Prudnik (, szl, Prudnik, Prōmnik, german: Neustadt in Oberschlesien, Neustadt an der Prudnik, la, Prudnicium) is a town in southern

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 ...

, located in the southern part of

Opole Voivodeship Opole Voivodeship, or Opole Province ( pl, województwo opolskie ), is the smallest and least populated voivodeship (province) of Poland. The province's name derives from that of the region's capital and largest city, Opole. It is part of Upper Si ...

near the border with the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

. It is the administrative seat of Prudnik County and Gmina Prudnik. Its population numbers 21,368 inhabitants (2016). Since 2015, Prudnik is a member of the Cittaslow International. The town was founded in the 1250s, and was historically part of the Polish-ruled

Duchy of Opole Duchy of Opole ( pl, Księstwo opolskie; german: Herzogtum Oppeln; cs, Opolské knížectví) was one of the duchies of Silesia ruled by the Piast dynasty. Its capital was Opole (Oppeln, Opolí) in Upper Silesia. Duke Boleslaw III 'the Wrymo ...

, and afterwards was located within 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 ...

, Habsburg Monarchy again,

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 ...

, Germany, and eventually Poland again. It was once an important industrial hub known for its shoe-making traditions and more recently towel making by the ZPB "Frotex" Company, one of the largest towel manufacturers in Europe. The town also possesses numerous architectural monuments and historic buildings such as the Main

Town Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

and "Wok's Tower" (''Wieża Woka'') from the 13th-century.

Geography

Prudnik is located in the historic

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 ...

(

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 at the confluence of the Prudnik river and its Złoty Potok tributary. The city is situated on the border of Opawskie Mountains and the Prudnik Depression ( pl, Obniżenie Prudnickie; a part of 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 ...

). Prudnik and

Vrbno pod Pradědem Vrbno pod Pradědem (; german: Würbenthal) is a town in Bruntál District in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 4,800 inhabitants. Administrative parts Villages and hamlets of Bílý Potok, Mnichov, Vidly and Želez ...

are headquarters of the Euroregion Praděd.

Etymology

The name "''Prudnik''" was created after Polish word ''prąd'' (flow, stream, Czech: ''proud'', Silesian: ''prōnd'') and, like nearby Prężyna, means a river with a fast stream. In the Middle Ages, the city's name was written with a letter ''u'', which was Czech counterpart of ''ą'' (1262 ''Pruthenos'', 1331 ''Prudnik''). Since the 17th century, the name ''Prudnik'' was used along with ''Neustadt''. The town's German name was also written in its Latin form ''Neostadium''. Sometimes its Polish and Czech translations were used (''Nowe Miasto'', ''Nové Město''). The town's older name also had its Latin form (''Prudnicium''). The town was also called ''Polnisch Neustadt'' ("Polish New Town"), but in 1708 it got replaced with ''Königliche Stadt Neustadt'' ("Royal Town New Town"). Its Polish counterpart ''Nowe Miasto Królewskie'' was used in a Polish document published in 1750 by

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 ...

. In the 19th century, the city's name was changed to ''Neustadt in Oberschlesien'' ("New Town in Upper Silesia"), while the Slavic name ''Prudnik'' was still used by its Polish inhabitants, which was mentioned in Upper Silesia's topographical description from 1865: "''Der ursprünglische Stadtname „Prudnik" ist noch jetz bei den polnischen Landbewohnern üblich''". In the alphabetic list of cities of Silesia published by Johann Knie in

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 ...

in 1830, Polish name ''Prudnik'' was used along with German ''Neustadt'' ("''Prudnik, polnische Benennung der Kreistadt Neustadt''"). In Polish publications since the 20th century, the city's name was written as ''Prądnik''. This name was also used formally in 1945. The city's name was changed to ''Prudnik'' on 7 May 1946. In Polish, the city name has masculine

grammatical gender In linguistics, grammatical gender system is a specific form of noun class system, where nouns are assigned with gender categories that are often not related to their real-world qualities. In languages with grammatical gender, most or all noun ...

