Warmia Warńija | |
|---|---|
 Coat of arms | |
 Location of Warmia (shown in red) on the map ofPoland | |
| Country |  Poland |
| Voivodeship | Warmian-Masurian |
| Historic capitals | Frombork,Lidzbark |
| Largest city | Olsztyn |
| Area | |
• Total | 4,500 km2 (1,700 sq mi) |
| Population | |
• Total | 350,000 |
| • Density | 78/km2 (200/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Warmian |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
| Highways |    |
Warmia (Polish:Warmia[ˈvarmja]ⓘ;Latin:Varmia,Warmia;German:Ermlandⓘ;Warmian:Warńija;Old Prussian:Wārmi) is both a historical and an ethnographic region in northernPoland, forming part of historicalPrussia. Its historic capitals wereFrombork andLidzbark Warmiński and the largest city isOlsztyn.
Warmia is currently the core of theWarmian-Masurian Voivodeship (province). The region covers an area of around 4,500 km2 (1,700 sq mi) and has approximately 350,000 inhabitants. Important landmarks include theCathedral Hill inFrombork, the bishops' castles atOlsztyn andLidzbark, the medieval town ofReszel and the sanctuary inGietrzwałd, a site ofMarian apparitions. Geographically, it is an area of many lakes and lies at the upperŁyna river and on the right bank ofPasłęka, stretching in the northwest to theVistula Bay. Warmia has a number of architectural monuments ranging fromGothic,Renaissance andBaroque toClassicism, Historicism andArt Nouveau.
Warmia is part of a larger historical region calledPrussia, which was inhabited by theOld Prussians and later on was populated mainly byGermans andPoles.[1] Warmia has traditionally strong connections with neighbouringMasuria, but it remainedCatholic and belonged directly to Poland between 1454/1466 and 1772, whereas Masuria was a part of Poland as afief held by theTeutonic Order[2] andDucal Prussia, which became predominantly Protestant. Warmia has been under the dominion of various states over the course of its history, most notably theOld Prussians, theTeutonic Knights, theKingdom of Poland and theKingdom of Prussia. The history of the region is closely connected to that of theArchbishopric of Warmia (formerlyPrince-Bishopric of Warmia). The region is associated with thePrussian tribe, theWarmians,[3] who settled in an approximate area. According tofolk etymology, Warmia is named after the legendary Prussian chiefWarmo, and Ermland derives from his widow Erma.
Warmia is bordered byPowiśle in the west,Masuria in the south and east, andBartia andNatangia in the north.
Warmia occupies a 100 kilometer long strip of land along the right bank of thePasłęka River (German:Passarge), approximately 20 kilometers wide in the north and increasing to over 70 kilometers wide in the south. TheŁyna River (German:Alle) drains the southern portion of the region, flowing to the northeast to join with thePregolya (German:Pregel). The terrain is composed of gentle hills and wide plains, and has ahumid continental climate, with milder temperatures found at lower elevations in the north near the coast.
With the exception of the far northern and southern ends of the region, the Pasłęka constitutes its western border. That river flows into theVistula Lagoon (German:Frisches Haff) just after passing the town ofBraniewo (German:Braunsberg). The historically important port town ofFrombork (German:Frauenberg) lies west of the Pasłęka, near the mouth of theBauda River [pl]. Further south, the Pasłęka is joined by the tributariesWałsza [pl] (German:Walsch) andDrwęca Warmińska (German:Drewenz), with the headwaters of the river located near the southern end of Warmia.
The source of the Łyna river is found just south of the southern tip of the region, near the eponymous town ofŁyna. The river flows through several lakes on the western end of theMasurian Lake District, passing through the cities ofOlsztyn (German:Allenstein) andLidzbark Warmiński (German:Heilsberg) as it takes in numerous tributaries on its journey north. This southern portion of Warmia is more heavily forested and historically had many towns with Polish-speaking majorities, while the rest of the region was almost entirely German-speaking prior to theflight and expulsion of the German population following theSecond World War.
By the earlyMiddle Ages the Warmians, anOld Prussian tribe, inhabited the area.
