Chełmża (, earlier ''Culmsee''), is a town in northern

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, in the

Toruń County __NOTOC__ Toruń County () is a unit of territorial administration and local government (powiat) in Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, north-central Poland. It was created on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Polish local government reforms passed ...

Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship * Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship is one of the 16 voivodeships (provinces) in Poland. * Kuyavian-Pomeranian is one of 13 Polish constituency of the European Parliament. * Kuyavian-Pomeranian Regional Assembly is the regional legislature of t ...

. It is one of the historic centers of

Chełmno Land Chełmno land (, or Kulmerland) is a part of the historical region of Pomerelia, located in central-northern Poland. Chełmno land is named after the city of Chełmno. The largest city in the region is Toruń; another bigger city is Grudziąd ...

Geography

The town Chełmża is placed at the lake named Jezioro Chełmżyńskie (area 2.71 km²), earlier the lake itself was named Culm''see'' and therefore eponym of the town, that earlier had the name Culmsee, too (see History).

History

The first signs of settlement date to 10,000 BC when

reindeer The reindeer or caribou (''Rangifer tarandus'') is a species of deer with circumpolar distribution, native to Arctic, subarctic, tundra, taiga, boreal, and mountainous regions of Northern Europe, Siberia, and North America. It is the only re ...

hunters made their visits to the area. Around 4500 BC the first agricultural settlements were founded. Goth tribes also moved through the area on their trek from

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

and

North Germany Northern Germany (, ) is a linguistic, geographic, socio-cultural and historic region in the northern part of Germany which includes the coastal states of Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Lower Saxony and the two city-states Hambur ...

. Visible signs of existence of the

Old Prussians Old Prussians, Baltic Prussians or simply Prussians were a Balts, Baltic people that inhabited the Prussia (region), region of Prussia, on the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea between the Vistula Lagoon to the west and the Curonian Lagoon ...

also exist. Around the 7th century the Slavic Lechitic tribe of Goplans arrived in the area.

Middle Ages

In the time of first Piasts and the formation of Poland,

and the settlement of Łoza (now the town of Chełmża) was incorporated into Chełmno

castellany A castellan, or constable, was the governor of a castle in medieval Europe. Its surrounding territory was referred to as the castellany. The word stems from . A castellan was almost always male, but could occasionally be female, as when, in 1 ...

. After the death of

Bolesław III Wrymouth Bolesław III Wrymouth (; 20 August 1086 – 28 October 1138), also known as Boleslaus the Wry-mouthed, was the duke of Lesser Poland, Silesia and Sandomierz between 1102 and 1107 and over the whole of Poland between 1107 and 1138. He was the onl ...

in 1138 it was handed over to his son

Bolesław IV the Curly Bolesław IV the Curly (; 1122 – 5 January 1173), a member of the Piast dynasty, was Duke of Masovia from 1138 and High Duke of Poland from 1146 until his death in 1173. Early life Bolesław was the third son of Duke Bolesław III Wrymouth ...

– as part of

Masovia Mazovia or Masovia ( ) is a historical region in mid-north-eastern Poland. It spans the North European Plain, roughly between Łódź and Białystok, with Warsaw being the largest city and Płock being the capital of the region . Throughout the ...

within Piast-ruled Poland. The fights with nearby Old Prussian tribes resulted in several raids that destroyed the area. In the 13th century the ruler of the area was Konrad I who in order to Christianize the Old Prussians brought a missionary Bishop

Christian of Oliva Christian of Oliva (), also Christian of Prussia () (died 4 December(?) 1245) was the first missionary bishop of Prussia.

. The bishop was granted a number of possession including the settlement of Łoza. Later

Teutonic Knights The Teutonic Order is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem was formed to aid Christians on their pilgrimages to t ...

were granted local lands to support the bishop by military means. However, in time the knights took over the possession of Christian's diocese, dividing the area into four dioceses in 1243, including the Roman Catholic Diocese of Chełmno. At the end of 1245 Heidenreich of the Diocese of Chełmno (''Culm'') became the bishop of diocese. He picked Łoza as place of his stay. It was during that time that Łoza received its new name Culmense and became part of the residence of the bishop who resided and governed in

Warmia Warmia ( ; Latin: ''Varmia'', ''Warmia''; ; Warmian subdialect, Warmian: ''Warńija''; Old Prussian language, Old Prussian: ''Wārmi'') is both a historical and an ethnographic region in northern Poland, forming part of historical Prussia (reg ...

