Dubno ( uk, Ду́бно) is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

located on the Ikva River in

Rivne Oblast Rivne Oblast ( uk, Рі́вненська о́бласть, translit=Rivnenska oblast), also referred to as Rivnenshchyna ( uk, Рі́вненщина) is an oblast (province) of Ukraine. Its administrative center is Rivne. The surface area of th ...

(

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

) of western

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

. It serves as the

administrative center An administrative center is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune is located. In countries with French as administrative language (such as Belgium, Lu ...

Dubno Raion Dubno Raion ( uk, Дубенський район) is a raion in Rivne Oblast in western Ukraine. Its administrative center is located in Dubno. Population: On 18 July 2020, as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, the number of raions o ...

(

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...

). The city is located on intersection of two major European routes, E40 and E85. The city is estimated to have a population of . It is located within the historic region of

Volhynia Volhynia (also spelled Volynia) ( ; uk, Воли́нь, Volyn' pl, Wołyń, russian: Волы́нь, Volýnʹ, ), is a historic region in Central and Eastern Europe, between south-eastern Poland, south-western Belarus, and western Ukraine. The ...

. In Soviet times it was home to the Cold War facility Dubno air base. The city is also famous for its fortress.

History

Middle Ages

First mentioned in a chronicle of 1100, when it was in possession of

Yaroslav the Wise Yaroslav the Wise or Yaroslav I Vladimirovich; russian: Ярослав Мудрый, ; uk, Ярослав Мудрий; non, Jarizleifr Valdamarsson; la, Iaroslaus Sapiens () was the Grand Prince of Kiev from 1019 until his death. He was al ...

's grandson David of Brest , Dubno was even a seat of local princes for a short period of time. In 1240 the town was raided by the

Mongols The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal membe ...

. In the early 14th century the region was the subject of Polish- Lithuanian rivalry, as a result of which Dubno became part of the latter. However, soon after with the

Union of Krewo In a strict sense, the Union of Krewo or Act of Krėva (also spelled Union of Krevo, Act of Kreva; be, Крэўская унія, translit=Kreŭskaja unija; pl, unia w Krewie; lt, Krėvos sutartis) comprised a set of prenuptial promises made ...

(1385), it came under Polish influence as part of the Polish-Lithuanian Union. In 1386 King

Władysław II Jagiełło Jogaila (; 1 June 1434), later Władysław II Jagiełło ()He is known under a number of names: lt, Jogaila Algirdaitis; pl, Władysław II Jagiełło; be, Jahajła (Ягайла). See also: Names and titles of Władysław II Jagiełło. ...

granted Dubno along with nearby Ostróg to magnate

Feodor Ostrogski Prince Feodor Ostrogski (1360–1446) was a magnate in Volhynia of Rurikid stock, son of Daniil Ostrogski. In some sources he is called ''Teodor'', ''Fedko'' or ''Frederic''. He was active in the Hussite Wars and assisted Sigismund Korybut. Biogra ...

and since then as a

private town A private town is a town owned by a private person or a family. History of Private Towns in Poland In the history of Poland, private towns (''miasta prywatne'') were towns within the lands owned by magnates, bishops, knights, princes, etc. ...

it has belonged for over 200 years to the influential

Ostrogski family The House of Ostrogski ( pl, Ostrogscy, lt, Ostrogiškiai, ua, Острозькі - ''Ostroz'ki'') was one of the more prominent families in the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. The f ...

. Later, it became a notable stronghold in

. Granted city rights in 1498 by

Alexander Jagiellon Alexander Jagiellon ( pl, Aleksander Jagiellończyk, lt, Aleksandras Jogailaitis; 5 August 1461 – 19 August 1506) of the House of Jagiellon was the Grand Duke of Lithuania and later also King of Poland. He was the fourth son of Casimir IV Jag ...

