Chełmża | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Chełmża market square | |
 Coat of arms | |
  Chełmża | |
| Coordinates:53°11′5″N18°36′15″E / 53.18472°N 18.60417°E /53.18472; 18.60417 | |
| Country |  Poland |
| Voivodeship | Kuyavian-Pomeranian |
| County | Toruń |
| Gmina | Chełmża(urban gmina) |
| Town rights | 1251 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Paweł Polikowski |
| Area | |
• Total | 7.84 km2 (3.03 sq mi) |
| Population (31 December 2021[1]) | |
• Total | 14,181 |
| • Density | 1,810/km2 (4,680/sq mi) |
| Postal code | 87-140 |
| Area code | +48 56 |
| Vehicle registration | CTR |
| Website | http://www.chelmza.pl |
Chełmża[ˈxɛu̯mʐa]; (German:Kulmsee,[2] earlierCulmsee), is a town in northernPoland, in theToruń County,Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship.[3] It is one of the historic centers ofChełmno Land.
The town Chełmża is placed at the lake namedJezioro Chełmżyńskie (area 2.71 km2), earlier the lake itself was named Culmsee[4] and therefore eponym of the town, that earlier had the name Culmsee, too (see History).
The first signs of settlement date to 10,000BC whenreindeer hunters made their visits to the area. Around 4500 BC the first agricultural settlements were founded.[5]Goth tribes also moved through the area on their trek fromScandinavia andNorth Germany. Visible signs of existence of theOld Prussians also exist. Around the 7th century theSlavicLechitic tribe ofGoplans arrived in the area.[5]
In the time of firstPiasts and the formation of Poland,Chełmno Land and the settlement of Łoza (now the town of Chełmża) was incorporated into Chełmnocastellany.[5] After the death ofBolesław III Wrymouth in 1138 it was handed over to his sonBolesław IV the Curly – as part ofMasovia within Piast-ruled Poland.[5] The fights with nearby Old Prussian tribes resulted in several raids that destroyed the area. In the 13th century the ruler of the area wasKonrad I who in order to Christianize the Old Prussians brought a missionary BishopChristian of Oliva.[5] The bishop was granted a number of possession including the settlement of Łoza. LaterTeutonic Knights were granted local lands to support the bishop by military means.[5] However, in time the knights took over the possession of Christian's diocese, dividing the area into four dioceses in 1243, including theRoman Catholic Diocese of Chełmno. At the end of 1245 Heidenreich of the Diocese of Chełmno (Culm) became the bishop of diocese. He picked Łoza as place of his stay. It was during that time that Łoza received its new name Culmense and became part of the residence of the bishop who resided and governed inWarmia from 1245 to 1263. In 1251 (before July 22) Bishop Heidenreich bestowed city rights to Łoza and renamed it Culmsee (Kulmsee).[6][7]
On July 22, the bishop also founded thecathedral which was built starting in 1254. Bishop Heidenreich received permissions for his undertakings directly from the pope[citation needed]. Later, in 1255 the four dioceses of Prussia, including the Bishopric of Culm were put under the jurisdiction of theArchbishopric of Riga as metropolitan[citation needed].
In the 1250sJutta von Sangerhausen came to live in the region and settled atBielczyny.[citation needed] In 1256 she founded the St. George church. It was her wish to be interred at the town's cathedral-church and upon her death in 1260 her wish was granted.[citation needed] The 5 May is her memorial day. The nearby village of Bielczyny and the cathedral soon became a destination for pilgrims to her shrine.[citation needed]
The town witnessed many wars and uprisings. The nearby Old Prussians besieged the town in 1268 and 1273.[8] In the 14th century, papal verdicts ordered the restoration of the territory to Poland, however, the Teutonic Knights did not comply and continued to occupy it.[9] In the 15th century the town experienced the wars between Teutonic Knights andPoland.[5] In 1410 the Polish army took the town and the bishop of ChełmnoArnold Stapil made a tribute to Polish KingWładysław II Jagiełło. In 1422 Chełmża was taken again by the forces of the king and destroyed in large part. In 1454, the town joined the anti-TeutonicPrussian Confederation,[8] upon the request of which Polish KingCasimir IV Jagiellon re-incorporated the region and town into Poland that same year, what was eventually confirmed following theThirteen Years' War in 1466.[5][10]Synods of theRoman Catholic Diocese of Chełmno were held in Chełmża several times between the 14th and 17th centuries.[8]
In 1552, Chełmża was visited by Polish KingSigismund II Augustus.[8] After Riga's dissolution in 1566 the bishops of Chełmno attended the councils of theecclesiastical province of the metropolitan of Gniezno. This practice was recognised by the Holy See by the BullDe salute animarum in 1821, when the Diocese of Chełmno became de jure a suffragan of theArchdiocese of Gniezno. Chełmno diocese was enlarged on that occasion (Górzno,Krajna andDziałdowo). In 1621 and 1627 the town hosted the court of Polish KingSigismund III Vasa along with PrinceWładysław.[citation needed]