In the 13th century the area became a battleground in theNorthern Crusades. Having failed to gather an expedition against Palestine,Pope Innocent III resolved in 1207 to organize a new crusade; beginning in 1209, he called for crusades against theAlbigenses, against theAlmohad dynasty ofSpain (1213), and, also around that time, against the pagans ofPrussia.[4] The firstBishop of Prussia,Christian of Oliva, was commissioned in 1209 to convert the Prussians, at the request ofKonrad I of Masovia (duke from 1194 to 1247).
In 1226 Duke Konrad I of Masovia invited theTeutonic Knights toChristianize the pagan Prussians. He supplied the Teutonic Order and allowed the usage ofChełmno Land as a base for the knights. They had the task of establishing secure borders between Masovia and the Prussians, with the assumption that conquered territories would become part of Masovia. The Order waited until they received official authorisation from the Empire, which EmperorFrederick II granted by issuing theGolden Bull of Rimini (March 1226). The papalGolden Bull of Rieti fromPope Gregory IX in 1234 confirmed the grant, although Konrad of Masovia never recognized the rights of the Order to rule Prussia. Later, the Knights were accused of forging these land grants.
By the end of the 13th century the Teutonic Order had conquered and Christianized most of thePrussian region, including Warmia. The Teutonic Orderrecruited mostly German-speaking settlers to develop the land. The new régime reduced many of the native Prussians to the status of serfs and graduallyGermanized them.[citation needed]. Native Prussians were also reported as holders of estates. Over several centuries the colonists, native Prussians and immigrants gradually intermingled.[citation needed] Until the early 13th century, also the southern parts of Warmia were German-speaking. Polish settlers arrived later, particularly after 1410, mainly to southern Warmia, so that German was replaced by Polish in this area.[5]
In 1242 thepapal legateWilliam of Modena set up fourdioceses, including theArchbishopric of Warmia. The bishopric was exempt and was governed by aprince-bishop, confirmed by EmperorCharles IV. TheBishops of Warmia were usually Germans or Poles, although Enea Silvio Piccolomini, the laterPope Pius II, served as anItalian bishop of the diocese.
After the 1410Battle of Grunwald, BishopHeinrich Vogelsang of Warmia surrendered to KingWładysław II Jagiełło of Poland, and later with BishopHenry of Sambia paid homage to the Polish king at the Polish camp during thesiege of Marienburg Castle (Malbork). After the Polish army moved out of Warmia, the new Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights,Heinrich von Plauen the Elder, accused the bishop of treachery and reconquered the region.[6]
In February 1440 the nobility of Warmia and the town ofBraniewo (Braunsberg) co-founded thePrussian Confederation, which opposed Teutonic rule, and most towns of Warmia joined the league in May 1440.[7] In February 1454, the confederacy asked Polish KingCasimir IV Jagiellon to incorporate the region to the Kingdom of Poland, to which the king agreed and signed the act of incorporation inKraków on 6 March 1454,[8] and theThirteen Years' War (1454–1466) broke out. During the war Warmia was recaptured by the Teutonic Knights, however, in 1464 Bishop Paweł Legendorf vel Mgowski sided with Poland and the Prince-Bishopric came again under the overlordship of the Polish King.[9] In theSecond Peace of Thorn (1466) the Teutonic Knights renounced any claims to Warmia, and recognized Polish sovereignty over the region, which was confirmed to be part of Poland.[10] It remained administratively a Prince-Bishopric with several privileges, part of the larger provinces ofRoyal Prussia andGreater Poland Province.