from 1245 to 1263. In 1251 (before July 22) Bishop Heidenreich bestowed city rights to Łoza and renamed it Culmsee (Kulmsee). Chelmza katedra 02

On July 22, the bishop also founded the

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

which was built starting in 1254. Bishop Heidenreich received permissions for his undertakings directly from the pope. Later, in 1255 the four dioceses of Prussia, including the Bishopric of Culm were put under the jurisdiction of the Archbishopric of Riga as metropolitan. In the 1250s Jutta von Sangerhausen came to live in the region and settled at Bielczyny. In 1256 she founded the St. George church. It was her wish to be interred at the town's cathedral-church and upon her death in 1260 her wish was granted. The 5 May is her memorial day. The nearby village of Bielczyny and the cathedral soon became a destination for pilgrims to her shrine. The town witnessed many wars and uprisings. The nearby Old Prussians besieged the town in 1268 and 1273. In the 14th century, papal verdicts ordered the restoration of the territory to Poland, however, the Teutonic Knights did not comply and continued to occupy it. In the 15th century the town experienced the wars between Teutonic Knights and

. In 1410 the Polish army took the town and the bishop of Chełmno Arnold Stapil made a tribute to Polish King

Władysław II Jagiełło Jogaila (; 1 June 1434), later Władysław II Jagiełło (),Other names include (; ) (see also Names and titles of Władysław II Jagiełło) was Grand Duke of Lithuania beginning in 1377 and starting in 1386, becoming King of Poland as well. ...

. In 1422 Chełmża was taken again by the forces of the king and destroyed in large part. In 1454, the town joined the anti-Teutonic

Prussian Confederation The Prussian Confederation (, ) was an organization formed on 21 February 1440 at Marienwerder (present-day Kwidzyn) by a group of 53 nobles and clergy and 19 cities in Prussia, to oppose the arbitrariness of the Teutonic Knights. It was based o ...

, upon the request of which Polish King

Casimir IV Jagiellon Casimir IV (Casimir Andrew Jagiellon; ; Lithuanian: ; 30 November 1427 – 7 June 1492) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1440 and King of Poland from 1447 until his death in 1492. He was one of the most active Polish-Lithuanian rulers; under ...

re-incorporated the region and town into Poland that same year, what was eventually confirmed following the Thirteen Years' War in 1466.

Synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word '' synod'' comes from the Ancient Greek () ; the term is analogous with the Latin word . Originally, ...

s of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Chełmno were held in Chełmża several times between the 14th and 17th centuries.

Early modern period

In 1552, Chełmża was visited by Polish King

Sigismund II Augustus Sigismund II Augustus (, ; 1 August 1520 – 7 July 1572) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, the son of Sigismund I the Old, whom Sigismund II succeeded in 1548. He was the first ruler of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and t ...

. After Riga's dissolution in 1566 the bishops of Chełmno attended the councils of the

ecclesiastical province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of jurisdiction in Christian churches, including those of both Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity, that have traditional hierarchical structures. An ecclesiastical province consist ...

of the metropolitan of Gniezno. This practice was recognised by the Holy See by the Bull ''De salute animarum'' in 1821, when the Diocese of Chełmno became de jure a suffragan of the

Archdiocese of Gniezno The Archdiocese of Gniezno (, ) is the oldest Latin Catholic archdiocese in Poland, located in the city of Gniezno.

. Chełmno diocese was enlarged on that occasion ( Górzno, Krajna and

Działdowo Działdowo (; , ) is a town in northern Poland with 20,935 inhabitants as of December 2021, the capital of Działdowo County. As part of Masuria, it is situated in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship (since 1999), Działdowo belonged previously to Cie ...

). In 1621 and 1627 the town hosted the court of Polish King

Sigismund III Vasa Sigismund III Vasa (, ; 20 June 1566 – 30 April 1632 N.S.) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1587 to 1632 and, as Sigismund, King of Sweden from 1592 to 1599. He was the first Polish sovereign from the House of Vasa. Re ...

along with Prince Władysław. The Swedish invasions of Poland of 1626–29 and 1655–60 brought devastation to the town. In the beginning of the 18th-century Russian, Saxon, Swedish armies went through the area along with supporters of

Stanisław Leszczyński Stanisław I Leszczyński (Stanisław Bogusław; 20 October 1677 – 23 February 1766), also Anglicized and Latinized as Stanislaus I, was twice King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, and at various times Prince of Deux-Ponts, Duk ...

