This article is about the present-day regional subdivision of Poland. For information on the general historical region to which it roughly corresponds, seeGreater Poland.
Greater Poland Voivodeship is second in area and third in population among Poland's sixteen voivodeships, with an area of 29,826 square kilometres (11,516 sq mi) and a population of close to 3.5 million. Its capital city isPoznań; other important cities includeKalisz,Konin,Piła,Ostrów Wielkopolski,Gniezno (an early capital of Poland) andLeszno. It is bordered by seven other voivodeships:West Pomeranian to the northwest,Pomeranian to the north,Kuyavian-Pomeranian to the north-east,Łódź to the south-east,Opole to the south,Lower Silesian to the southwest andLubusz to the west.
Greater Poland, sometimes called the "cradle of Poland," formed the heart of the 10th-centuryearly Polish state.Poznań andGniezno were early centers of royal power, but following the region's devastation bypagan rebellion in the 1030s, and an invasion byBretislaus I of Bohemia in 1038, the capital was moved byCasimir the Restorer from Gniezno toKraków.[3] The two cities are seats of Poland's oldest diocese (Poznań, est. in 968) and archdiocese (Gniezno, est. in 1000), playing a crucial role in theChristianization of Poland.
Historical coat of arms of theKalisz Region in Greater Poland
In thetestament of Bolesław III Wrymouth, which initiated the period of fragmentation of Poland (1138–1320), the western part of Greater Poland (including Poznań) was granted toMieszko III the Old. The eastern part, with Gniezno andKalisz, was part of theDuchy of Kraków, granted toWładysław II the Exile. However, for most of the period the two parts were under a single ruler, and were known as theDuchy of Greater Poland (although at times there were separately ruled duchies of Poznań, Gniezno,Kalisz andUjście). It was one of the leading and fastest developing regions of Poland, withmunicipal rights modeled after Poznań and Kalisz becoming the basis of municipal form of government for several towns in the region, as two of five local Polish variants of medieval town rights. The region came under the control ofWładysław I the Elbow-High in 1314, and thus became part of the reunited Poland of which Władysław was crowned king in 1320.
In the reunited kingdom, and later in thePolish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the country came to be divided into administrative units calledvoivodeships. In the case of the Greater Poland region these werePoznań Voivodeship andKalisz Voivodeship. The Commonwealth also had larger subdivisions known asprowincja, one of which was namedGreater Poland. However, thisprowincja covered a larger area than the Greater Poland region itself, also taking inKuyavia,Masovia andRoyal Prussia. (This division ofCrown Poland into two entities called Greater andLesser Poland had its roots in theStatutes of Casimir the Great of 1346–1362, where the laws of "Greater Poland" – the northern part of the country – were codified in thePiotrków statute, with those of "Lesser Poland" in the separateWiślica statute.)
In 1768, a newGniezno Voivodeship was formed out of the northern part of Kalisz Voivodeship. However more far-reaching changes would come with thePartitions of Poland. In the first partition (1772), northern parts of Greater Poland along theNoteć (GermanNetze) were taken over byPrussia, becoming theNetze District. In the second partition (1793) the whole of Greater Poland was absorbed by Prussia, becoming part of the province ofSouth Prussia. It remained so in spite of the firstGreater Poland Uprising (1794), part of the unsuccessfulKościuszko Uprising directed chiefly against theRussian Empire.
Within the Prussian empire, western Greater Poland became theGrand Duchy of Posen (Poznań), which theoretically held some autonomy. Following an unrealizeduprising in 1846, and the more substantial but still unsuccessfuluprising of 1848 (during theSpring of Nations), the Grand Duchy was replaced by theProvince of Posen. The authorities made efforts toGermanize the region, particularly after the founding of Germany in 1871, and from 1886 onwards thePrussian Settlement Commission was active in increasing German land ownership in formerly Polish areas.
Following the end of World War I, theGreater Poland uprising (1918–1919) ensured that most of the region became part of the newly independent Polish state, forming most ofPoznań Voivodeship (1919–1939). Northern and some western parts of Greater Poland remained in Germany, where they formed much of the province ofPosen–West Prussia (1922–1938), whose capital was Schneidemühl (Piła).