Soon after, in 1467, the Cathedral Chapter electedNicolas von Tüngen against the wish of the Polish king. The Estates of Royal Prussia did not take the side of the Cathedral Chapter. Nicholas von Tüngen allied himself with theTeutonic Order and with KingMatthias Corvinus of Hungary. The feud, known as theWar of the Priests, was a low scale affair, affecting mainly Warmia. In 1478Braniewo (Braunsberg) withstood a Polish siege which was ended in an agreement in which the Polish king recognized von Tüngen as bishop and the right of the Cathedral Chapter to elect future bishops, which however would have to be accepted by the king, and the bishop as well as Cathedral Chapter swore an oath to the Polish king. Later in theTreaty of Piotrków Trybunalski (7 December 1512), conceded to the king of Poland a limited right to determine the election of bishops by choosing four candidates from Royal Prussia.[11] The region retained autonomy, governing itself and maintaining its own laws, customs, rights and German language.[12]
Warmia was invaded by the Teutonic Knights during thePolish–Teutonic War of 1519–1521, however, the Poles, led by renown astronomerNicolaus Copernicus, repulsed the Teutonicsiege of Olsztyn in 1521.[13] Copernicus spent more than half of his life in Warmia, where he wrote many of his groundbreaking works and conducted astronomical observations and mathematical calculations, which became the basis for hisheliocentric model of the universe.[14] After the war of 1519–1521, he coordinated the reconstruction and resettlement of the devastated southern Warmia.[14]
In 1565, CardinalStanislaus Hosius founded theCollegium Hosianum in Braniewo, which became the leading institution of higher learning in the region.
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After theUnion of Lublin in 1569, the Prince-Bishopric of Warmia was integrated more directly into thePolish Crown within thePolish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. At the same time, the territory continued to enjoy substantial autonomy, with many legal differences from neighbouring lands. For example, the bishops were by law members ofPolishSenat and the land elected MP's to theSejmik ofRoyal Prussia as well as MP's to theSejm ofPoland.Warmia was under the Church jurisdiction of theArchbishopric of Riga until 1512, whenPrince-BishopLucas Watzenrode received exempt status, placing Warmia directly under the authority of the Pope (in terms of church jurisdiction), which remained until the resolution of theHoly Roman Empire in 1806.
By theFirst Partition of Poland in 1772, Warmia was annexed by theKingdom of Prussia; the properties of theArchbishopric of Warmia were secularized by the Prussian state. In 1773 Warmia was merged with the surrounding areas into the newly established province ofEast Prussia.Ignacy Krasicki, the lastprince-bishop of Warmia as well asEnlightenment Polish poet, friend ofFrederick the Great (whom he did not givehomage as his new king), was nominated to theArchbishopric of Gniezno (and thusPrimate of Poland) in 1795. After the last partition of Poland and during his tenure as Primate of Poland and Prussian subject he was ordered byPope Pius VI to teach his Catholic Poles to 'stay obedient, faithful, and loving to their new kings',Papal brief of 1795. The Prussian census in 1772 showed a total population of 96,547, including an urban population of 24,612 in 12 towns. 17,749 houses were listed and the biggest city wasBraunsberg (Braniewo).
Between 1773 and 1945 Warmia was part of the predominantlyLutheran province ofEast Prussia, with the exception that the people of Warmia remained largelyCatholic. Most of the population of Warmia spokeHigh Prussian German, while a small area in the north spokeLow Prussian German; southern Warmia was populated by both Germans and PolishWarmiaks.[15] The Polish population was subjected to intenseGermanisation policies. Warmia was divided into four districts (Kreise) -Allenstein (Olsztyn), Rössel (Reszel), Heilsberg (Lidzbark Warmiński) and Braunsberg (Braniewo). The city ofAllenstein was separated from the Allenstein district in 1910 and became an independent city.
