Gryfice
Encyclopedia
Gryfice AUD is a town in Pomerania
, north-western Poland
with 16 632 inhabitants (2008). It is the capital of Gryfice County
in West Pomeranian Voivodeship
(since 1999), previously in Szczecin Voivodeship
(1975-1998).
and Swantopolk I, Duke of Pomerania
In 1262, throughout the German Ostsiedlung
, Wartislaw III, Duke of Pomerania
founded a town under Lübeck law
on the Rega
river. After his death, his successor, Barnim I, Duke of Pomerania
, named the settlement Civitat Griphemberch super Regam (Griffinsmountain) after the coat of arms symbol of the Dukes of Pomerania
. In 1365 the town entered the Hansa
and prospered due to the right of free navigation on the Rega.
A town wall was built and in the end of 13th century the construction of the St. Mary’s church was begun. In a document of 1386 a Latin school is mentioned, which is generally called the oldest in Pomerania. After the death of the last Pomeranian Duke and by the Treaty of Westphalia Greifenberg became part of Brandenburg-Prussia
in 1648 and part of Imperial Germany in 1871. In 1818 the town became the capital of the Greifenberg district (Kreis Greifenberg).
In 1894 the town was connected to the railway line Altdamm - Kolberg. On July 1, 1896 the Greifenberger Kleinbahn was opened, a narrow-gauge railway today used as a railway Museum.
At the end of World War II
Soviet Red Army
conquered the town, approximately 40 percent of the town was destroyed by a fire. Following the post-war boundary changes
, Greifenberg was renamed Gryfice and became Polish
. Its German population was expelled and the town was populated with Poles
, many themselves expellees
from Polish areas annexed by the Soviet Union
.
. Since the end of the war the majority of the town's population is composed of Catholics.
Pomerania
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...
, north-western 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...
with 16 632 inhabitants (2008). It is the capital of Gryfice County
Gryfice County
Gryfice County is a unit of territorial administration and local government in West Pomeranian Voivodeship, north-western Poland, on the Baltic coast. 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...
in West Pomeranian Voivodeship
West Pomeranian Voivodeship
West Pomeranian Voivodeship, , is a voivodeship in northwestern Poland. It borders on Pomeranian Voivodeship to the east, Greater Poland Voivodeship to the southeast, Lubusz Voivodeship to the south, the German federal-state of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania to the west, and the Baltic Sea to the north...
(since 1999), previously in Szczecin Voivodeship
Szczecin Voivodeship
Szczecin Voivodeship was a unit of administrative division and local government in Poland in the years 1975–1998, superseded by West Pomeranian Voivodeship.----Statistics :*Area: 10.000 km²...
(1975-1998).
History
In the area of Gryfice the Battle of Niekładź took plcace in 1121, in which Polish ruler Bolesław III Krzywousty defeated Wartislaw I, Duke of PomeraniaWartislaw I, Duke of Pomerania
Wartislaw I was the first historical ruler of the Duchy of Pomerania and the founder of the Griffin dynasty....
and Swantopolk I, Duke of Pomerania
In 1262, throughout the German Ostsiedlung
Ostsiedlung
Ostsiedlung , also called German eastward expansion, was the medieval eastward migration and settlement of Germans from modern day western and central Germany into less-populated regions and countries of eastern Central Europe and Eastern Europe. The affected area roughly stretched from Slovenia...
, Wartislaw III, Duke of Pomerania
Wartislaw III, Duke of Pomerania
Wartislaw III was a Griffin duke of Pomerania-Demmin. Son of Casimir II of Pomerania-Demmin and Ingardis of Denmark, he was married to a Sophia of an unknown house. As he did not have any children, Pomerania-Demmin ceased to exist with his death.Ingardis ruled Pomerania-Demmin in place of young...
founded a town under Lübeck law
Lübeck law
The Lübeck law was the constitution of a municipal form of government developed at Lübeck in Schleswig-Holstein after it was made a free city in 1226. The law provides for self-government. It replaced the personal rule of tribal monarchs descending from ancient times or the rule of the regional...
on the Rega
Rega
The Rega is a river in north-western Poland, flowing into the Baltic Sea. It is the country's 24th longest river, with a total length of 168 km and a catchment area of 2,725 km².Towns on the Rega:* Świdwin* Łobez* Resko* Płoty* Gryfice...
river. After his death, his successor, Barnim I, Duke of Pomerania
Barnim I, Duke of Pomerania
Barnim I the Good from the Griffin dynasty was a Duke of Pomerania from 1220 until his death.-Life:...