, the town attracted many foreign settlers, most notably

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

and

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

. As such, it became the seat of one of the oldest and most vibrant Jewish communes in Central-Eastern Europe. Since 14th century owned by the mighty Ostrogski family, who built the Dubno Castle during the times of

Konstanty Wasyl Ostrogski Konstanty Wasyl Ostrogski (2 February 1526 – 13 or 23 February 1608, also known as ''Kostiantyn Vasyl Ostrozkyi'', uk, Костянтин-Василь Острозький, be, Канстантын Васіль Астрожскi, lt, Konst ...

Early modern period

Between 1489 and 1506 the castle was significantly expanded by Konstanty Ostrogski, who made it a modern fortress, one of the strongest in the area. After 1566 Dubno was part of the Volhynian Voivodeship of the

Lesser Poland Province of the Polish Crown , subdivision = Province , nation = Poland , year_start = , event_end = Third Partition of Poland , year_end = , image_map = ProwincjaMalopolska.png , image_map ...

. During the Polish-Russian War of 1605–1618 in 1617, Prince and future King

Władysław IV Vasa Władysław IV Vasa; lt, Vladislovas Vaza; sv, Vladislav IV av Polen; rus, Владислав IV Ваза, r=Vladislav IV Vaza; la, Ladislaus IV Vasa or Ladislaus IV of Poland (9 June 1595 – 20 May 1648) was King of Poland, Grand Duke of ...

resided in the city. With the death of

Janusz Ostrogski Prince Janusz Ostrogski () (1554 – 17 September 1620 in Tarnów) was a Polish-Lithuanian noble and statesman. He served as a voivode of Volhyn (1584-1593), as a castellan of Kraków (from 1593 on), and as a starosta of Bohuslav (from 1591), B ...

in 1619, the last of his kin, the area was inherited by his brother-in-law

Aleksander Zasławski Aleksander Zasławski (died 1629) was a Polish-Lithuanian noble, voivode of Bracław (died 1628) and voivode of Kiev (1628–1629). In 1620 he inherited much wealth from his relative, Janusz Ostrogski. Son of Janusz Zasławski and Aleksandra ...

of the cadet branch of the Ostrogski family. About that time it was again modernized to stand up to the standards of

renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...

warfare and modernization of

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

. Finally, in 1673 it passed to the

Lubomirski family The House of Lubomirski is a Polish princely family. The Lubomirski family's coat of arms is the Drużyna coat of arms, which is similar to the Szreniawa coat of arms but without a cross. Origin and the coat of arms The Lubomirski fam ...

, which built a new palace within the fortress walls. In the 1780s the castle underwent yet another modernization and was rebuilt as a residential manor, mostly losing its fortified character. In 1781 King Stanisław August Poniatowski visited Dubno. By that time, the town was the largest settlement of the Volhynian Voivodeship and arguably the most notable centre of the area. In spite of the Partitions of Poland the town initially flourished after the first partition, as the szlachta register was moved there from Lwów, which was annexed by

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

. Dubno itself was annexed by Imperial Russia in 1795 during the

Third Partition of Poland The Third Partition of Poland (1795) was the last in a series of the Partitions of Poland–Lithuania and the land of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth among Prussia, the Habsburg monarchy, and the Russian Empire which effectively ended Polis ...

, after which the nobility's register was moved to

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe. Kyi ...

and the town lost its importance, gradually falling into neglect.

Late modern period

As part of anti-Polish repressions, the Russian administration closed down the Bernardine and Carmelite monasteries and confiscated them from the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. In 1870 Dubno was declared a ''Fortified Town'', which imposed serious limitations on settlement and housing construction, further limiting the development. However, it remained a notable centre of commerce, most notably because of numerous

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech, ...

settlements around the town, that gave it the nickname of ''the brewery of

''. The castle was ruined in 1915 during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Retaken by Poland after the state's independence in 1918 and finally granted to Poland in the

Peace of Riga The Peace of Riga, also known as the Treaty of Riga ( pl, Traktat Ryski), was signed in Riga on 18 March 1921, among Poland, Soviet Russia (acting also on behalf of Soviet Belarus) and Soviet Ukraine. The treaty ended the Polish–Soviet Wa ...

