Regierungsbezirk Danzig was a Regierungsbezirk

Regierungsbezirk

In Germany, a Government District, in German: Regierungsbezirk – is a subdivision of certain federal states .They are above the Kreise, Landkreise, and kreisfreie Städte...

, or administrative region, within the 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...

n Province of West Prussia

West Prussia

West Prussia was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1773–1824 and 1878–1919/20 which was created out of the earlier Polish province of Royal Prussia...

 from 1815-1920. The regional capital was Danzig (Gdańsk)

Gdansk

Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...

.

History

Polish

Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...

 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...

 was annexed by the Kingdom of Prussia

Kingdom of Prussia

The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...

 during the late 18th century Partitions of Poland

Partitions of Poland

The Partitions of Poland or Partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in the second half of the 18th century and ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland for 123 years...

, with the city of Danzig becoming Prussian in 1793. The territory was administered in the new province of West Prussia

West Prussia

West Prussia was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1773–1824 and 1878–1919/20 which was created out of the earlier Polish province of Royal Prussia...

.

In 1815 after the Napoleonic Wars

Napoleonic Wars

The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...

, West Prussia was divided into Regierungsbezirk Marienwerder and Regierungsbezirk Danzig. While the governor and provincial authorities were based in Danzig, the provincial court was in the town of Marienwerder (Kwidzyn)

Kwidzyn

Kwidzyn is a town in northern Poland on the Liwa river, with 40,008 inhabitants . It has been a part of the Pomeranian Voivodeship since 1999, and was previously in the Elbląg Voivodeship . It is the capital of Kwidzyn County.-History:...

.

West Prussia was reorganized into Kreise, or districts, within each government region from 1815-18. The Danzig region included the urban districts (Stadtkreise) of Danzig and Elbing (Elbląg)

Elblag

Elbląg is a city in northern Poland with 127,892 inhabitants . It is the capital of Elbląg County and has been assigned to the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship since 1999. Before then it was the capital of Elbląg Voivodeship and a county seat in Gdańsk Voivodeship...

, as well as the rural districts (Landkreise) of Berent, Danzig, Elbing, Karthaus, Marienburg, Neustadt, and Preußisch Stargard.

By 1920, Landkreis Danzig had been divided into the rural districts of Danziger Höhe and Danziger Niederung; the seats of each district were in the city of Danzig. Regierungsbezirk Danzig also included the rural districts of Dirschau and Putzig.

As a result of 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...

, 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...

 allocated most of West Prussia to the Second Polish Republic

Second Polish Republic

The Second Polish Republic, Second Commonwealth of Poland or interwar Poland refers to Poland between the two world wars; a period in Polish history in which Poland was restored as an independent state. Officially known as the Republic of Poland or the Commonwealth of Poland , the Polish state was...

, and Regierungsbezirk Danzig was dissolved in 1920. The city of Danzig and its environs became the Free City of Danzig

Free City of Danzig

The Free City of Danzig was a semi-autonomous city-state that existed between 1920 and 1939, consisting of the Baltic Sea port of Danzig and surrounding areas....

. A few areas of the Danzig administrative region remained in the Free State of Prussia in Weimar Germany

Weimar Republic

The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the parliamentary republic established in 1919 in Germany to replace the imperial form of government...

, however. The districts of Marienburg and Elbing and the city of Elbing were added to a truncated Regierungsbezirk Marienwerder, which was renamed Regierungsbezirk Westpreußen when it was transferred from defunct West Prussia to the Province of East Prussia

Province of East Prussia

The Province of East Prussia was a province of Prussia from 1773–1829 and 1878-1945. Composed of the historical region East Prussia, the province's capital was Königsberg ....

.

Urban districts

1. Stadtkreis Danzig
   Gdansk
   Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...
   
    (Gdańsk since 1945)
2. Stadtkreis Elbing
   Elblag
   Elbląg is a city in northern Poland with 127,892 inhabitants . It is the capital of Elbląg County and has been assigned to the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship since 1999. Before then it was the capital of Elbląg Voivodeship and a county seat in Gdańsk Voivodeship...
   
    (Elbląg between 1466-1772 and since 1945)

Rural districts

1. Berent
2. Danzig
3. Elbing
4. Karthaus (Kartuzy between 1466-1772, 1920-1939 and since 1945)
5. Marienburg (Malbork between 1466-1772 and since 1945)
6. Neustadt an der Rheda (Wejherowo between 1466-1772 and since 1945)
7. Preußisch Stargard

Rural districts

1. Berent (Westpr.) (Kościerzyna between 1466-1772, 1920-1939 and since 1945)
2. Danziger Höhe (seat: Danzig)
3. Danziger Niederung (seat: Danzig)
4. Dirschau (Tczew between 1466-1772, 1807-1815, 1920-1939 and since 1945)
5. Elbing
6. Karthaus (Westpr.)
7. Marienburg (Westpr.) (Malbork between 1466-1772 and since 1945)
8. Neustadt (Westpr.)
9. Preußisch Stargard (Starogard Gdański between 1466-1772, 1807-1815, 1920-1939 and since 1945)
10. Putzig (Puck between 1466-1772, 1920-1939 and since 1945)