Following theGerman invasion of 1939, Greater Poland was incorporated intoNazi Germany, becoming the province calledReichsgau Posen, later Reichsgau Wartheland (Warthe being the German name for theWarta river). The Polish population was oppressed, with many former officials and others considered potential enemies by the Nazis being imprisoned or executed, including at the notoriousFort VII concentration camp in Poznań. The Polish population was also subjected toexpulsions,kidnapping of children andforced labour. Germany also operated theStalag XXI-A,Stalag XXI-C,Stalag XXI-D and otherprisoner-of-war camps for Polish,French, British, Moroccan, Algerian, Dutch, Belgian, Serbian,Italian, American, Norwegian, and Soviet POWs. Poznań was declared a stronghold city(Festung) in the closing stages of the war, being taken by theRed Army in theBattle of Poznań, which ended on 22 February 1945.
Poznań is the capital of Greater Poland VoivodeshipKalisz, one of the oldest cities of Poland and capital of theKalisz Region, traditional subregion of Greater PolandPiła, largest city of theKrajna ethnocultural subregion in the northKonin, coal mining centerOstrów Wielkopolski, part of Kalisz-Ostrów Wielkopolski metropolitan area, second largest metropolitan area in the provinceGniezno, former medieval capital of Poland, seat of the CatholicPrimate of Poland
The relief of Greater Poland, geological conditions and soil have been shaped by two glaciations:
The Baltic glaciation in the lowlands of northern and central Europe where there are now numerous lakes of the Pomeranian Lake District, a feature especially common in and aroundPoznań andGniezno.
The Mid-glaciation in the southern part of the province, where there is less terrain diversity and a lack of major lakes.
The highest elevation is Greater Kobyla Mountain (284 m (932 ft)) in the Ostrzeszowski Hills, the lowest area is located in the valley of theWarta River at the mouth of its tributary theNoteć (21 m (69 ft)) in the north-western part of the region. Agriculturally fertile soils account for around 60% of the province's area, while 20%, the rest of the non-forested or urban areas, is mostly wetland soil (muck-peat and alluvial soils).[7]
An area of approximately 800,000 hectares (2,000,000 acres) is covered by forests, this represents around 25.8% of the total surface area of the region.In the lake districts of the northern and central parts of the province there are about 800 lakes; 58% of which cover an area of at least 10 hectares (25 acres) and 8%, with an area exceeding 100 hectares (250 acres). The largest reservoir is the natural Greater Powidzkie Lake (1,036 ha (2,560 acres)) in the Gniezno Lake District.
Wielkopolska Region lies within the basin of theOder River, 88% of the province's surface water drains into the Warta river basin, and the remaining 12% is drained by a multitude of other river systems, including the Barycz, Ladislaus Trench and Obrzycy waterways. The quality of river waters is generally poor, but their condition is gradually improving and should soon be classed as 'clean'.
Brown coal deposits are currently mined in the Konin area, and form the basis for the province's power industry (the Pątnów-Adams-Konincoal-fired power stations account for more than 10% of the national electricity production). The region also has significant quantities of peat deposits; it is calculated that there are ca. 886,000 hectares (2,190,000 acres) of land covered with an average thickness of 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in) of peat. An abundance of raw materials used in the production of numerous medicines was recently discovered in the muds ofBłażejewo,Oderbank andMechnacz. In addition, very large deposits of brown coal have been discovered in the vicinity ofKościan, these however are not currently being extracted and probably never will be extracted, due to the expense that would be incurred in adapting the site to build a coal mine and the need to resettle thousands of people.
Rock salt is mined intensively at a salt mine inKłodawa (this mine alone accounts for about 20% of domestic production).
Throughout the province there are significant deposits of aggregates, gypsum, ceramic materials, and lacustrine chalk. InKościan the largest and most modern, a natural gas production site is in operation. It supplies raw material for Kościańska Zieme, and Zielona Gora CHP. It is estimated that at the rate local gas reserves are being exploited, the reserves in Kościan will be enough for about 20 years of operation, thus practically allowing for local independence against the effects of gas crises.