, named the settlement Civitat Griphemberch super Regam (Griffinsmountain) after the coat of arms symbol of the Dukes of Pomerania
Dukes of Pomerania
- 10th and 11th century – Dukes of the Slavic Pomeranian tribes :* 1046 mention of Zemuzil * 1113 Gallus Anonymus mentions several dukes of Pomerania: Swantibor, Gniewomir, and an unnamed duke besieged in Kołobrzeg.-Duchy of Pomerania:*1121–1135 Wartislaw I*1135–1155 Ratibor I, ancestor of the...
. In 1365 the town entered the Hansa
Hansa
The Hanseatic League, known as Hansa or Hanse in various Germanic languages, was a 13th–17th century alliance of European trading cities...
and prospered due to the right of free navigation on the Rega.
A town wall was built and in the end of 13th century the construction of the St. Mary’s church was begun. In a document of 1386 a Latin school is mentioned, which is generally called the oldest in Pomerania. After the death of the last Pomeranian Duke and by the Treaty of Westphalia Greifenberg became part of Brandenburg-Prussia
Brandenburg-Prussia
Brandenburg-Prussia is the historiographic denomination for the Early Modern realm of the Brandenburgian Hohenzollerns between 1618 and 1701. Based in the Electorate of Brandenburg, the main branch of the Hohenzollern intermarried with the branch ruling the Duchy of Prussia, and secured succession...
in 1648 and part of Imperial Germany in 1871. In 1818 the town became the capital of the Greifenberg district (Kreis Greifenberg).
In 1894 the town was connected to the railway line Altdamm - Kolberg. On July 1, 1896 the Greifenberger Kleinbahn was opened, a narrow-gauge railway today used as a railway Museum.
At the end of 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...
Soviet Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
conquered the town, approximately 40 percent of the town was destroyed by a fire. Following the post-war boundary changes
Oder-Neisse line
The Oder–Neisse line is the border between Germany and Poland which was drawn in the aftermath of World War II. The line is formed primarily by the Oder and Lusatian Neisse rivers, and meets the Baltic Sea west of the seaport cities of Szczecin and Świnoujście...
, Greifenberg was renamed Gryfice and became Polish
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...
. Its German population was expelled and the town was populated with Poles
Poles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
, many themselves expellees
Repatriation of Poles
Repatriation of Poles can refer to:*Repatriation of Poles *Repatriation of Poles...
from Polish areas annexed by the Soviet Union
Polish areas annexed by the Soviet Union
Immediately after the German invasion of Poland in 1939, which marked the beginning of World War II, the Soviet Union invaded the eastern regions of the Second Polish Republic, which Poles referred to as the "Kresy," and annexed territories totaling 201,015 km² with a population of 13,299,000...
.
Demographics
Before the end of World War II the (then German) inhabitants were predominantly ProtestanticProtestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
. Since the end of the war the majority of the town's population is composed of Catholics.
| Year | Inhabitants | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1740 | 1,724 | |
| 1782 | 1,890 | incl. 20 Jews Jews The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation... . |
| 1794 | 2,138 | incl. 19 Jews. |
| 1812 | 2,445 | incl. 15 Catholics and 35 Jews. |
| 1816 | 2,610 | incl. 44 Catholics and 35 Jews. |
| 1831 | 3,272 | incl. 13 Catholics and 82 Jews. |
| 1843 | 4,027 | incl. 9 Catholics and 132 Jews. |
| 1852 | 4,886 | incl. 15 Catholics and 129 Jews. |
| 1861 | 5,361 | incl. 31 Catholics, and 134 Jews. |
| 1900 | 6,477 | |
| 1925 | 8,370 | incl. 110 Catholics, 80 Jews and 630 others. |
| 1939 | 10,800 | |
| 1946 | 4,900 | after expulsion of Germans after World War II 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... and war losses |
| 1950 | 8,700 | |
| 1960 | 11,600 | |
| 1970 | 13,200 | |
| 1980 | 15,300 | |
| 1990 | 17,600 | |
| 2000 | 17,300 | |
Notable residents
- Moriz SeelerMoriz SeelerMoriz Seeler was a German poet, writer, film producer, and man of the theatre. He was also a victim of the Holocaust....
(1896—1942), author and film producer - Adolf von ThaddenAdolf von ThaddenAdolf von Thadden Von Thadden was born at the noble estate of Gut Trieglaff near Greifenberg in Pomerania – was a leading far right German politician...
, German populist politician - Friedrich Heinrich Albert WangerinFriedrich Heinrich Albert WangerinFriedrich Heinrich Albert Wangerin was a German mathematician.-Early life:Wangerin was born on November 18, 1844 in Greifenberg Pomerania, Prussia...
(1844–1933), mathematician