Frampol
Encyclopedia
Frampol ' is a town in Poland
, in Lublin Voivodeship
, in Biłgoraj County. It has 1,440 inhabitants (2004).
The town was founded in 1705, with a unique, highly symmetric layout of streets in the shape of concentric rectangles around a large central square. In 1869 it lost its official status as a town, to recover it only in 1993. During World War II 90% of the town's buildings were destroyed in a raid
carried out by the Luftwaffe
on September 13, 1939. During the German occupation the town's significant Jewish community perished in the Holocaust. The town never fully recovered - its population today is less than half of what it was before the war.
Frampol, or a fictionalized version thereof, is the setting of many of the best stories of Isaac Bashevis Singer
, including Gimpel the Fool
.
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...
, in Lublin Voivodeship
Lublin Voivodeship
- Administrative division :Lublin Voivodeship is divided into 24 counties : 4 city counties and 20 land counties. These are further divided into 213 gminas....
, in Biłgoraj County. It has 1,440 inhabitants (2004).
The town was founded in 1705, with a unique, highly symmetric layout of streets in the shape of concentric rectangles around a large central square. In 1869 it lost its official status as a town, to recover it only in 1993. During World War II 90% of the town's buildings were destroyed in a raid
Bombing of Frampol
The Bombing of Frampol happened during the German invasion of Poland in 1939. On 13 September, the town of Frampol , with a population of 4,000, was bombed by the German Luftwaffe as a practice run for future missions. Over 60% to 90% of town's infrastructure was destroyed; only two streets...
carried out by the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
on September 13, 1939. During the German occupation the town's significant Jewish community perished in the Holocaust. The town never fully recovered - its population today is less than half of what it was before the war.
Frampol, or a fictionalized version thereof, is the setting of many of the best stories of Isaac Bashevis Singer
Isaac Bashevis Singer
Isaac Bashevis Singer – July 24, 1991) was a Polish Jewish American author noted for his short stories. He was one of the leading figures in the Yiddish literary movement, and received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1978...
, including Gimpel the Fool
Gimpel the Fool
"Gimpel the Fool" is a short story by Isaac Bashevis Singer, translated into English by Saul Bellow in 1953. It tells the story of Gimpel, a simple bread maker who is the butt of many of his town's jokes. It also gives its name to the collection first published in 1957...
.