. The constant warfare led to the fall of the city, and its breaking point was reached due a plague that happened in years 1708–1710. A next series of wars in 1733–1735 and in 1756–1763 along with fire in 1762 almost completely destroyed the city.

Late modern period

After the

First Partition of Poland The First Partition of Poland took place in 1772 as the first of three partitions that eventually ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth by 1795. The growth of power in the Russian Empire threatened the Kingdom of Prussia an ...

on 15 September 1772 Chełmża was taken over by the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (, ) was a German state that existed from 1701 to 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1946. It played a signif ...

. At that time it counted only 600 inhabitants. From 1807 to 1815 it was part of the Polish

Duchy of Warsaw The Duchy of Warsaw (; ; ), also known as the Grand Duchy of Warsaw and Napoleonic Poland, was a First French Empire, French client state established by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1807, during the Napoleonic Wars. It initially comprised the ethnical ...

only to be taken over by Prussia again after 1815 and

Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon, Napol ...

. The town's population in 1831 counted 1,200 people and in 1871 3,000. Its economic situation improved as it became an economic center for local villages benefited with good

soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, water, and organisms that together support the life of plants and soil organisms. Some scientific definitions distinguish dirt from ''soil'' by re ...

. During the Spring of Nations in 1848 Polish

patriotism Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and a sense of attachment to one's country or state. This attachment can be a combination of different feelings for things such as the language of one's homeland, and its ethnic, cultural, politic ...

reinvigorated. Circle of Polish League was established and Polish newspaper "Biedaczek" is being distributed in the years 1849–1850 by Julian Prejs. In 1866 "Towarzystwo Rolniczo-Przemysłowe" is created, an association dealing in industry and agriculture. In 1879 a regional

court A court is an institution, often a government entity, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between Party (law), parties and Administration of justice, administer justice in Civil law (common law), civil, Criminal law, criminal, an ...

is established in Chełmża. Two banks and school are established as well.

Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

, who made up 8% of local population, built in the 1880s a

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

. The industrial development was increased and agricultural

manufacturing Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of the secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer ...

plant and railway terminal were completed in 1882. The population rose as well from 3,400 in 1880, 8,987 in 1900, and 10,600 in 1910. In 1869 a local church

choir A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

"Cecylia" was founded, which exists to this day. Around 1900, the town formed a

language island A language island (a calque of German ''Sprachinsel''; also language enclave, language pocket) is an enclave of a language that is surrounded by one or more different languages. The term was introduced in 1847. Many speakers of these languages als ...

Swabian German Swabian ( ) is one of the dialect groups of Upper German, sometimes one of the dialect groups of Alemannic German (in the broad sense), that belong to the High German dialect continuum. It is mainly spoken in Swabia, which is located in central ...

. The development of the town was stopped due to the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. The living conditions declined and street riots became widespread.

Poles Pole or poles may refer to: People *Poles (people), another term for Polish people, from the country of Poland * Pole (surname), including a list of people with the name * Pole (musician) (Stefan Betke, born 1967), German electronic music artist ...

rose up against

Germanisation Germanisation, or Germanization, is the spread of the German language, people, and culture. It was a central idea of German conservative thought in the 19th and the 20th centuries, when conservatism and ethnic nationalism went hand in hand. In l ...

and protests were made against forced teaching in schools in German language. In November 1918 Poland regained independence, and on 8 January 1919 local Poles attacked a Grenzschutz unit but were repelled. In revenge the Germans shelled the town by

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

, and seven civilians, including two boys aged 8 and 12, were killed. Additionally the Germans arrested several people upon suspicion of leading the protests. On 21 January as result of

Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles was a peace treaty signed on 28 June 1919. As the most important treaty of World War I, it ended the state of war between Germany and most of the Allies of World War I, Allied Powers. It was signed in the Palace ...

, Chełmża became part of Poland again. A part of the German population was deported (2000 people). The population now counted 98% Poles, 1.8% Germans, 0.2% Jews. The overall number of Chełmża citizens rose from 10,700 in 1921 to 13,000 in 1939. After the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

in 1929 wages became lower and unemployment rose. National Democrats and at the second place socialists led by Stanisław Nehring became the main parties in Chełmża. "Gazeta Chełmżyńska" and "Głos Chełmżyński" were two papers distributed in the city. The mayor of the city was Bronisław Kurzętkowski from 1921 to 1934 and Wiktor Barwicki from 1934 until 1939.