, it was a seat of a

powiat A ''powiat'' (pronounced ; Polish plural: ''powiaty'') is the second-level unit of local government and administration in Poland, equivalent to a county, district or prefecture ( LAU-1, formerly NUTS-4) in other countries. The term "''powiat ...

and a notable military garrison of both the KOP, and the

Polish Army The Land Forces () are the land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 62,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military history stre ...

, with the 43rd Rifle Regiment (part of the 13th Kresy Infantry Division), and the 2nd Regiment of Mounted Artillery (part of Volhynian Cavalry Brigade) stationed here. Dubno also was the seat of Papal Eastern Seminary (''Papieskie Seminarium Wschodnie''). In 1935 a large prison was started to be built, the third biggest in Poland at that time. Between 1932 and 1939 the castle was being rebuilt in its original form, but the works were stopped by the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. In 1937, its population was app. 15,500, out of which Jews made 45%, Ukrainians 29%, and Poles 26%.

World War II and post-war

Occupied by the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

following the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact of 1939, it was subject to harsh policies of the

NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (russian: Наро́дный комиссариа́т вну́тренних дел, Naródnyy komissariát vnútrennikh del, ), abbreviated NKVD ( ), was the interior ministry of the Soviet Union. ...

. The uncompleted prison was taken over by the NKVD in December 1939 and was used for political prisoners from all parts of Soviet-occupied Poland. Between 1500 and 3000 prisoners were kept there in harsh conditions, with new inmates arriving after the previous ones were successively transported to

Gulag The Gulag, an acronym for , , "chief administration of the camps". The original name given to the system of camps controlled by the GPU was the Main Administration of Corrective Labor Camps (, )., name=, group= was the government agency in ...

and other Soviet prisons. In 1940 most of the local Poles were arrested and resettled to various Soviet Gulags and prisons throughout the USSR. In 1941, following the outbreak of

Soviet-German War The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of conflict between the European Axis powers against the Soviet Union (USSR), Poland and other Allies, which encompassed Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Northeast Europe (Baltics), and Sou ...

, on June 24 and June 25, 1941, approximately 550 prisoners of the Dubno prison were executed by the withdrawing NKVD while only 8 of them survived. About that time in the vicinity of the town (and around

Lutsk Lutsk ( uk, Луцьк, translit=Lutsk}, ; pl, Łuck ; yi, לוצק, Lutzk) is a city on the Styr River in northwestern Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Volyn Oblast (province) and the administrative center of the surrounding Lu ...

and

Brody Brody ( uk, Броди; russian: Броды, Brodï; pl, Brody; german: Brody; yi, בראָד, Brod) is a city in Zolochiv Raion of Lviv Oblast (province) of western Ukraine. It is located in the valley of the upper Styr River, approximately ...

) a large tank battle was fought. In the Battle of Brody (1941) the German 1st Panzer Group under Ewald von Kleist managed to break the counter-attack by Soviet 9th and 19th Mechanized Corps, and 8th Mechanized Corps. 8th Corps Tank Group took Dubno and held it for 5 days before it was retaken by stronger German forces' (under Konstantin Rokossovski, Nikolay Feklenko and D.I Rybjasev, Commander of 8th Corps Tank group was brigade commisar N.K. Popel, respectively). Soon afterwards the town was occupied by Germany. During the

occupation Occupation commonly refers to: *Occupation (human activity), or job, one's role in society, often a regular activity performed for payment *Occupation (protest), political demonstration by holding public or symbolic spaces *Military occupation, th ...

