Chełmno Land
Encyclopedia
Chełmno land or Chełmno region is a historical region of Poland
, located in central Poland, bounded by the Vistula
and Drwęca
rivers.
Chełmno land is named after the city of Chełmno (historically also known as Culm). The largest cities in the region are Toruń
, Grudziądz
, Chełmno, and Chełmża. Sometimes it had been considered to be part of the neighbouring provinces of Masovia, Kuyavia
, Greater Poland
, Prussia
, and Pomerania
; it is currently part of the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodship.
It is located on the right bank of the Vistula
river, from the mouth of the Drwęca
river to Chełmno. Where the Vistula river takes a sharp turn northward, the Drwęca forms the eastern border of the region, while its southern and western border is the Vistula river.
, came to be populated by the Lechitic Kuyavians and tribes from Greater Poland. The Masovians
were led by Masos, who left the Polish duke Boleslaw I and sought refuge with the Prussians. When this area was subdued by the rulers of the Polans
Chełmno became a local centre of administration (kasztelania). Chełmno Land was Christianised in the 11th century.
According to the will of Duke Bolesław III Wrymouth, Chełmno land, after his death in 1137 became a part of the Duchy of Masovia
governed by his son Bolesław IV the Curly and his descendants during the feudal fragmentation of Poland. However the Prussians as well as the Pomeranians many times managed to regain their freedom from subjugation by the expanding Polish dukes.
By the 13th century the territory was subject to raids by Prussians, who sacked Chełmno, the province's main town, in 1216. In 1220 Conrad I of Masovia, with the participation of the other princes of Poland, led a partial reconquest of the province, but the project of establishing a Polish defense of the province failed due to conflicts between the princes. He brought the crusading Knights of Dobrin to Masovia, where they built a castle at Dobrzyń in 1224 as a base for attacks against the Prussians. As a result the territory was again sacked and devastated by Prussian raids, which led to depopulation of the province.
Being involved in dynastic struggles elsewhere and too weak to deal with the Prussians alone, Conrad needed to safeguard and establish borders against the heathen Old Prussians
, because his territory of Masovia was also in danger after the Prussians besieged Płock. Conrad awarded the already devastated Chełmno Land to the Teutonic Knights
, giving them Nieszawa
at first. He also brought in German
settlers to Płock.
In 1226 Duke Conrad I of Masovia enlisted the aid of the Teutonic Order to protect Masovia and help convert the Prussians to Christianity. In return, the knights were to keep Chełmno Land as a fief. The land constituted the base of the Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights
, and its later conquest of East Prussia
.
The Teutonic Order obtained an Imperial bull from Emperor Frederick II
before entering Prussia. In 1243 the papal legate
William of Modena
divided Prussia into four dioceses under the archbishop of Riga
, one of which was Chełmno Land.
After the Thirteen Years War between the Prussian cities and the Teutonic Knights ended with the Second Peace of Thorn (1466), Chełmno Land returned to the Polish crown as a part of Royal Prussia
(see Chełmno Voivodship).
In 1772 as a result of the First Partition of Poland
, Chełmno Land (with the exception of Toruń
) was seized by the Kingdom of Prussia
. Between 1807 and 1815 Chełmno Land was a part of the Duchy of Warsaw
. In 1815 it become part of the Grand Duchy of Poznań
, but in 1817 was incorporated into West Prussia
.
Following the Treaty of Versailles
, Chełmno Land was returned to Poland in January 1920. It was occupied in the Invasion of Poland in September 1939 by Nazi Germany
and annexed in October. In January 1945 it was captured by Red Army and returned to Poland.
, Grudziądz
, Brodnica
, Chełmno, Golub-Dobrzyń
, Chełmża, Wąbrzeźno
, Nowe Miasto Lubawskie
, Lubawa
and Lidzbark
.
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...
, located in central Poland, bounded by the Vistula
Vistula
The Vistula is the longest and the most important river in Poland, at 1,047 km in length. The watershed area of the Vistula is , of which lies within Poland ....
and Drwęca
Drweca
The Drwęca is a river in northern Poland and a tributary of the Vistula river near Toruń, forming a part of the city's administrative boundary. It has a length of 207 km and a basin area of 5,344 km², all in Poland.Towns:...
rivers.
Chełmno land is named after the city of Chełmno (historically also known as Culm). The largest cities in the region are Toruń
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....
, Grudziądz
Grudziadz
Grudziądz is a city in northern Poland on the Vistula River, with 96 042 inhabitants . Situated in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship , the city was previously in the Toruń Voivodeship .- History :-Early history:...
, Chełmno, and Chełmża. Sometimes it had been considered to be part of the neighbouring provinces of Masovia, Kuyavia
Kuyavia
Kujawy , is a historical and ethnographic region in the north-central Poland, situated in the basin of the middle Vistula and upper Noteć Rivers, with its capital in Włocławek.-Etymology:The origin of the name Kujawy was seen differently in history...
