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Giżycko

Coordinates: 54°03′N 21°46′E / 54.050°N 21.767°E / 54.050; 21.767
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Giżycko
Giżycko
Giżycko
Flag of Giżycko
Flag
Coat of arms of Giżycko
Coat of arms
Country Poland
VoivodeshipWarmian-Masurian
CountyGiżycko County
GminaGiżycko (urban gmina)
Established1335
Town rights1612
Government
 • MayorJolanta Piotrowska
Area
 • Total
13.87 km2 (5.36 sq mi)
Highest elevation
142 m (466 ft)
Lowest elevation
116 m (381 ft)
Population
 (2006)
 • Total
29,667
 • Density2,100/km2 (5,500/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code
11-500
Area code+48 87
Car platesNGI
Websitehttp://www.gizycko.pl

Giżycko [ɡʲiˈʐɨt͡skɔ] (Template:Audio-de, Template:Lang-lt; former Template:Lang-pl) is a town in northeastern Poland with 29,796 inhabitants (2004). It is situated between Lake Mamry and Lake Niegocin, and has been within the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship since 1999, having previously been in the Suwałki Voivodeship (1975–1998). It is the seat of Giżycko County.

History

The first known settlements in the area of Giżycko date back Roman times and are connected to Amber Road in vicinity of which Giżycko was located.[1] A defensive grod was known to exist in the area, and some legent claims that in the IX it was ruled by king known as Izegup or Jesegup.[1]

In 1008 Bolesław I Chrobry sent an expedition to Christianize the Old Prussians ; according to the legend the missionary Bruno of Querfurt was killed by Sudovians near Lake Niegocin in 1009, and a memorial the Bruno – cross was erected near Loetzen in 1910.

The Teutonic Knights built a castle in Prussia named Lötzen or Letzenburg and the town was first mentioned in 1340 as Lezcen, derived from Prussian language: lezuns. Lötzen was administered within the Komturei of Balga. The settlement near the castle received town privileges, with a coat of arms and seal, in 1612 while part of the Duchy of Prussia.

Lötzen became part of the Kingdom of Prussia in 1701 and was made part of the province of East Prussia in 1773. In 1709/10 the plague claimed 800 victims, only 119 inhabitants survived.[2] In the 19th century, a Lutheran church designed by Karl Friedrich Schinkel was erected in the center of the town. Lötzen became part of the German Empire in 1871 during the Prussian-led unification of Germany.

1844–1848 the “Feste Boyen“, a fortress named after the Prussian war-minister Hermann von Boyen, was built on a small landtongue between lake Mamry (Mauersee) and lake Niegocin (Löwentinsee). This fortress is one of the largest and best conditioned fortresses of the 19th century. In 1942–1945 it was the headquarters of the German military intelligence service (Fremde Heere Ost) under Reinhard Gehlen.

As a result of the treaty of Versailles on 11 July 1920 the East Prussian plebiscite was organized under the control of the League of nations, which resulted 99,97% of votes to remain in Germany (29,378 total) and 0,03% for Poland (9 total). At the time, both German and Polish governments believed that the outcome of the plebiscite was decided by the ongoing Polish-Bolshevik War which threatened the existence of the newly formed Polish state itself. As a result, even many Poles of the region voted for Germany out of fear that if the area was allocated to Poland it would fall under Soviet rule.[3]

In the 1930s Lötzen was the garrison of several military units of the Wehrmacht as a Sub-area Headquarter of Wehrkreis I, which was headquartered at Königsberg. Staff-, maintenance- and guardtroops of Hitler's headquarter Wolfsschanze and the Oberkommando des Heeres (OKH, army highcommand) were also based in or nearby Lötzen. The OKH was based at the Mauerwald area, ca. 10 km north of Gizycko, an undestroyed bunker system.

The town was occupied by the Soviet Union's Red Army in 1945 during World War II and placed under Polish administration after the war ended. The German-speaking populace who had not evacuated during the war were subsequently expelled westward. The town was renamed Giżycko in 1946 in honor of the Masurian folklorist Gustaw Gizewiusz, a 19th-century Evangelical-Lutheran pastor in southern East Prussia, who had greatly supported Polish language and Polish culture.

  • Bruno of Querfurt Hill and Cross in Giżycko. View from Lake Niegocin
    Bruno of Querfurt Hill and Cross in Giżycko. View from Lake Niegocin
  • Boyen fortress
    Boyen fortress
  • Boyen fortress
    Boyen fortress

Demographics[4]

Year Population
1875 4,034
1880 4,514
1890 5,486
1925 10,552
1933 11,847
1939 14,000
2006 29,667

Sports

When Poland made the so far only international appearance in bandy, the city was represented.[5]

Education

Primary School

Middle School

High School

College

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Notable residents

International relations

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Poland

Twin towns — Sister cities

Giżycko is twinned with:

References

  1. ^ a b History Giżycko City official website
  2. ^ Kossert, Andreas (2006). Masuren. Ostpreußens vergessener Süden (in German). Pantheon. ISBN 3-570-55006-0.
    Kossert, Andreas (2004). Mazury, Zapomniane południe Prus Wschodnich (in Polish). ISBN 83-7383-067-7.
  3. ^ Debo, Richard K. , "Survival and consolidation: the foreign policy of Soviet Russia, 1918-1921", McGill-Queen's Press, 1992, pg. 335
  4. ^ Deutsche Verwaltungsgeschichte Provinz Ostpreußen, Kreis Lötzen
  5. ^ Bandy 2006, World Championships
  6. ^ [1]
  7. ^ Co Giżycko łączy z Ghazni?
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Giżycko.

54°03′N 21°46′E / 54.050°N 21.767°E / 54.050; 21.767


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