History

Prehistory

The first human traces in the present town area, confirmed by

archaeological excavation In archaeology, excavation is the exposure, processing and recording of archaeological remains. An excavation site or "dig" is the area being studied. These locations range from one to several areas at a time during a project and can be condu ...

s, are dated to the

Paleolithic The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic (), also called the Old Stone Age (from Greek: παλαιός '' palaios'', "old" and λίθος ''lithos'', "stone"), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone too ...

times. Local

early Slavs The early Slavs were a diverse group of tribal societies who lived during the Migration Period and the Early Middle Ages (approximately the 5th to the 10th centuries AD) in Central and Eastern Europe and established the foundations for the Sl ...

maintained trade contacts with

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, which is confirmed by

Roman coins Roman currency for most of Roman history consisted of gold, silver, bronze, orichalcum and copper coinage. From its introduction to the Republic, during the third century BC, well into Imperial times, Roman currency saw many changes in form, denom ...

found here dating back to 700 BC–1250 AD.

Middle Ages

The area of present Prudnik was located at the border of

Golensizi The Golensizi ( pl, Golęszycy, Gołęszycy, Golęszyce, Gołęszyce, Gołężyce, cz, Holasici, german: Golensizen) were a tribe of West Slavs, specifically of the Lechitic tribes (one of the Silesian tribes), living in the Early Middle Ages an ...

and

Opolans Opolans ( pl, Opolanie; cs, Opolané; german: Opolanen) were the West Slavic tribe that lived in the region of upper Odra. Their main settlement ( gord) was Opole. They were mentioned in the Bavarian Geographer, under the name Opolini, as one of ...

. Between the years of 1255 and 1259 the Czech knight Wok of Rosenberg founded in the defensive bend of the Prudnik river a

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

, and his son Jindřich obtained the city rights in 1279. In 1337 it became a part of the

, and remained under the rule of local Polish dukes 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 ...

until the dissolution of the duchy in 1532, when it was incorporated into the

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...

-ruled Bohemian (Czech) Crown. It was located on a

trade route A trade route is a logistical network identified as a series of pathways and stoppages used for the commercial transport of cargo. The term can also be used to refer to trade over bodies of water. Allowing goods to reach distant markets, a sing ...

between

and

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

. The oldest known form of Prudnik's coat of arms comes from a 1399 wax seal. A knight Maćko of Prudnik participated in the

Battle of Grunwald The Battle of Grunwald, Battle of Žalgiris or First Battle of Tannenberg was fought on 15 July 1410 during the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War. The alliance of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, led respec ...

fought on 15 July 1410 during the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War. Maćko fought together with the troops of the

Crown of the Kingdom of Poland The Crown of the Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Korona Królestwa Polskiego; Latin: ''Corona Regni Poloniae''), known also as the Polish Crown, is the common name for the historic Late Middle Ages territorial possessions of the King of Poland, includ ...

. On 23 March 1464, Prudnik and villages around it were

excommunicated Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to end or at least regulate the communion of a member of a congregation with other members of the religious institution who are in normal communion with each other. The purpose ...

Pope Pius II Pope Pius II ( la, Pius PP. II, it, Pio II), born Enea Silvio Bartolomeo Piccolomini ( la, Aeneas Silvius Bartholomeus, links=no; 18 October 1405 – 14 August 1464), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 Augu ...

for refusing to pay the debt of Duke Konrad IV the Older. Although local historian Antoni Dudek claimed that the excommunication was lifted in 16th century, the Pope never revealed a document that lifted the curse.

Early modern era

In 1562, the Austrian-ruled Duchy of Opole and Racibórz passed a resolution that obligated

Jews 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 ...

to sell their houses, pay their debts, and leave the duchy in a year. On the basis of this resolution, in 1564, Jews were ordered to leave Prudnik, but Krzysztof Prószkowski, who leased the land there, let them stay until 1570. The town was captured and plundered by the

Swedes Swedes ( sv, svenskar) are a North Germanic ethnic group native to the Nordic region, primarily their nation state of Sweden, who share a common ancestry, culture, history and language. They mostly inhabit Sweden and the other Nordic countr ...

in 1632, during 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 ...