The Swedish invasions of Poland of1626–29 and1655–60 brought devastation to the town.[5] In the beginning of the 18th-century Russian, Saxon, Swedish armies went through the area along with supporters ofStanisław Leszczyński. The constant warfare led to the fall of the city, and its breaking point was reached due aplague that happened in years 1708–1710.[5] A next series of wars in1733–1735 and in1756–1763 along with fire in 1762 almost completely destroyed the city.[5]
After theFirst Partition of Poland on 15 September 1772 Chełmża was taken over by theKingdom of Prussia. At that time it counted only 600 inhabitants.[5] From 1807 to 1815 it was part of the PolishDuchy of Warsaw only to be taken over by Prussia again after 1815 andCongress of Vienna. The town's population in 1831 counted 1,200 people and in 1871 3,000.[5] Its economic situation improved as it became an economic center for local villages benefited with goodsoil.During theSpring of Nations in 1848 Polishpatriotism reinvigorated. Circle of Polish League was established and the Polish newspaperBiedaczek was distributed in the years 1849–1850 byJulian Prejs.[5]
In 1866Towarzystwo Rolniczo-Przemysłow was created, an association dealing with industry and agriculture. In 1879 a regionalcourt was established in Chełmża. Two banks and school are established as well.Jews, who made up 8% of local population, built in the 1880s asynagogue.[5] The industrial development was increased and agriculturalmanufacturing plant and railway terminal were completed in 1882. The population rose as well from 3,400 in 1880, 8,987 in 1900,[2] and 10,600 in 1910.[5] In 1869 a local churchchoir Cecylia was founded, which exists to this day. Around 1900, the town formed alanguage island ofSwabian German.[11]
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The development of the town was stopped due to theFirst World War. The living conditions declined and street riots became widespread.Poles rose up againstGermanisation and protests were made against the forced teaching in schools in the German language.[5] In November 1918 Poland regained independence, and on 8 January 1919 local Poles attacked aGrenzschutz unit but were repelled. In revenge, the Germans shelled the town withartillery, and seven civilians, including two boys aged 8 and 12, were killed. Additionally, the Germans arrested several people upon suspicion of leading the protests.[5]
On 21 January[clarification needed] as result ofTreaty of Versailles, Chełmża became part of Poland again. A part of the German population was deported (2000 people). The population now counted 98% Poles, 1.8% Germans, 0.2% Jews.[citation needed] The overall number of Chełmża citizens rose from 10,700 in 1921 to 13,000 in 1939. After theGreat Depression in 1929 wages became lower and unemployment rose. TheNational Democrats followed byCentrolew, led byStanisław Nehring, became the main parties in Chełmża.[5]Gazeta Chełmżyńska andGłos Chełmżyński were two papers distributed in the city. The mayor of the city wasBronisław Kurzętkowski from 1921 to 1934 andWiktor Barwicki from 1934 until 1939.
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After the joint German-Sovietinvasion of Poland, which startedWorld War II in September 1939, the town wasoccupied by Germany, which carried out agenocidal campaign against the local Polish and Jewish population. Chełmża was one of the sites of executions of Poles carried out by Germany in 1939 as part of theIntelligenzaktion.[12] Many local Poles, especially teachers, were alsomassacred in theBarbarka forest, also as part of theIntelligenzaktion.[13] The German state at the time considered Poles and Jews to beuntermenschen and planned their eradication as national groups. To escape this fate many local Poles took the III and IV group ofVolksliste. In early 1945, in Chełmża, Polishforced labourers evacuated fromJajkowo were forcibly conscripted by the Germans to theOrganisation Todt, however, some managed to escape.[14] By the end of the war in 1945, the population of the town had declined to 10,000.[5]
In January 1945 theRed Army took Chełmża, thus ending the German occupation.Soviet repressions followed and 600 people of German descent were deported toSiberia. The losses inflicted by German occupation regarding the population were gradually reversed and in 1980 Chełmża counted 15,000 inhabitants.[5]
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The most notable sports clubs of the town arefootball clubLegia Chełmża [pl] androwing clubChełmżyńskie Towarzystwo Wioślarskie 1927 [pl].
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Seat (not part of the county):Toruń | ||
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