World War II

After the joint German-Soviet

invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939), was a joint attack on the Second Polish Republic, Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak R ...

, which started

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in September 1939, the town was occupied by Germany, which carried out a genocidal campaign against the local Polish and Jewish population. Chełmża was one of the sites of executions of Poles carried out by Germany in 1939 as part of the ''

Intelligenzaktion The ''Intelligenzaktion'' (), or the Intelligentsia mass shootings, was a series of mass murders committed against the Polish people, Polish intelligentsia (teachers, priests, physicians, and other prominent members of Polish society) during the ...

''. Many local Poles, especially teachers, were also massacred in the Barbarka forest, also as part of the ''Intelligenzaktion''. The German state at the time considered Poles and Jews to be ''

untermensch ''Untermensch'' (; plural: ''Untermenschen'') is a German language word literally meaning 'underman', 'sub-man', or ' subhuman', which was extensively used by Germany's Nazi Party to refer to their opponents and non- Aryan people they deemed ...

en'' and planned their eradication as national groups. To escape this fate many local Poles took the III and IV group of Volksliste. In early 1945, in Chełmża, Polish forced labourers evacuated from Jajkowo were forcibly conscripted by the Germans to the

Organisation Todt Organisation Todt (OT; ) was a Civil engineering, civil and military engineering organisation in Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945, named for its founder, Fritz Todt, an engineer and senior member of the Nazi Party. The organisation was responsible ...

, however, some managed to escape. By the end of the war in 1945, the population of the town had declined to 10,000. In January 1945 the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

took Chełmża, thus ending the German occupation. Soviet repressions followed and 600 people of German descent were deported to

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

. The losses inflicted by German occupation regarding the population were gradually reversed and in 1980 Chełmża counted 15,000 inhabitants.

Demographics

Number of inhabitants by year

Sports

The most notable sports clubs of the town are

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

club and

rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically a ...

club .

Notable residents

* (born 1934), Polish priest and biblical scholar * Stefan Wincenty Frelichowski (1913–1945), Polish priest and patron of Polish Scouts, died of typhus at

Dachau concentration camp Dachau (, ; , ; ) was one of the first concentration camps built by Nazi Germany and the longest-running one, opening on 22 March 1933. The camp was initially intended to intern Hitler's political opponents, which consisted of communists, s ...

* (1895–1958), priest, professor, historian of Polish Catholic Church * Michał Kwiatkowski (born 1990), Polish cyclist * Jutta of Kulmsee aka Jutta von Preussen, Saint Judith, Saint Judith of Prussia or Jutta von

Sangerhausen Sangerhausen () is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, central Germany, capital of the district of Mansfeld-Südharz. It is situated southeast of the Harz, approx. east of Nordhausen, and west of Halle (Saale). About 26,000 people live in Sangerhausen ( ...

(1200–1260) * Andrzej Mierzejewski (born 1960), Polish road racing cyclist * Tomasz Piotrowski (born 1968), Polish general * Julian Prejs (1820–1904), Polish teacher and journalist * Kurt Vespermann (1887–1957), German actor * Eberhard Thunert (1899–1964), German general * Józef Wrycza (1884–1961), Polish independence fighter and Catholic priest * Bronisław Kurzętkowski (1880-1939), Mayor of Chełmża, lawyer, Polish independence fighter and activist

Gallery

Bazylika konkatedralna św. Trójcy w Chełmży.jpg, Holy Trinity Co-Cathedral in Chełmża Chełmża, Toruń county, St Nicholas church.jpg, Gothic Saint Nicholas Church, built 13th–14th century Chełmża, ratusz.jpg, Town hall Chełmża - Rynek - panoramio.jpg, ''Rynek'' ("Market Square") Chełmża - ulica Mikołaja Kopernika. - panoramio.jpg, ''Ulica Kopernika'' ("Copernicus Street") Chełmża - widok wieży ciśnień. - panoramio (4).jpg, Water tower

References

*Preussische Regesten, Ann.Thor.Chron.terre Pruss. Ss.r.Pr. III 59 468 *Urkundenbuch des Bisthums Culm, Latin: (Document record of Bishopric Culm/Kulm) ;Notes

External links

Urkundenbuch des Bisthums Culm
Latin text of Culmsee (Culmensi)
Online scan of Biedaczek, a polish newspaper published in 19th-century Chelmża
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship Populated lakeshore places in Poland Toruń County Holocaust locations in Poland