Radziejów
Encyclopedia
Radziejów r is a town in Poland
, in Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship
, about 45 km south of Toruń
. It is the capital of Radziejów County
. Its population is 5,804 (2004).
. In the second half of the 13th century it grew into a significant center of local administration. In 1252 its official founding document was issued by the local prince, and in 1292 it obtained its town charter based on Magdeburg Law.
In 1793 the town found itself in Prussia
following the Partitions of Poland
. In 1807 it passed to the short lived Duchy of Warsaw
, and then in 1815 it became a part of the Congress Poland
in the Russian Empire
. In the course of the 19th century the town declined and in 1871 it lost its city charter.
In 1918 it became a part of reconstituted, independent Poland
and was again granted city rights in 1919 . In 1931 it had 4,025 inhabitants.
The town had a Jewish community since the 18th century, with 15 Jews (5% of the population) recorded in 1793. Restrictions on Jewish settlement were in force from 1822 to 1862. According to the 1921 census
the town had a Jewish community consisting of 599 people, or 19.0 percent of its total population.
In 1933 Radziejów obtained a railway connection as the newly built Polish Coal Trunk-Line
passed just 3 km west of the town. Though no dedicated Radziejów station was built, the inhabitants of the town could board trains in nearby Chełmce.
During World War II
, the German army entered the town on September 9, 1939. During the German occupation, the town was part of Reichsgau Wartheland
, a portion of Poland directly annexed by Germany. In 1943 the Germans renamed the town to Rädichau.
In the course of the Holocaust, the town's Jewish population was confined in a ghetto which existed from 1941 until 1942, with about 800 inmates.
The ghetto was liquidated in 1942 when its population was transported to Chelmno extermination camp
in April, 1942
where they were killed in gas van
s by carbon monoxide
exhaust. The town was liberated from the Nazis by the Soviet army on January 20, 1945.
After the war, some Jewish survivors returned to Radziejów in the summer of 1945, where they found their houses and businesses taken over by Poles. After the murder on the night of 29/30 September 1945 of two Jews in nearby village Osięciny
, Radziejów's Jews fled the town, but returned a few weeks later. In 1946 they organized a local branch of the Central Committee of Polish Jews
(Centralny Komitet Żydów Polskich), which functioned until 1948 by which time most of its members left Radziejów. After 1949 no organised Jewish community existed and only a few individual Jews remained in the town during the subsequent decades.
In 1979 a new hospital opened in Radziejów designed to accommodate 272 patient beds (today functioning as Samodzielny Publiczny Zakład Opieki Zdrowotnej w Radziejowie).
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 Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship
Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship
-Transportation:Transportation infrastructure is of critical importance to the voivodeship's economy. Kuyavia-Pomerania is a major node point in the Polish transportation system. Railway lines from the South and East pass through Bydgoszcz in order to reach the major ports on the Baltic Sea...
, about 45 km south of Toruń
Torun
Toruń is an ancient city in northern Poland, on the Vistula River. Its population is more than 205,934 as of June 2009. Toruń is one of the oldest cities in Poland. The medieval old town of Toruń is the birthplace of the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus....
. It is the capital of Radziejów County
Radziejów County
Radziejów County is a unit of territorial administration and local government in Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, north-central 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 Radziejów,...
. Its population is 5,804 (2004).
History
The earliest known mention of Radziejów is found in a document from 1142, which states that it was given to the monastery in MogilnoMogilno
Mogilno is a town in central Poland, situated in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship , previously in Bydgoszcz Voivodeship .-History:...
. In the second half of the 13th century it grew into a significant center of local administration. In 1252 its official founding document was issued by the local prince, and in 1292 it obtained its town charter based on Magdeburg Law.
In 1793 the town found itself in 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...
following the 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...
. In 1807 it passed to the short lived Duchy of Warsaw
Duchy of Warsaw
The Duchy of Warsaw was a Polish state established by Napoleon I in 1807 from the Polish lands ceded by the Kingdom of Prussia under the terms of the Treaties of Tilsit. The duchy was held in personal union by one of Napoleon's allies, King Frederick Augustus I of Saxony...