. In 1645 along with Opole and Racibórz it returned to Poland under the

House of Vasa The House of Vasa or Wasa Georg Starbäck in ''Berättelser ur Sweriges Medeltid, Tredje Bandet'' pp 264, 275, 278, 291–296 & 321 ( sv, Vasaätten, pl, Wazowie, lt, Vazos) was an early modern royal house founded in 1523 in Sweden. Its memb ...

, and in 1666 it fell to Austria again. Neustadt in Oberschlesien Ansicht 19

In 1742 the town was incorporated into

. During 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 ...

it was the scene of a bloody surprise attack upon the Prussians as they were marching out of the city. ''

The London Gazette ''The London Gazette'' is one of the official journals of record or government gazettes of the Government of the United Kingdom, and the most important among such official journals in the United Kingdom, in which certain statutory notices are ...

'' of 25 March 1760 reported "General Laudohn, who had set out from his Quarters on 14th with Palfy's Regiment of Cuirassiers, Lowenstein's Dragoons, 500 Hussars of Nadaski, 500 of Kalnocki, 2000

Croats The Croats (; hr, Hrvati ) are a South Slavic ethnic group who share a common Croatian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are also a recognized minority in a number of neighboring countries, namely Austria, the Czech Republic ...

and 14 Companies of Grenadiers, marched all Night with a View to surprise our Troops at Neustadt. The latter were scarce out of the Gates, when they were surrounded by those of the Enemy. General Jacquemin was posted with the Regiment of Lowenstein near Buchelsdorff on the road to Steinau, General Laudohn followed with the Regiment of Palfy and 2000 Croats, supported by 14 Companies of Grenadiers; a thousand of their Hussars were upon our right flank, the advanced Guard of which consisted of 100 Men under Capt. Blumenthal of the Regiment of

Manteuffel The House of Manteuffel is the name of an old and influential German Pomeranian noble family, which later also resided in Brandenburg, Prussia, Silesia, Mecklenburg, Poland, the Baltics and in Russia. History Manteuffel family was first men ...

. Capt Zitzewitz commanded the Rear Guard, consisting of the same number; and the rest of the aforesaid regiment, with a Squadron of Dragoons of Bareith under Capt. Chambaud, followed with the Baggage. General Laudohn summoned out Troops twice, by Sound of Trumpet, to lay down their Arms; which they not complying with, he ordered all his Cavalry to advance: Whereupon General Jacquemin fell upon the advance Guard, while General Laudohn himself attacked the Rear, and the Hussars, in Platoons, flanked the Baggage. The Captains Blumenthal and Zittzwitz formed their small Force in a Kind of Square, from whence they kept a continual fire. The enemy's Cavalry nevertheless advanced six Times on a Gallop, to within ten Paces of our Troops; but perceiving many fall on their Side, among whom were several Officers, they retreated in great Disorder... The Loss of the Austrians however greatly exceeds ours; they buried above 300 Men, in different Places, and sent 500 Wounded to Neustadt. Besides which we have taken 25 Prisoners, amongst whom are several Officers. We had 35 men killed, and four Officers and 65 private Men wounded, in Manteuffel's Regiment, as also one Lieutenant, with three Dragoons in Bareich's... The Officers, taken Prisoners, by our Troops, commend highly the Bravery of the Regiment of

upon this Occasion." In the subsequent years, the area developed into a significant centre of handcraft, in particular cloth production and shoe-making. In the 19th century, the surrounding factories continued the local tradition of handicraft. The indigenous Polish population was subject to

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 lin ...

policies. Due to the lack of Polish schools, local

Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, who share a common history, culture, the Polish language and are identified with the country of Poland in ...

sent their children to schools in so-called

Congress Poland Congress Poland, Congress Kingdom of Poland, or Russian Poland, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland, was a polity created in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna as a semi-autonomous Polish state, a successor to Napoleon's Duchy of Warsaw. I ...

in the

Russian Partition The Russian Partition ( pl, zabór rosyjski), sometimes called Russian Poland, constituted the former territories of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that were annexed by the Russian Empire in the course of late-18th-century Partitions of Po ...

of Poland. Local Polish activist, publicist and teacher , was investigated by the local Prussian administration and police for writing about this practice in the ''Gazeta Toruńska'', a major Polish newspaper in the Prussian Partition of Poland.

