Olsztynek | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Market Square and town hall | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
  Olsztynek | |
| Coordinates:53°35′N20°17′E / 53.583°N 20.283°E /53.583; 20.283 | |
| Country |  Poland |
| Voivodeship |  Warmian-Masurian |
| County | Olsztyn |
| Gmina | Olsztynek |
| Town rights | 1359 |
| Area | |
• Total | 7.69 km2 (2.97 sq mi) |
| Population (2017) | |
• Total | 7,677 |
| • Density | 1,000/km2 (2,600/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
| Postal code | 11-015 |
| Vehicle registration | NOL |
| Highways |   |
| National roads |  |
| Website | http://www.olsztynek.pl |
Olsztynek[ɔlʂˈtɨnɛk] (Masurian: Ôlstÿnek;German:Hohenstein in Ostpreußen)[citation needed] is atown in northernPoland, inOlsztyn County, in theWarmian-Masurian Voivodeship. It is the administrative seat ofGmina Olsztynek. It is part of the historic region ofMasuria.
Olsztynek is located about 28 km (17 mi) south ofOlsztyn in the western part of theMasurian Lake District, where it borders on thePrussian Uplands (Prusy Górne), part of theBaltic Uplands.
Olsztynek station is a stop on the railway line from Olsztyn toDziałdowo. Theexpressway S7 running fromGdańsk via Olsztynek toWarsaw andKraków, parts of which are still under construction, is part of theEuropean route E77. A direct link to Olsztyn is provided by theexpressway S51. The intersection of the S7 and S51 highways is located just outside the town limits of Olsztynek, and theNational road 58 also runs through the town.
Several decades after the subjugation of theOld Prussians, Hohenstein Castle was erected from 1351 to colonize theSasna lands at the behest of Günter von Hohenstein,commander of theTeutonic Knights atOsterode commandry. A parish church was mentioned for 1348. Grand MasterWinrich von Kniprode granted the surrounding settlementtown privileges according toKulm law in 1359.[1] Olsztynek became the seat of the local administration within theState of the Teutonic Order.
During thePolish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War, the 1410Battle of Grunwald took place in the vicinity of the town, whereby the Poles and Lithuanians defeated the Teutonic Knights.
In the succeeding fights, Olsztynek was seized and burnt down to the grounds, in order not to let it pass intoPolish hands. Quickly rebuilt afterwards, the citizens however had to face high taxes imposed by the Knights who had to refinance their contributions paid according to the 1411Peace of Thorn. In turn the town became a member of thePrussian Confederation in 1444, opposing the authority of the Order's State.[2] At the request of the organization, in 1454, KingCasimir IV Jagiellon signed the act of incorporation of the region to theKingdom of Poland,[3] and the town recognized itself as part of the Kingdom of Poland, but returned to the Order's rule during theThirteen Years' War in 1455. After thepeace treaty signed inToruń in 1466 it became a part of Poland as afief held by theOrder's State,[4] until the conversion of Grand MasterAlbert von Hohenzollern toLutheranism in 1525, whereafter the town became part of the ProtestantDuchy of Prussia, also a Polish fief. During thePolish–Teutonic War (1519–21), the town was captured by Polish troops underHetmanMikołaj Firlej, who confirmed the town privileges.
During thePolish–Swedish War of 1626–1629, Polish troops were stationed around the town in 1626.[1] During theSecond Northern War it was plundered bySwedish troops in 1656. Since 1618 ruled inpersonal union with the ImperialMargraviate of Brandenburg asBrandenburg-Prussia, although the Prussian part remained under Polish suzerainty until 1657. Hohenstein/Olsztynek with Ducal Prussia was incorporated into theKingdom of Prussia in 1701. In 1804 a fire destroyed 108 houses and the townhall.[5] During theNapoleonic Wars in 1807 the French stayed in Olsztynek, includingMarshals of FranceMichel Ney andPierre Augereau.[1]
After the 1871unification of Germany the town lay inside theGerman Empire. Administratively, the town was part ofLandkreis (district) Osterode (Ostróda) in the province ofEast Prussia. Although Olsztynek was outside the authority of Poland after 1657, in the late 19th centuryPoles still formed the majority of the local Lutheran parish (majority of the town's population was Lutheran), with 3,344 people in comparison to 1,966 Germans.[1] In 1898, a local branch of theanti-PolishGerman Eastern Marches Society was founded, the organization's busiest branch in Masuria.[6]
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From 1903 to 1933 theTuberculosis sanatorium Hohenstein for male patients operated in the municipal forest about 4 km north of the town center.[7]
In the beginning ofWorld War I in August 1914,Imperial Russian Army troops occupied the region but were defeated byGerman Army forces under GeneralPaul von Hindenburg and Chief of StaffErich Ludendorff in theBattle of Tannenberg. The battle actually was fought from 27 to 29 August in and around Hohenstein, whereby 115 buildings including the town hall were demolished.[5] However, Hindenburg urged to name it after Tannenberg to counter the myth of the "German" defeat in the 1410 Battle of Grunwald, which was known as the (First) Battle ofTannenberg in German sources.
The town's reconstruction started duringWorld War I with financial aid fromLeipzig and was largely completed by 1920. The townhall was finalized in 1922/23.[5] As a condition of theTreaty of Versailles, theLeague of Nations held theEast Prussian plebiscite on 11 July 1920 to determine if the people in the southern districts of theEast Prussian province wanted to remain within theFree State of Prussia andGermany or to join theSecond Polish Republic, which just regained independence after World War I. The plebiscite resulted in 1,780 votes for Germany and 20 for Poland.[8]
In remembrance of the 1914 battle a largeTannenberg Memorial was inaugurated here on 18 September 1927, and made the place of the burial of Reich President Paul von Hindenburg on 7 August 1934. InWorld War II parts of the premises were used for theStalag I-Bprisoner-of-war camp. The memorial was partly demolished by the German forces withdrawing from the Soviet advance in 1945, after Hindenburg's coffin (and his wife's) were removed, and completely demolished by the Polish government in 1949. A surviving lion is displayed in front of the Olsztynek town hall.
In January 1945 it was occupied by theRed Army throughout theEast Prussian Offensive. Later it was handed over to theRepublic of Poland; the German population wasexpelled in accordance with thePotsdam Agreement and the region was resettled with Poles, especially those expelled fromterritories of Poland annexed by the Soviet Union. In 1960 a memorial for the 1410Battle of Grunwald was erected by Polish authorities.
The localfootball club isOlimpia Olsztynek [pl]. It competes in the lower leagues.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
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