, and then in 1815 it became a part of the Congress Poland
Congress Poland
The Kingdom of Poland , informally known as Congress Poland , created in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna, was a personal union of the Russian parcel of Poland with the Russian Empire...
in the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
. In the course of the 19th century the town declined and in 1871 it lost its city charter.
In 1918 it became a part of reconstituted, independent Poland
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 was again granted city rights in 1919 . In 1931 it had 4,025 inhabitants.
The town had a Jewish community since the 18th century, with 15 Jews (5% of the population) recorded in 1793. Restrictions on Jewish settlement were in force from 1822 to 1862. According to the 1921 census
Polish census of 1921
The Polish census of 1921 or First General Census in Poland was the first census in the Second Polish Republic, performed on September 30, 1921 by the Main Bureau of Statistics ....
the town had a Jewish community consisting of 599 people, or 19.0 percent of its total population.
In 1933 Radziejów obtained a railway connection as the newly built Polish Coal Trunk-Line
Polish Coal Trunk-Line
The Coal Trunk-Line is one of the most important rail connections in Poland.It crosses the central part of the country, from the coal mines and steelworks of Upper Silesia in the South to the Baltic Sea port of Gdynia in the North. The line is used mostly by freight trains: passenger connections...
passed just 3 km west of the town. Though no dedicated Radziejów station was built, the inhabitants of the town could board trains in nearby Chełmce.
During 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...
, the German army entered the town on September 9, 1939. During the German occupation, the town was part of Reichsgau Wartheland
Reichsgau Wartheland
Reichsgau Wartheland was a Nazi German Reichsgau formed from Polish territory annexed in 1939. It comprised the Greater Poland and adjacent areas, and only in part matched the area of the similarly named pre-Versailles Prussian province of Posen...
, a portion of Poland directly annexed by Germany. In 1943 the Germans renamed the town to Rädichau.
In the course of the Holocaust, the town's Jewish population was confined in a ghetto which existed from 1941 until 1942, with about 800 inmates.
The ghetto was liquidated in 1942 when its population was transported to Chelmno extermination camp
Chelmno extermination camp
Chełmno extermination camp, also known as the Kulmhof concentration camp, was a Nazi German extermination camp that was situated 50 kilometres from Łódź, near a small village called Chełmno nad Nerem . After annexation by Germany Kulmhof was included into Reichsgau Wartheland in 1939...
in April, 1942
where they were killed in gas van
Gas van
The gas van or gas wagon was an extermination method devised by Nazi Germany to kill victims of the regime. It was also rumored that analog of such device was used by the Soviet Union on an experimental basis during the Great Purge-Nazi Germany:...
s by carbon monoxide
Carbon monoxide
Carbon monoxide , also called carbonous oxide, is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas that is slightly lighter than air. It is highly toxic to humans and animals in higher quantities, although it is also produced in normal animal metabolism in low quantities, and is thought to have some normal...
exhaust. The town was liberated from the Nazis by the Soviet army on January 20, 1945.
After the war, some Jewish survivors returned to Radziejów in the summer of 1945, where they found their houses and businesses taken over by Poles. After the murder on the night of 29/30 September 1945 of two Jews in nearby village Osięciny
Osieciny
Osięciny is a village in Radziejów County, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, in north-central Poland. It is the seat of the gmina called Gmina Osięciny. It lies approximately east of Radziejów and south of Toruń....
, Radziejów's Jews fled the town, but returned a few weeks later. In 1946 they organized a local branch of the Central Committee of Polish Jews
Central Committee of Polish Jews
The Central Committee of Polish Jews also referred to as the Central Committee of Jews in Poland and abbreviated CKŻP, was a state-sponsored political representation of Jews in Poland at the end of World War II...
(Centralny Komitet Żydów Polskich), which functioned until 1948 by which time most of its members left Radziejów. After 1949 no organised Jewish community existed and only a few individual Jews remained in the town during the subsequent decades.
In 1979 a new hospital opened in Radziejów designed to accommodate 272 patient beds (today functioning as Samodzielny Publiczny Zakład Opieki Zdrowotnej w Radziejowie).
