Brzeziny
Encyclopedia
Brzeziny b is a town in Poland
, in Łódź Voivodeship, about 20 km east of Łódź. It is the capital of Brzeziny County
. Population is 12,417 (2004).
town of Thorn
from the 15th to 17th centuries. Of particular economic importance was craft and tailoring. In 1752 the first Germans
began to settle in the area.
In 1793, following the Second Partition of Poland
, the town and region was annexed into the Kingdom of Prussia
as South Prussia
. In July 1807, following the Treaty of Tilsit, the town was transferred to the Duchy of Warsaw
and after June 1815, became part of the Russian Congress Poland
to 1916.
During World War I
Austria
n and German
armies were very active in the region. The Prussian General Karl Litzmann
won an important battle here against the Russia
n army and earned the nickname "the lion of Brzeziny". From November 1916, with Poland
mostly occupied by Austria
n and German
arms, the autonomous Regency Kingdom of Poland
(Królestwo Regencyjne) governed the area until the declaration of the Second Polish Republic
in 1918.
During the World War II
the entire region was part of the notorious Reichsgau Wartheland
governed by SS Obergruppenfuhrer
Arthur Greiser
. The town was renamed Löwenstadt to honour Karl Litzmann
and a small ghetto was established in 1940 for local Jews
who were all murdered later.
On 18 January 1945 the Red Army
reached Brzeziny and later incorporated the town into the People's Republic of Poland
.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, in Łódź Voivodeship, about 20 km east of Łódź. It is the capital of Brzeziny County
Brzeziny County
Brzeziny County is a unit of territorial administration and local government in Łódź Voivodeship, central Poland. It was created in 2002 out of the north-eastern part of Łódź East County. Its administrative seat and only town is Brzeziny, which lies east of the regional capital Łódź.The county...
. Population is 12,417 (2004).
History
The first settlement on the site of the present town of Brzeziny was during the 13th Century. The first documentary evidence of the Stadtrecht (town charter) dates from 1332. The town played an important role in the development of trade between Russia and the PolishPoland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
town of Thorn
Torun
Toruń is an ancient city in northern Poland, on the Vistula River. Its population is more than 205,934 as of June 2009. Toruń is one of the oldest cities in Poland. The medieval old town of Toruń is the birthplace of the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus....
from the 15th to 17th centuries. Of particular economic importance was craft and tailoring. In 1752 the first Germans
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
began to settle in the area.
In 1793, following the Second Partition of Poland
Second Partition of Poland
The 1793 Second Partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was the second of three partitions that ended the existence of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth by 1795. The second partition occurred in the aftermath of the War in Defense of the Constitution and the Targowica Confederation of 1792...
, the town and region was annexed into the Kingdom of Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
as South Prussia
South Prussia
South Prussia was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1793 to 1807. It was created out of territory annexed in the Second Partition of Poland and included in 1793*the Poznań, Kalisz and Gniezno Voivodeships of Greater Poland;...
. In July 1807, following the Treaty of Tilsit, the town was transferred to the Duchy of Warsaw
Duchy of Warsaw
The Duchy of Warsaw was a Polish state established by Napoleon I in 1807 from the Polish lands ceded by the Kingdom of Prussia under the terms of the Treaties of Tilsit. The duchy was held in personal union by one of Napoleon's allies, King Frederick Augustus I of Saxony...
and after June 1815, became part of the Russian Congress Poland
Congress Poland
The Kingdom of Poland , informally known as Congress Poland , created in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna, was a personal union of the Russian parcel of Poland with the Russian Empire...
to 1916.
During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n and German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
armies were very active in the region. The Prussian General Karl Litzmann
Karl Litzmann
200px|thumbKarl Litzmann was a German World War I infantry general and later a Nazi official. He is best known for his victory in Battle of Łódź...
won an important battle here against the Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n army and earned the nickname "the lion of Brzeziny". From November 1916, with Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
mostly occupied by Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n and German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
arms, the autonomous Regency Kingdom of Poland
Kingdom of Poland (1916–1918)
The Kingdom of Poland, also informally called the Regency Kingdom of Poland , was a proposed puppet state during World War I by Germany and Austria-Hungary in 1916 after their conquest of the former Congress Poland from Russia...
(Królestwo Regencyjne) governed the area until the declaration of the Second Polish Republic
Second Polish Republic
The Second Polish Republic, Second Commonwealth of Poland or interwar Poland refers to Poland between the two world wars; a period in Polish history in which Poland was restored as an independent state. Officially known as the Republic of Poland or the Commonwealth of Poland , the Polish state was...
in 1918.
During the World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
the entire region was part of the notorious Reichsgau Wartheland
Reichsgau Wartheland
Reichsgau Wartheland was a Nazi German Reichsgau formed from Polish territory annexed in 1939. It comprised the Greater Poland and adjacent areas, and only in part matched the area of the similarly named pre-Versailles Prussian province of Posen...
governed by SS Obergruppenfuhrer
Obergruppenführer
Obergruppenführer was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was first created in 1932 as a rank of the SA and until 1942 it was the highest SS rank inferior only to Reichsführer-SS...
Arthur Greiser
Arthur Greiser
Arthur Greiser was a Nazi German politician and SS Obergruppenfuhrer. He was one of the persons primarily responsible for organizing the Holocaust in Poland and numerous other war crimes and crimes against humanity, for which he was tried, convicted and executed by hanging after World War...
. The town was renamed Löwenstadt to honour Karl Litzmann
Karl Litzmann
200px|thumbKarl Litzmann was a German World War I infantry general and later a Nazi official. He is best known for his victory in Battle of Łódź...
and a small ghetto was established in 1940 for local Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
who were all murdered later.
On 18 January 1945 the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
reached Brzeziny and later incorporated the town into the People's Republic of Poland
People's Republic of Poland
The People's Republic of Poland was the official name of Poland from 1952 to 1990. Although the Soviet Union took control of the country immediately after the liberation from Nazi Germany in 1944, the name of the state was not changed until eight years later...
.
Notable residents
- Abraham Icek TuschinskiAbraham Icek TuschinskiAbraham Icek Tuschinski was a Dutch businessman of Jewish-Polish descent who ordered the construction of the Tuschinski Theater, a famed cinema in Amsterdam....
(1886-1942), businessman - Georg WannagatGeorg WannagatGeorg Paul Wannagat was a German jurist and President of the Bundessozialgericht.- Biography :Wannagat was born in Brzeziny to the Protestant Pastor Albert Ludwig Wannagat and Lucie Adeline née Jahn...
(1916-2006), jurist