On 6 May 1863, the village ofBredynki was the site of a massacre of Polish inhabitants. Local farmers protested the taking of the lake from the village and handing it over to a local miller.[16] Prussian troops fired on the crowd, killing more than a dozen people, including women, and wounding 30.[16]
In the winter of 1863–1864, Polish insurgents of theJanuary Uprising who fled theRussian Partition of Poland, found shelter in Warmia.[17]
| Year | District | Population | German | Polish / Bilingual | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | Percent | Number | Percent | |||
| 1825 | Allenstein (city) | 2,637 | 1,371 | 52.0% | 1,266 | 48.0% |
| Allenstein (district) | 27,820 | 3,556 | 12.8% | 24,264 | 87.2% | |
| Rössel | 30,705 | 23,927 | 77.9% | 6,778 | 22.1% | |
| Total | 61,162 | 28,854 | 47.2% | 32,308 | 52.8% | |
| 1910 | Allenstein (city) | 33,077 | 29,344 | 88.7% | 3,683 | 11.1% |
| Allenstein (district) | 57,919 | 22,825 | 39.4% | 35,079 | 60.6% | |
| Rössel | 50,472 | 43,189 | 85.6% | 7,283 | 14.4% | |
| Total | 141,468 | 95,358 | 67.4% | 46,045 | 32.5% | |
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In 1871, along with the rest of East Prussia, Warmia became part of theGerman Empire. In 1873, according to a regulation of the Imperial German government, school lessons at public schools inside Germany had to be held in German, as a result the Polish language was forbidden in all schools in Warmia, including Polish schools already founded in the sixteenth century. In 1900 Warmia's population was 240,000. In thejingoistic climate afterWorld War I, Warmian Poles were subject to persecution by the German government. Polish children speaking their language were punished in schools and often had to wear signs with insulting names, such as "Pollack".[21]
After theFirst World War, Poland regained independence, and aplebiscite was held to determine the future of Warmia. In February 1920, Poland opened a consulate in Olsztyn in 1920,[22] however, due to the German persecution of Poles and the advances of theRed Army towards Warsaw in thePolish–Soviet War in 1920, the plebiscite resulted in a German victory, and the region remained within Germany in the interbellum.[23]
Despite German hostility, the Poles founded numerous Polish organizations in Warmia in the interbellum. Persecution of Poles intensified after theNazi Party rose to power in Germany. Due to severe persecution, from 1936 Polish organizations carried out their activities partly in conspiracy.[24] Polish organizations were heavily invigilated by theSicherheitspolizei (German security police) through its undercover agents, known as theVertrauensmänner.[25] Based on their information, the German police compiled files and lists of Poles who were supposed to be either executed or imprisoned inNazi concentration camps.[25] Nazi militants carried out attacks on Polish schools, organizations, printshops, shops.[25] The persecution of Poles further intensified in 1939.[25] In early 1939, many Polish activists were expelled.[24] Afterwards, in an attempt to rig the results of an upcoming census and understate the number of Poles in the region, the Germans terrorized the Polish population, attacked Polish schools and organizations, and confiscated Polish pre-census information leaflets.[26] In summer 1939 the German terror against the Poles even exceeded the terror from the period of the 1920 plebiscite.[27] Poles were subjected to expulsions and arrests, there were terrorist attacks on Polish organizations and schools, Polish libraries were looted or destroyed, and entire volumes of Polish press were confiscated.[25][27] In August 1939, Germany introducedmartial law in the region, which allowed for even more blatant persecution of Poles.[27] Germany co-formed theEinsatzgruppe V in Olsztyn, which then committed variousatrocities against Poles during the Germaninvasion of Poland that beganWorld War II in September 1939.[28] In August and September 1939, the Germans carried out mass arrests of Poles, including activists, teachers, school principals, bank employees, newspaper editors, entrepreneurs, priests, scout leaders, and the consul and employees of the Polish Consulate in Olsztyn, and shut down or seized Polish newspapers and libraries.[29][30][31] Arrested Poles were mostly deported to concentration camps, incl.Hohenbruch [de],Soldau,Stutthof,Sachsenhausen,Gusen andRavensbrück.[32] DuringWorld War II, many Poles from the region were forcibly conscripted into theWehrmacht.[33] The German Nazi government operated a notable Nazi prison in the town ofBarczewo (Wartenburg) with severalforced labour subcamps in the region.[34] ThePolish resistance movement was active in the region andPolish underground press was distributed.[35]
Following Germany's defeat inWorld War II, and theYalta Conference andPotsdam Conference of 1945, Warmia was reintegrated into Poland, pending a final peace conference with Germany which eventually never took place.[36] The German inhabitants eitherfled or were transferred to Germany by Soviet and communist authorities installed in Poland and the remaining Polish inhabitants were joined by Polish settlers,[37] many of whom were displaced fromformer eastern Poland annexed by the Soviet Union.
