Grodków (; szl, Grodkōw) is a town in Brzeg County, Opole Voivodeship in

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 ...

, the administrative seat of

Gmina Grodków __NOTOC__ Gmina Grodków is an urban-rural gmina (administrative district) in Brzeg County, Opole Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. Its seat is the town of Grodków, which lies approximately south of Brzeg and west of the regional capital Opo ...

. It is located in the

Silesian Lowlands Silesian Lowlands (or Silesian Plains, pl, Nizina Śląska, cs, Slezská nížina, german: Schlesische Niederung) are lowlands located in Silesia, Poland in Central Europe. A small part is located in the Czech Republic. It is part of the Centra ...

of the

Oder The Oder ( , ; Czech, Lower Sorbian and ; ) is a river in Central Europe. It is Poland's second-longest river in total length and third-longest within its borders after the Vistula and Warta. The Oder rises in the Czech Republic and flows ...

basin, in the historic

Upper Silesia Upper Silesia ( pl, Górny Śląsk; szl, Gůrny Ślůnsk, Gōrny Ślōnsk; cs, Horní Slezsko; german: Oberschlesien; Silesian German: ; la, Silesia Superior) is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia, locate ...

region, about south of Brzeg. In the north it has access to the A4 autostrada. The town has 8,595 inhabitants (2019).

History

The area was included in the emerging Polish state around 990 by its first historic ruler

Mieszko I Mieszko I (; – 25 May 992) was the first ruler of Poland and the founder of the first independent Polish state, the Duchy of Poland. His reign stretched from 960 to his death and he was a member of the Piast dynasty, a son of Siemomysł and ...

of the

Piast dynasty The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I (c. 930–992). The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of king Casimir III the Great. Branch ...

and after the 12th-century fragmentation of the realm it was part of the Polish duchies of

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. S ...

and Brzeg. The settlement of ''villa Grodcobichi'' in the Duchy of Silesia was first mentioned in a 1210 deed. Its name is of Polish origin and comes from the word ''gród'', which means "stronghold" in Polish.Heinrich Adamy, ''Die Schlesischen Ortsnamen ihre entstechung und bedeutung'', 1888, p. 10 (in German) The neighbouring settlement of Nowy Grodków (''Neu Grottkau'') was laid out by

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

settlers in the course of the ''

Ostsiedlung (, literally "East-settling") is the term for the Early Medieval and High Medieval migration-period when ethnic Germans moved into the territories in the eastern part of Francia, East Francia, and the Holy Roman Empire (that Germans had a ...

'', it was granted

town rights Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the tradition ...

modeled on

Środa Śląska Środa Śląska (german: Neumarkt in Schlesien) is a town in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. It is the seat of Środa Śląska County, and of the smaller administrative district (gmina) called Gmina Środa Śląska. Th ...

in 1268 by the Silesian duke Henryk IV Probus. Defensive walls were built in 1296. Also in the 13th century the

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

St. Michael's Church, one of the most distinctive and valuable historic landmarks of Grodków, was built. The medieval city plan was characterized by a rectangular

marketplace A marketplace or market place is a location where people regularly gather for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other goods. In different parts of the world, a marketplace may be described as a '' souk'' (from the Arabic), ' ...

and four streets leading to the towers of the city gates and the nearby towns of Nysa, Ziębice,

Wrocław Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, r ...

and Lewin. In 1308 it was granted staple right. Upon the 1311 partition of the Silesian duchy, Grodków fell to the Duchy of Brzeg ruled by Duke Bolesław III the Generous, who became a

Bohemian Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Beer * National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst * Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, origin ...

vassal in 1327. In 1344 he sold the town to Bishop Przecław of

, who attached it to his Silesian

Duchy of Nysa The Duchy of Nysa ( pl, Księstwo Nyskie, cs, Niské knížectví) or Duchy of Neisse (german: Herzogtum Neisse) was one of the duchies of Silesia with its capital at Nysa in Lower Silesia. Alongside the Duchy of Siewierz, it was the only ec ...

. Later their suzerain, the Bohemian king Wenceslaus, granted the Wrocław bishops the title of a "Duke of Grodków", which they retained until the

secularisation In sociology, secularization (or secularisation) is the transformation of a society from close identification with religious values and institutions toward non-religious values and secular institutions. The ''secularization thesis'' expresses the ...

of the bishopric in 1810. Grottkau Ansicht 19

Grodków was devastated during the

Hussite Wars The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars or the Hussite Revolution, were a series of civil wars fought between the Hussites and the combined Catholic forces of Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, the Papacy, Eur ...

and again in the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of batt ...