, the Germans blew up the historic town hall from the 18th century. In the second half of 1943, Dubno became a shelter for ethnic Polish population of Volhynia, who came here to escape the Volhynian Genocide. The town was defended by a unit of Polish self-defence, which was tolerated by German authorities. On February 28, 1944, the Germans evacuated Poles from Dubno to

, and then to the Reich, where they became slave workers. In 1944 Dubno found itself again under

Soviet occupation During World War II, the Soviet Union occupied and annexed several countries effectively handed over by Nazi Germany in the secret Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of 1939. These included the eastern regions of Poland (incorporated into two different ...

and after the war it was taken from Poland and annexed by the

in accordance to the

Potsdam Conference The Potsdam Conference (german: Potsdamer Konferenz) was held at Potsdam in the Soviet occupation zone from July 17 to August 2, 1945, to allow the three leading Allies to plan the postwar peace, while avoiding the mistakes of the Paris P ...

. In 1959 the Roman Catholic Church of Saint John Nepomuk was closed down by the Soviets. It was reopened in 1993, thanks to the efforts of the local Polish community. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Dubno became part of Ukraine.

Jewish history

According to the census of 1897, Dubno had a population of 13,785, including 5,608 Jews. The main sources of income for the Jewish community were trading and industrial occupations. There were 902 artisans, 147 day-laborers, 27 factory and workshop employees, and 6 families cultivating land. The town had a Jewish hospital and several chederim (Jewish schools). The earliest date given in connection with the Jews of Dubno is the beginning of the 17th century. In 1650, there were 47 Jewish and 141 Christian taxable households. Dubno is perhaps best known within the Jewish world as the long-time home of Rabbi Yosef Yaakov Sabatka, "Yosef Yoske of Dubno", and of

Jacob ben Wolf Kranz Jacob ben Wolf Kranz of Dubno ( he, יעקב קרנץ; 1741–1804), the ''Dubner Maggid'' (), was a Lithuanian (Belarus)-born preacher (maggid). (Alternative spelling of family name: Kranc) Famous fables and stories The Dubner Maggid is famous ...

, the "Dubno ''

Maggid A maggid ( he, מַגִּיד), also spelled as magid, is a traditional Jewish religious itinerant preacher, skilled as a narrator of Torah and religious stories. A chaplain of the more scholarly sort is called a '' darshan'' (). The title of '' ...

''" (or Dubner ''Maggid''). Hayyim Mordecai Margolioth, author of ''Sha'are Teshuva'', was Rabbi there c. 1810. The nineteenth century intellectual Joel Baer Falkovich was also born in Dubno and was a pioneer of the

Haskalah The ''Haskalah'', often termed Jewish Enlightenment ( he, השכלה; literally, "wisdom", "erudition" or "education"), was an intellectual movement among the Jews of Central and Eastern Europe, with a certain influence on those in Western Euro ...

there, although he relocated to Odessa later in life. The Nazi occupation of Dubno began on June 25, 1941. During Passover of 1942, a large ghetto was created in the city. The ghetto included the local Jewish population as well as many refugees from other parts of

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

who had fled east. Within the Dubno ghetto, all Jews were identified by the Star of David on an armband. With 12,000 people in a small area, the ghetto became overcrowded and hunger/sickness were abundant. After October 24, 1942, the Jewish community ceased to exist. Most of the local Jews (roughly 12,000, that is 59% of pre-war inhabitants of the town) were killed in

The Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; ...

. They were shot in mass executions by the SS

Einsatzgruppe (, ; also 'task forces') were (SS) paramilitary death squads of Nazi Germany that were responsible for mass murder, primarily by shooting, during World War II (1939–1945) in German-occupied Europe. The had an integral role in the imple ...

outside of the city. A detailed description of the mass murder was given by Hermann Friedrich Graebe at the

Nuremberg trials The Nuremberg trials were held by the Allies against representatives of the defeated Nazi Germany, for plotting and carrying out invasions of other countries, and other crimes, in World War II. Between 1939 and 1945, Nazi Germany invaded m ...

. A young German officer of the German Infanterieregiment 9, Axel von dem Bussche, witnessed the executions and reacted by joining the resistance movement against Hitler. Around 300 Jews managed to survive the massacres.

