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Bydgoszcz

Coordinates: 53°7′N 18°00′E / 53.117°N 18.000°E / 53.117; 18.000
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"Bromberg" redirects here. For other uses, see Bromberg (disambiguation).
Bydgoszcz
Flag of Bydgoszcz
Flag
Coat of arms of Bydgoszcz
Coat of arms
Country Poland
VoivodeshipKuyavian-Pomeranian
Countycity county
Establishedbefore 1238
Town rights1346
Government
 • President (Mayor)Konstanty Dombrowicz (I)
 • City Council ChairpersonDorota Jakuta (PO)
Area
 • City174.57 km2 (67.40 sq mi)
Elevation
60 m (200 ft)
Population
 (2008)
 • City360,142
 • Density2,100/km2 (5,300/sq mi)
 • Metro
460,608
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code
85-001 to 85-915
Area code+48 52
Car platesCB
Websitehttp://www.bydgoszcz.pl/

Bydgoszcz Template:IPAr (‹See Tfd›German: Bromberg ⓘ, Latin: Bydgostia) is a city in northern Poland, on the Brda and Vistula rivers, with a population of 360,142 (June 2008), agglomeration more than 400 000, which makes it the 8th biggest city in Poland. It has been the co-capital with Toruń of the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship since 1999, and was previously the capital of the Bydgoszcz Voivodeship (1947-1998) and before that, of the Pomeranian Voivodeship (1945-1947). Since 1999 it is also the seat of Bydgoszcz County.

Bydgoszcz is part of the metroplex Bydgoszcz-Toruń with Toruń, only 45 km away, and over 850,000 inhabitants. Bydgoszcz is the seat of Casimir the Great University, University of Technology and Life Sciences and a conservatory as well as a Collegium Medicum of Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń. Bydgoszcz has a famous Concert Hall (Filharmonia Pomorska), opera house Opera Nova, From the Bydgoszcz Ignacy Jan Paderewski Airport there are flights to Warsaw, London, Dublin, Liverpool, Berlin, Krakow, Vienna, Copenhagen, Birmingham and Düsseldorf-Weeze as well charter flights to Antalya, Crete and Tunis. Thanks to its location between Vistula and Odra water system on the Bydgoszcz channel, the city is an important link in a water system connected via Noteć, Warta, Odra, Elbe with the Rhine and Rotterdam.[1]

History

Originally a fishing settlement called Bydgozcya ("Bydgostia" in Latin), the city became a stronghold for the Vistula trade routes. In the 13th century it was the site of a castellany, first mentioned in 1238. The city was occupied by the Teutonic Knights in 1331–1337, and incorporated into the Polish Kingdom by King Casimir III of Poland, who granted Bydgoszcz city rights (charter) on April 19, 1346. The city increasingly saw an influx of Jews after that date. In the 15th-16th centuries Bydgoszcz was a significant site for wheat trading. The Treaty of Bydgoszcz was signed in the city in 1657.

Bydgoszcz followed the history of Greater Poland until 1772, when it was annexed by the Kingdom of Prussia in the First Partition of Poland and incorporated into the Netze District and, later, West Prussia. During this time, a canal was built from Bydgoszcz to Nakło which connected the north-flowing Vistula River via the Brda to the west-flowing Noteć, which in turn flowed to the Oder via the Warta.

In 1807 Bydgoszcz became part of the Duchy of Warsaw. In 1815 it returned to Prussian rule as part of the autonomous Grand Duchy of Poznań (the Province of Posen after 1848) and the capital of the Bromberg region. After 1871 the city was part of the German Empire. After World War I and the Great Poland Uprising, Bydgoszcz was assigned to Poland in 1919. In 1938 it was made part of the Pomeranian Voivodeship.

From 1939-45 during World War II, Bydgoszcz was overrun by Nazi Germany and annexed to the Reichsgau Wartheland. On September 3, 1939, shortly after the war started, the Bromberg Bloody Sunday incident occurred in which numerous Germans and Poles were killed; the incident was used by Nazi propaganda for retaliation against Poles after Bydgoszcz was occupied by the Wehrmacht on September 9. The city's Jewish citizens were repressed, as thousands of people were sent to concentration camps and/or executed. Bydgoszcz was the site of Bromberg-Ost, a female subcamp of Stutthof. The subcamp was staffed by several female SS guards (Aufseherin) and was commanded by the Oberaufseherin Johanna Wisotzki and a male commandant. A deportation camp was situated in Smukała village, now part of Bydgoszcz. According to Nowa encyklopedia powszechna PWN, 37,000 citizens of the city died during the war.[2]

In 1945 Bydgoszcz was liberated by the Soviet army and assigned back to Poland in accordance with the Jalta agreement.

In March 1981 Solidarity's activists were violently suppressed in Bydgoszcz.

Population

  • Diagram of city population since 1600

Landmarks

Przechodzący przez rzekę (Crossing the River)

Definitely one of the most beautiful buildings, and undoubtedly the oldest building, in the city is the Church of St Martin and Nicolaus, commonly known as Fara Church. It is a three-aisle late Gothic church erected between 1466 and 1502. The church boasts a late-Gothic painting entitled Madonna with a Rose, or the Holy Virgin of Beautiful Love, from the 16th century. The colourful 20th-century polychrome is also worth noticing.