, Greater Poland
Greater Poland
Greater Poland or Great Poland, often known by its Polish name Wielkopolska is a historical region of west-central Poland. Its chief city is Poznań.The boundaries of Greater Poland have varied somewhat throughout history...
, Prussia
Prussia (region)
Prussia is a historical region in Central Europe extending from the south-eastern coast of the Baltic Sea to the Masurian Lake District. It is now divided between Poland, Russia, and Lithuania...
, and Pomerania
Pomerania
Pomerania is a historical region on the south shore of the Baltic Sea. Divided between Germany and Poland, it stretches roughly from the Recknitz River near Stralsund in the West, via the Oder River delta near Szczecin, to the mouth of the Vistula River near Gdańsk in the East...
; it is currently part of the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodship.
It is located on the right bank of the Vistula
Vistula
The Vistula is the longest and the most important river in Poland, at 1,047 km in length. The watershed area of the Vistula is , of which lies within Poland ....
river, from the mouth of the Drwęca
Drweca
The Drwęca is a river in northern Poland and a tributary of the Vistula river near Toruń, forming a part of the city's administrative boundary. It has a length of 207 km and a basin area of 5,344 km², all in Poland.Towns:...
river to Chełmno. Where the Vistula river takes a sharp turn northward, the Drwęca forms the eastern border of the region, while its southern and western border is the Vistula river.
History
The first historical account of Chełmno and Chełmno land dates back to 1065 when Boleslaw II of Poland granted a tax privilege to an abbey in a nearby Mogilno. The document lists Chełmno ("Culmine") along with other towns which then belonged to the province of Masovia. The area, being closest to the PolansPolans
Polans may refer to two Slavic tribes:* Polans , in the area of Dnieper river* Polans , in the area of Warta. The tribe unified most of the lands of present-day Poland under the Piast dynasty....
, came to be populated by the Lechitic Kuyavians and tribes from Greater Poland. The Masovians
Masovians
The Masovians or Mazovians are a Lechitic tribe or an ethnic group associated with the region of Mazovia. They were first referenced by Nestor the Chronicler in the 11th century. Originally, their main settlements were in the area of Płock, Łomża, Wizna, Czersk, Ciechanów, Płońsk, Zakroczym and...
were led by Masos, who left the Polish duke Boleslaw I and sought refuge with the Prussians. When this area was subdued by the rulers of the Polans
Polans (western)
The Polans were a West Slavic tribe, part of the Lechitic group, inhabiting the Warta river basin of the historic Greater Poland region in the 8th century.During the reign of King Svatopluk I of Great Moravia , who subdued the tribes of the Vistulans and Ślężanie...
Chełmno became a local centre of administration (kasztelania). Chełmno Land was Christianised in the 11th century.
According to the will of Duke Bolesław III Wrymouth, Chełmno land, after his death in 1137 became a part of the Duchy of Masovia
Duchy of Masovia
The Duchy of Masovia with its capital at Płock was a medieval duchy formed when the Polish Kingdom of the Piasts fragmented in 1138. It was located in the historic Masovian region of northeastern Poland...
governed by his son Bolesław IV the Curly and his descendants during the feudal fragmentation of Poland. However the Prussians as well as the Pomeranians many times managed to regain their freedom from subjugation by the expanding Polish dukes.
By the 13th century the territory was subject to raids by Prussians, who sacked Chełmno, the province's main town, in 1216. In 1220 Conrad I of Masovia, with the participation of the other princes of Poland, led a partial reconquest of the province, but the project of establishing a Polish defense of the province failed due to conflicts between the princes. He brought the crusading Knights of Dobrin to Masovia, where they built a castle at Dobrzyń in 1224 as a base for attacks against the Prussians. As a result the territory was again sacked and devastated by Prussian raids, which led to depopulation of the province.
Being involved in dynastic struggles elsewhere and too weak to deal with the Prussians alone, Conrad needed to safeguard and establish borders against the heathen Old Prussians
Old Prussians
The Old Prussians or Baltic Prussians were an ethnic group, autochthonous Baltic tribes that inhabited Prussia, the lands of the southeastern Baltic Sea in the area around the Vistula and Curonian Lagoons...
, because his territory of Masovia was also in danger after the Prussians besieged Płock. Conrad awarded the already devastated Chełmno Land to the Teutonic Knights
Teutonic Knights
The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem , commonly the Teutonic Order , is a German medieval military order, in modern times a purely religious Catholic order...
, giving them Nieszawa
Nieszawa
Nieszawa is a town and a commune in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, in north-central Poland. As of June 30, 2004, the town has a population of 2,047 people....
at first. He also brought in German
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....
settlers to Płock.
In 1226 Duke Conrad I of Masovia enlisted the aid of the Teutonic Order to protect Masovia and help convert the Prussians to Christianity. In return, the knights were to keep Chełmno Land as a fief. The land constituted the base of the Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights
Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights
The State of the Teutonic Order, , also Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights or Ordensstaat , was formed in 1224 during the Northern Crusades, the Teutonic Knights' conquest of the pagan West-Baltic Old Prussians in the 13th century....
