conitz map by A. Arrowsmith. London Published 2nd Oct. 1812
- A site devoted to providing information about city history (Polish language)