The Church of the Assumption of the Holy Virgin, commonly referred to as "The Church of St Calres," is a famous landmark of the city. It is a small, Gothic-Renaissance (including Neo-Renaissance additions), one-aisle church built between 1582 – 1602. The interior of the temple is rather austere since the church has been stripped of most his furnishings. Not a surprising fact when taking into account that in the 19th century the Prussian authorities dissolved the Order of St Clare and turned the church into a warehouse, among others. Nonetheless, the temple is worth visiting and examining. The original wooden polychrome ceiling from the 17th century draws the attention of every visitor.

Wyspa Młyńska (the Mill Island) is among the most spectacular and atmospheric places in Bydgoszcz. What makes it unique is the location in the very heart of the city centre, just a few steps from the old market square. It had been the 'industrial' centre of Bydgoszcz in the Middle Ages and throughout the next few hundreds years of its existence. It was there that the famous royal mint operated for many years in the 17th century. The buildings which can still be seen on the island come from the 19th century. However, the so-called Biały Spichlerz (the White Granary) remembers the end of the 18th century. But it is the water, footbridges, red-brick edifices of historical tenement houses reflected in rivers, and the greenery, including old chesnut trees, that create the atmosphere of the Island.

Economy

Historic grain elevators at the Brda river bank.

Major corporations

Education

Transport

Bydgoszcz Ignacy Jan Paderewski Airport

Airports

Railways

Bydgoszcz is one of the biggest railroad junctions in Poland, with two important lines crossing there - the east-west connection from Toruń to Pila and the north-south line from Inowrocław to Gdańsk (see: Polish Coal Trunk-Line). There are also secondary-importance lines stemming from the city, to Szubin and to Chełmża.

Among rail stations located in the city, there are:

  • Bydgoszcz Główna - main railway station
  • Bydgoszcz Leśna
  • Bydgoszcz Wschód
  • Bydgoszcz Zachód
  • Bydgoszcz Łęgnowo
  • Bydgoszcz Bielawy
  • Bydgoszcz Osowa Góra

Bus stations

  • PKS Bydgoszcz - operates inter-city and international bus routes

Culture

Museums

  • Muzeum Okręgowe im. Leona Wyczółkowskiego (Leon Wyczółkowski District Museum) is a municipally-owned museum. Apart from a large collection of Leon Wyczółkowski's works, it houses permanent as well as temporary exhibitions of art.

It occupies several buildings: - Main building (Gdańska 4 St.) - The White Granary (Mennica St.)

Classical music

  • Filharmonia Pomorska im. Ignacego Paderewskiego (Ignacy Paderewski's Concert Hall) - thanks to superbly designed acoustic qualities of the main concert hall, it is one of the best classical music concert halls in Europe.

Theatre

Opera Nova at the bank of the Brda river.
  • Teatr Polski im. Hieronima Konieczki (Hieronim Konieczka's Polish Theatre) - despite its name, theatre offers a wide variety of shows both of national and foreign origin. It also regularly plays hosts to a large number of touring shows. Once a year, in autumn, "Festiwal Prapremier" is organized: the most renowned Polish theatres stage their latest premieres.
  • Opera Nova (The Nova Opera)

Sports

Sports clubs

The Club was A Team Polish Champion in the following years: 1938, 1966, 1967, 1970 and for the successive sixteen years: 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008.

Sports facilities

The sport, show and fair arena Łuczniczka.

Sports events

Politics

Bydgoszcz constituency

Members of Polish Sejm 2007-2011 elected from Bydgoszcz constituency:

Members of Polish Senate 2007-2011 elected from Bydgoszcz constituency:

Legends

It is also said that Pan Twardowski spent some time in the city of Bydgoszcz, where, in his memory, a figure was recently mounted in a window of a tenement, overseeing the Old Town. At 1:13 p.m. and 9:13 p.m. the window opens and Pan Twardowski appears, to the accompaniment of weird music and devilish laughter. He takes a bow, waves his hand, and then disappears. This little show gathers crowds of amused spectators.

People born in Bydgoszcz

Hotel Pod Orłem (Under the Eagle).

International Relations

Twin towns and Sister cities

Bydgoszcz Twin Cities sign on the Theatre Square

Bydgoszcz is twinned with:

Friendship relations

Bydgoszcz also maintains friendship relations with these cities:

  • View of Brda river
    View of Brda river
  • Wolnosci Square
    Wolnosci Square
  • Cathedral of St. Nicholas and Martin (circa 1466), interior
    Cathedral of St. Nicholas and Martin (circa 1466), interior
  • Solny Square with Bobola Church
    Solny Square with Bobola Church
  • Vincent de Paul Basilica, begun in 1924
    Vincent de Paul Basilica, begun in 1924
  • Bernardynow Church, 1552-1557
    Bernardynow Church, 1552-1557
  • Jesuit college
    Jesuit college
  • Church of the Holy Heart of Jesus
    Church of the Holy Heart of Jesus

See also

Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article "Bromberg".

References

  1. ^ City of Bydgoszcz Municipal website
  2. ^ "Encyklopedia PWN". Encyklopedia.pwn.pl. Retrieved 2009-05-05.
  3. ^ "Kragujevac City Partners". © 2008 Information service of Kragujevac City. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
  4. ^ Local Government Association: Twin Town Search
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bydgoszcz.

53°7′N 18°00′E / 53.117°N 18.000°E / 53.117; 18.000

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