Olsztyn is the largest city in Warmia and the capital of the Warmian-Masurian Voivedeship. During 1945–46, Warmia was part of theMasurian District. In 1946 a new voivodeship was created and named theOlsztyn Voivodeship, which encompassed both Warmia and Masurian counties. From 1975 to 1998, Warmia was divided between the Olsztyn andElbląg Voivodeships, and in 1999 it was entirely included with the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship. The Catholic character of Warmia has been preserved in the architecture of its villages and towns, as well as in folk customs.
The unofficial anthem of Warmia isO Warmio moja miła from 1920, with music by local Polish composerFeliks Nowowiejski and lyrics by Maria Paruszewska. It is also thebugle call of the region's largest city ofOlsztyn.
Three landmarks in Warmia are listed asHistoric Monuments of Poland:
Other sights include the old towns ofOlsztyn andReszel with theReszel andOlsztyn castles, the Old Town ofBarczewo with the museum of Polish composerFeliks Nowowiejski at his birthplace. There are also several palaces, including the Baroque Grabowski Palace in Lidzbark Warmiński and the palace inSmolajny, favorite summer residence of leadingPolish Enlightenment poetIgnacy Krasicki. The Basilica of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary inGietrzwałd is a popular regional pilgrimage site.
Places of stay ofNicolaus Copernicus include the medieval castles in Olsztyn, Lidzbark Warmiński andPieniężno, whereas theFrombork Cathedral contains his grave andepitaph.
A typical feature of the Warmian landscape are the massive Gothic churches in the towns and the numerous historic wayside shrines in various towns and villages, a reminder of the region's strong Catholic traditions.
There is a small cemetery of theCommonwealth War Graves Commission inMarkajmy at which British and Commonwealthprisoners-of-war of Germany fromWorld War I are buried.[41]
In addition to traditional nationwidePolish cuisine, Warmia has its own regional and localtraditional foods and beverages, as designated by theMinistry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Poland.
Unique local dishes include the Lord-style turkey wings (Skrzydła indycze po pańsku).[42]Ignacy Krasicki is considered one of the pioneers ofturkey meat consumption in Warmia, as already in 1791, during a feast he organized, he ordered turkey to be served, among other dishes.[42]
The tradition of producing Warmian smoked beef ham (Warmińska szynka wołowa wędzona) is cultivated by several meat-packing plants in Warmia.[43]
The officially protected traditional alcoholic beverages of Warmia areOkowita miodowa warmińska, a beverage of 42%alcohol by volume made from Warmianhoney, and the Warmianporter, a local type ofPolish beer.[44][45]
The traditional cuisine of German Warmiaks includeKönigsberger Klopse, Heilsberger Keilchen, a form of potato dumplings, and Wruken (turnip), or Klunkersuppe (flour milk soup) mit Bratschukken (fried potatoes).[46]
The most accomplished sports team of Warmia isAZS Olsztyn, multiple times Polish volleyball champions andPolish Cup winners. The first several tournaments of theMemorial of Hubert Jerzy Wagner, an international volleyball friendly competition, were held in Warmia.
| City | Population (2015)[47] | Granted city rights | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. |  Olsztyn | 174,675 | 1353 |
| 2. |  Braniewo | 17,385 | 1254 |
| 3. |  Lidzbark Warmiński | 16,352 | 1308 |
| 4. |  Biskupiec | 10,626 | 1395 |
| 5. |  Dobre Miasto | 10,599 | 1329 |
| 6. |  Orneta | 9,046 | 1313 |
| 7. |  Barczewo | 7,265 | 1364 |
| 8. |  Reszel | 4,817 | 1337 |
| 9. |  Jeziorany | 3,346 | 1338 |
| 10. |  Pieniężno | 2,949 | 1312 |
| 11. |  Bisztynek | 2,492 | 1385 |
| 12. |  Frombork | 2,475 | 1310 |
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