Wielkopolska is influenced by oceanic air masses that affect the mildness of the climate. The farther east one travels the more distinctly continental the climate becomes. The area is situated in the Silesian Greater Poland agro-climatic region where the average annual temperature is about 8.2 °C, and in the north drops to around 7.6 °C. It is slightly warmer in the south and west where the average temperature is usually about 8.5 °C. The number of days with snow can reach up to 57 days in and around theKalisz district.
The growing season is one of the longest in Poland. On the province's southern plains this season constitutes around 228 days, while north of Gniezno andSzamotuły this gradually declines to 216 days.
Precipitation ranges from 500 to 550 mm. Despite this the region is still faced with a deficit in rainfall, particularly in the eastern part of the province (around Słupcy, Kazimierz Biskupi, Kleczew) where sometimes experience only 450 mm of rainfall per year, this threatens steppization of the region. Throughout the province there is typically a prevailing westerly wind.
Greater Poland is a major transport hub withinPoland; a great deal of traffic fromRussia and other states of theformer Soviet Union passes throughPoznań andKonin to reach Germany and other EU member states. To the south runs the international route fromGdańsk via Poznań and Leszno toPrague and then to the south of Europe. There is also a major highway in the province, theA2 motorway, which when completed will run from the western border of Poland with Germany, through Poznań toWarsaw and then viaBelarus to Moscow.
The main railway hubs located in Greater Poland are Poznań,Piła andOstrów Wielkopolski.PKP Intercity operate a number of trains a day between Warsaw and Berlin which provide a fast connection for the two cities also to Poznań. This route was the first in Poland, adapted for use by the European high-speed transportation system. ThePoznań Główny railway station is the second busiest railway station in Poland.[9]In the near future[when?] the government expects to construct a high-speed rail line in the shape of a Y connectingKalisz and Poznań fromŁódź, Warsaw andWrocław.
Poznań is the port of arrival for most international travellers as it plays host toŁawica International Airport, which has recently[when?] seen the second-highest passenger growth rate in the country.
TheGross domestic product (GDP) of the province was 40.4 billion € in 2018, accounting for 8.1% of Polish economic output. GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power was 19,700 € or 65% of the EU27 average in the same year. The GDP per employee was 72% of the EU average.[10]
The Greater Poland voivodeship's government is headed by the province's voivode(governor) who is appointed by thePolish Prime Minister. The voivode is then assisted in performing his duties by the voivodeship's marshal, who is the appointed speaker for the voivodeship's executive and is elected by the sejmik(provincial assembly). The current voivode of Greater Poland is Łukasz Mikołajczyk, whilst the present marshal is Marek Woźniak.
The Sejmik of Greater Poland consists of 39 members.
There are numerous World War II memorials in the province, including memorials at the sites of Nazi massacres of Poles, and museums at the sites of the formerChełmno extermination camp,Fort VII concentration camp in Poznań, and prison camp inLuboń. TheWładysław Golus Regional Museum in Ostrzeszów, a town which was the location of the main German-operated prisoner of war camp for Norwegian POWs in occupied Poland during the war, hosts an exhibition devoted to the history of the Norwegian POWs.
There is an underground touristic route in theKłodawa Salt Mine, considered the world's deepest underground tourist route.
One of the two principal and five total cemeteries of theCommonwealth War Graves Commission in Poland is located in Poznań, with more than 400 burials from both world wars.[14]
The oldest preserved European signpost beyond the boundaries of the formerRoman Empire is located inKonin.
Since the establishment of the province, several international sports competitions were co-hosted by the province, including theEuroBasket 2009 andUEFA Euro 2012.
^Wijaczka, Jacek (2010). "Szkoci". In Kopczyński, Michał; Tygielski, Wojciech (eds.).Pod wspólnym niebem. Narody dawnej Rzeczypospolitej (in Polish). Warszawa: Muzeum Historii Polski, Bellona. pp. 203–204.ISBN978-83-11-11724-2.
^Słownik geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i innych krajów słowiańskich, Tom X (in Polish). Warszawa. 1889. p. 686.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^Słownik geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i innych krajów słowiańskich, Tom XI (in Polish). Warszawa. 1890. p. 782.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
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