Gdansk

/gduyonnsk/; Eng. /geuh dahnsk", -dansk"/, n.

a seaport in N Poland, on the Gulf of Danzig. 402,200. German, Danzig.

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German Danzig

City (pop., 2000 est.: 456,574), capital of Pomorskie province, northern Poland.

Located at the mouth of the Vistula River on the Baltic Sea, it was first mentioned in the late 10th century as a Polish town. The capital of the dukes of Pomerania in the 13th century, it was taken by the knights of the Teutonic Order in 1308. In 1466 Casimir IV regained the territory for Poland, and Gdańsk expanded greatly. From 1793 it was controlled mainly by Prussia; following World War I, it was a free city governed by Poland. In 1938 Adolf Hitler demanded that Gdańsk be given back to Germany; Poland's refusal was the excuse for his attack on Poland in 1939, which precipitated World War II. The city, greatly damaged during the war, was returned to Poland in 1945. It is now fully restored, with renewed port facilities. The independent labour union Solidarity was founded there in 1980.

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▪ Poland

German  Danzig 

 city, capital of Pomorskie województwo (province), north-central Poland, situated at the mouth of the Vistula River on the Baltic Sea.

 First mentioned as a Polish city in 997 or 999, Gdańsk was part of the Polish diocese of Włocławek, as noted in a papal bull of 1148. It was granted municipal autonomy in 1260 and developed as a trade centre. In 1308 the Teutonic Knights seized the city, which they held until 1466, when King Casimir IV of Poland regained the territory after a 13-year war. Granted local autonomy by the king in gratitude for its loyalty, Gdańsk expanded greatly, reaching its peak during the Renaissance as the most prosperous port on the Baltic. By 1754 it had the largest population (77,000) of any eastern European city and annual grain exports of more than 200,000 tons.

      The Swedish wars of the 17th century halted the city's economic growth and began its decline. In 1772 Gdańsk was seized by Prussia, which resulted in a rapid dissolution of trade through the port; and in 1793 it was incorporated as part of Prussia. Napoleon I granted it the privileges of a free city in 1807, but its territorial separation from Poland, as a result of the creation of a Prussian corridor to the sea, ruined its economy. Gdańsk appealed for reunification with Poland (1813–14); but when the Congress of Vienna instead partitioned Poland among Russia, Austria, and Prussia, the city was relegated to the province of West Prussia. Gdańsk became somewhat industrialized but failed to regain its stature as a great Baltic trading port.

      From 1919 to 1939 it again had the status of a free city, under the Treaty of Versailles, with Poland having administrative governance over it. However, the Gdańsk legislative assembly, which was of German composition, tended to antagonize the Polish overseer whenever possible. Poland finally built another port on Polish territory at Gdynia, 10 miles (16 km) to the north. Gdynia grew rapidly, and Gdańsk also flourished. German control of Gdańsk increased as the German National Socialist (Nazi) Party won a majority of the assembly seats in the 1933 and 1935 elections. In 1938 Hitler demanded that the city be given to Germany; Poland's refusal was used by Germany as provocation for its attack on Poland on September 1, 1939, which precipitated World War II.

      Greatly damaged during the war, Gdańsk was returned to Poland in March 1945. Now fully reconstructed, it counts among its restored buildings St. Catherine's Church, sections of which date from the 14th century, and the medieval town hall. As Danzig it was the childhood home of the German writer Günter Grass (Grass, Günter), several of whose novels are set in the locality.

  The city centre, known as Stare Miasto (“Old Town”), lies on the Motława, a tributary of the Vistula, 2 miles (3 km) inland. The city has two main port areas. The older Nowy Port (“New Port”) is a major industrial centre for shipyards, metallurgical and chemical plants, timber mills, and food-processing facilities. The Polish maritime commission was first begun there in 1568 to handle questions of defense and trade. The shipyards launched their first warship in 1572. In modern times, shipbuilding there has been an important source of foreign currency. Labour unrest in the Gdańsk shipyards in 1980 led to the creation of the Solidarity union. The newer Port Północny (“North Port”) is Poland's largest maritime development project (its first stage completed in 1975); it handles coal exports and petroleum imports, much of the latter processed at a nearby refinery. The city has an international airport and ferry connections to Sweden.

 Gdańsk is an important cultural seat containing schools of medicine, engineering, and fine arts; a maritime centre; many fine churches, museums, theatres, and gardens; and a concert hall and an opera house. The National Museum and the Maritime Museum are important institutions. The Dominican Fair, one of the longest-running cultural events in the city, originated in 1260. The University of Gdańsk was founded in 1970. Gdańsk is part of the Trójmiasto (“Three-City”) urban area, comprising the towns of Gdańsk, Gdynia, and Sopot. Pop. (2002) 461,334; (2007 est.) 456,103.

 

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