, after which it was rebuilt under the rule of its native son Bishop Sebastian von Rostock. With the Bohemian kingdom, the town was incorporated into the

Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy (german: Habsburgermonarchie, ), also known as the Danubian monarchy (german: Donaumonarchie, ), or Habsburg Empire (german: Habsburgerreich, ), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities ...

in 1526. After the First Silesian War of 1740–42, it was annexed by King

Frederick the Great Frederick II (german: Friedrich II.; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was King in Prussia from 1740 until 1772, and King of Prussia from 1772 until his death in 1786. His most significant accomplishments include his military successes in the Sil ...

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

, the Prussian

garrison A garrison (from the French ''garnison'', itself from the verb ''garnir'', "to equip") is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a mili ...

established after the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754 ...

in 1763 was not disbanded until 1920. From 1815 onwards, under the Germanized name ''Grottkau'', it was part of the Silesia Province. Its population was predominantly

Catholic 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 ...

. The town had 4,867 inhabitants in 1939 and was a district seat (''Landkreis Grottkau'') until 1945. During

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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

the Germans established a

forced labour Forced labour, or unfree labour, is any work relation, especially in modern or early modern history, in which people are employed against their will with the threat of destitution, detention, violence including death, or other forms of ex ...

camp and two

prisoner-of-war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war ...

labour camps in the town. The town was heavily damaged during the Vistula–Oder Offensive of the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian language, Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist R ...

and after the war it became part of Poland again.

Economy

Grodków is the centre for commerce, business and industry in the regional locality of

. The town's gmina is largely dependent on the

agricultural sector The primary sector of the economy includes any industry involved in the extraction and production of raw materials, such as farming, logging, fishing, forestry and mining. The primary sector tends to make up a larger portion of the economy in de ...

, due to the Opole Voivodeship's fertile soil, being a major factor in the town's economy alike. The town has a department for the local shopping chain "Wimar Bort", located by Henryk Sienkiewicz Street (''ul. Henryka Sienkiewicza''). The settlement has a major industrial complex located to its north, including: "Grodkono"

waffle A waffle is a dish made from leavened batter or dough that is cooked between two plates that are patterned to give a characteristic size, shape, and surface impression. There are many variations based on the type of waffle iron and recipe use ...

s food production; "Nalewki Kresowe" producing the Polish alcoholic beverage nalewka, as well as a vulcanisation plant, all located by Lipowa Street (''ul. Lipowa'').

Transport

Grodków is located south of the Przylesie interchange (''Węzeł Przylesie''), connecting the Voivodeship Road 401 to the A4 motorway. The town has a railway station, with the Nysa–Grodków– Brzeg line crossing through the city.

Climate

Sports

Handball club is based in the town.

Notable people

* Melchior Adam (1575–1622), literature historian * Sebastian von Rostock (1607–1671), Bishop of Wrocław *

Sylvius Leopold Weiss Sylvius Leopold Weiss (12 October 168716 October 1750) was a German composer and lutenist. Born in Grottkau near Breslau, the son of Johann Jacob Weiss, also a lutenist, he served at courts in Breslau, Rome, and Dresden, where he died. Until ...

(1687–1750), composer *

Józef Elsner Józef Antoni Franciszek Elsner (sometimes ''Józef Ksawery Elsner''; baptismal name, ''Joseph Anton Franz Elsner''; 1 June 176918 April 1854) was a composer, music teacher, and music theoretician, active mainly in Warsaw. He was one of the fir ...

(1769–1854), composer, teacher of

Fryderyk Chopin The Fryderyk is the annual award in Polish music. Its name refers to the original Polish spelling variant of Polish composer Frédéric Chopin's first name. Its status in the Polish public can be compared to the American Grammy and the UK's ...

* Julius von Roeder (1806–1889), Prussian General * Johannes Ronge (1813–1887), founder of the German Catholics, worked as a chaplain at the Grottkau parish church from 1840 to 1843. * Bruno von Kern (1860–1932), Prussian General * Hans-Georg Herzog (1912–1959),

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

officer *

Helmut Scholz Helmut is a German name. Variants include Hellmut, Helmuth, and Hellmuth. From old German, the first element deriving from either ''heil'' ("healthy") or ''hiltja'' ("battle"), and the second from ''muot'' ("spirit, mind, mood"). Helmut may refer ...

(1920–1997), German officer * (born 1952), former Polish basketball player and member of Poland men's national basketball team * (born 1960), former Polish handball player and member of Poland men's national handball team * (born 1960), former Polish handball player and member of Poland men's national handball team * Piotr Gacek (born 1978), former Polish volleyball player and member of Poland men's national volleyball team * Marek Gancarczyk (born 1983), Polish footballer * (born 1998), Polish handball player and member of Poland men's national handball team

Twin towns – sister cities

See twin towns of Gmina Grodków.

References

External links

*
biggest website
*
Municipal website
*

Jewish Community in Grodków
on Virtual Shtetl {{DEFAULTSORT:Grodkow Cities in Silesia Cities and towns in Opole Voivodeship Brzeg County