Gallery

File:ID 56-103-0215(ZAMOK).JPG, Lubomirski Palace File:DSC 0503 Луцька брама.jpg, Lutsk Gate File:Монастир кармелiток 05648.jpg, Carmelite monastery File:P1230416 Костел.jpg, Bernardine Monastery File:Дубно. Памятник жабе..jpg, Frog monument File:Дубно. Река Иква..jpg, Ikva River in Dubno File:Будинок Домбровського (мур.), м.Дубно, вул.Грушевського, 156.jpg, Dombrowski manor in Dubno File:Дубно. Костел Яна Непомука..jpg, Church of Saint John Nepomuk File:St. Elijah cathedral Dubno.jpg, Saint Elijah church File:Дубно. Церковь Вознесения Господня..jpg, Church of the Ascension File:Братська могила жертв НКВД - Дубно.JPG, Memorial to the victims of Communist regime File:Будинок купця (мур.), м.Дубно, вул.Кирила і Мефодія, 6.jpg, Merchant's house, Dubno File:Дубно. Контрактовый дом..jpg, House of contracts File:Dubnojews1.jpg, Grave of Yosef Yaakov (Yoska) Sabatka in Dubno

People

* Yosef Yaakov (Yoska) Sabatka, Rabbi Yosef, Rabbi of Dubno *

, ''Dubner

'' * Axel Freiherr von dem Bussche-Streithorst * Rafał Leszczyński (1650–1703) * Aleksander Dominik Lubomirski * Józef Karol Lubomirski * Katarzyna Ostrogska (1560-1579) *

Stanisław Skalski Stanisław Skalski, (27 November 1915 – 12 November 2004) was a Polish aviator and fighter ace who served with the Polish Air Force and British Royal Air Force during the Second World War. Skalski was the top Polish fighter ace of the war and ...

, Polish fighter ace of the Polish Air Force in

Brigadier General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

, participant of the

Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...

Wiktor Poliszczuk Wiktor Poliszczuk (10 October 1925 in Dubno near Rivne – 17 November 2008 in Toronto) was a Polish-Ukrainian-Canadian (a Canadian citizen of Polish-Ukrainian descent) politologist specialising in the history of political thought, who wrote ab ...

* Joseph Soloveitchik * Vyacheslav Ivanovich Zof *Roman Toporow

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Dubno is twinned with: *

Giżycko Giżycko (former pl, Lec or ''Łuczany''; ; lt, Leičių pilis) is a town in northeastern Poland with 28,597 inhabitants as of December 2021. It is situated between Lake Kisajno and Lake Niegocin in the region of Masuria, and has been withi ...

* Sokołów Podlaski,

References

* * * * ;Specific

Bibliography of Jewish Encyclopedia

* P. Pesis, '' 'Ir Dubno we-Rabbaneha'', Cracow, 1902; * '' Regesty i Nadpisi'', i. 339, 432, St. Petersburg, 1899; * K. H. Margolyesh, in '' Ned. Khronika Voskhoda'', 1887, p. 45.H :

::By :

Herman Rosenthal Herman Rosenthal (October 6, 1843 – 1917) was an American author, editor, and librarian. Biography Rosenthal was born in Friedrichstadt (Jaunjelgava), Courland. He was educated at Bauske (Bauska) and Jakobstadt (Jēkabpils), graduating in 18 ...

, S. Janovsky & M. Seligsohn

External links

Official City Website

City Portal of Dubno

History of Dubno

Social network of the town of Dubno

Сastles of Ukraine.

Soviet topographic map 1:100,000

* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090506060443/http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/MapCenter/Map.aspx?TextLatitude=54.2650299179563&TextLongitude=36.1528572203216&TextAltitude=8&TextSelectedEntity=7020116&MapStyle=Comprehensive&MapSize=Large&MapStyleSelectedIndex=0&searchTextMap=dubno Location map via Encarta Maps]
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