, and its later conquest of East Prussia
East Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...
.
The Teutonic Order obtained an Imperial bull from Emperor Frederick II
Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick II , was one of the most powerful Holy Roman Emperors of the Middle Ages and head of the House of Hohenstaufen. His political and cultural ambitions, based in Sicily and stretching through Italy to Germany, and even to Jerusalem, were enormous...
before entering Prussia. In 1243 the papal legate
Papal legate
A papal legate – from the Latin, authentic Roman title Legatus – is a personal representative of the pope to foreign nations, or to some part of the Catholic Church. He is empowered on matters of Catholic Faith and for the settlement of ecclesiastical matters....
William of Modena
William of Modena
William of Modena , also known as William of Sabina, Guglielmo de Chartreaux, Guglielmo de Savoy, Guillelmus, was an Italian clergyman and papal diplomat. He was frequently appointed a legate, or papal ambassador by the popes Honorius III and Gregory IX, especially in Livonia in the 1220s and in...
divided Prussia into four dioceses under the archbishop of Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
, one of which was Chełmno Land.
After the Thirteen Years War between the Prussian cities and the Teutonic Knights ended with the Second Peace of Thorn (1466), Chełmno Land returned to the Polish crown as a part of Royal Prussia
Royal Prussia
Royal Prussia was a Region of the Kingdom of Poland and of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth . Polish Prussia included Pomerelia, Chełmno Land , Malbork Voivodeship , Gdańsk , Toruń , and Elbląg . It is distinguished from Ducal Prussia...
(see Chełmno Voivodship).
In 1772 as a result of the First Partition of Poland
First Partition of Poland
The First Partition of Poland or First Partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in 1772 as the first of three partitions that ended the existence of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth by 1795. Growth in the Russian Empire's power, threatening the Kingdom of Prussia and the...
, Chełmno Land (with the exception of Toruń
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....
) was seized by 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...
. Between 1807 and 1815 Chełmno Land was a part of 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...
. In 1815 it become part of the Grand Duchy of Poznań
Grand Duchy of Poznan
The Grand Duchy of Posen, or the Grand Duchy of Poznań was part of the Kingdom of Prussia, created from territories annexed by Prussia after the Partitions of Poland, and formally established following the Napoleonic Wars in 1815. Per agreements derived at the Congress of Vienna it was to have...
, but in 1817 was incorporated into West Prussia
West Prussia
West Prussia was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1773–1824 and 1878–1919/20 which was created out of the earlier Polish province of Royal Prussia...
.
Following the Treaty of Versailles
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June 1919, exactly five years after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The other Central Powers on the German side of...
, Chełmno Land was returned to Poland in January 1920. It was occupied in the Invasion of Poland in September 1939 by Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
and annexed in October. In January 1945 it was captured by Red Army and returned to Poland.
After World War 2
The region is currently inhabited by around 650,000 people. The largest cities include ToruńTorun
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....
, Grudziądz
Grudziadz
Grudziądz is a city in northern Poland on the Vistula River, with 96 042 inhabitants . Situated in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship , the city was previously in the Toruń Voivodeship .- History :-Early history:...
, Brodnica
Brodnica
Brodnica is a town in northern Poland with 27,400 inhabitants . Previously part of Toruń Voivodeship [a province], from 1975 to 1998, Brodnica has been situated in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship since 1999...
, Chełmno, Golub-Dobrzyń
Golub-Dobrzyn
Golub-Dobrzyń is a town in central Poland, located on the both sides of the Drwęca River. Situated in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship , it was previously in the Torun Voivodeship...
, Chełmża, Wąbrzeźno
Wabrzezno
Wąbrzeźno is a town in Poland, in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, about 35 km northeast of Toruń. It is the capital of the Wąbrzeźno County...
, Nowe Miasto Lubawskie
Nowe Miasto Lubawskie
Nowe Miasto Lubawskie is a town in Poland, situated at river Drwęca. The population is 11,104 . Nowe Miasto Lubawskie is the capital of Nowe Miasto County and was assigned to the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship in 1999.- History :...
, Lubawa
Lubawa
Lubawa is a town in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, Poland. It is located in Iława County on the Sandela River, some 18 km southeast of Iława.-History:...
and Lidzbark
Lidzbark
Lidzbark is a town in Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship in north-east Poland, on the Wel river.Lidzbark may also refer to the following places in Poland:* Connected with the town of Lidzbark:...
.
External links
- 1500s Map of Old Prussian Land (Altpreussen) with Culmerland, Sassen, Galindia (Michelau and Löbau) on the Border to Masovia to the south of PrussiaPrussiaPrussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
, before arrival of Teutonic KnightsTeutonic KnightsThe Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem , commonly the Teutonic Order , is a German medieval military order, in modern times a purely religious Catholic order...