Interbellum and World War II

Prudnik remained part of Germany after Poland regained independence in 1918, however, Polish organizations still operated in the town in the

interbellum In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the First World War to the beginning of the Second World War. The interwar period was relative ...

, including the

Union of Poles in Germany Union of Poles in Germany ( pl, Związek Polaków w Niemczech, german: Bund der Polen in Deutschland e.V.) is an organisation of the Polish minority in Germany, founded in 1922. In 1924, the union initiated collaboration between other minorities, ...

and the Polish-Catholic School Society. Polish Prime Minister

Ignacy Jan Paderewski Ignacy Jan Paderewski (; – 29 June 1941) was a Polish pianist and composer who became a spokesman for Polish independence. In 1919, he was the new nation's Prime Minister and foreign minister during which he signed the Treaty of Versaill ...

proposed to incorporate Prudnik into Poland in his unrealized political concept of the United States of Poland, which was presented to the US President

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

. In a secret ''

Sicherheitsdienst ' (, ''Security Service''), full title ' (Security Service of the '' Reichsführer-SS''), or SD, was the intelligence agency of the SS and the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany. Established in 1931, the SD was the first Nazi intelligence organization ...

'' report from 1934, Prudnik was named one of the main centers of the Polish movement in western Upper Silesia.

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

increasingly persecuted local Polish activists since 1937, and carried out mass arrests in August and September 1939. On 7 September 1938, Prudnik was visited by

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and the ...

along with

Hermann Göring Hermann Wilhelm Göring (or Goering; ; 12 January 1893 – 15 October 1946) was a German politician, military leader and convicted war criminal. He was one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi Party, which ruled Germany from 1933 to 1 ...

Heinrich Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was of the (Protection Squadron; SS), and a leading member of the Nazi Party of Germany. Himmler was one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany and a main architect of th ...

Gerd von Rundstedt Karl Rudolf Gerd von Rundstedt (12 December 1875 – 24 February 1953) was a German field marshal in the '' Heer'' (Army) of Nazi Germany during World War II. Born into a Prussian family with a long military tradition, Rundstedt entered th ...

Erhard Milch Erhard Milch (30 March 1892 – 25 January 1972) was a German general field marshal ('' Generalfeldmarschall'') of Jewish heritage who oversaw the development of the German air force (''Luftwaffe'') as part of the re-armament of Nazi Germany fo ...

Hans-Jürgen Stumpff __NOTOC__ Hans-Jürgen Stumpff (15 June 1889 – 9 March 1968), was a German general during World War II and was one of the signatories to Germany's unconditional surrender at the end of the war. Military career Stumpff joined the army in 190 ...

, Josef Wagner and Hellmut Körner. 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 four

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 ...

camps and four working units for British and Soviet

prisoners 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 w ...

. On 26 September 1944, a

subcamp Subcamps (german: KZ-Außenlager), also translated as satellite camps, were outlying detention centres (''Haftstätten'') that came under the command of a main concentration camp run by the SS in Nazi Germany and German-occupied Europe. The Nazi ...

of the

Auschwitz concentration camp Auschwitz concentration camp ( (); also or ) was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. I ...

was founded in the ''Schlesische Feinweberei AG'' textile mill (now ZPB "Frotex"). Around 400 women, mostly from German-occupied

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Cr ...

, were imprisoned in the subcamp, and some died. In January 1945, the prisoners of the subcamp were evacuated by the Germans to the

Gross-Rosen concentration camp , known for = , location = , built by = , operated by = , commandant = , original use = , construction = , in operation = Summer of 1940 – 14 February 1945 , gas cham ...

in a

death march A death march is a forced march of prisoners of war or other captives or deportees in which individuals are left to die along the way. It is distinguished in this way from simple prisoner transport via foot march. Article 19 of the Geneva Conven ...

. During the final months of the war, the town was also a stopping place of death marches of thousands of prisoners of several other subcamps of Auschwitz, and of Allied prisoners-of-war transferred by the Nazis from all over Europe to

stalag In Germany, stalag (; ) was a term used for prisoner-of-war camps. Stalag is a contraction of "Stammlager", itself short for ''Kriegsgefangenen-Mannschaftsstammlager'', a literal translation of which is "War-prisoner" (i.e. POW) "enlisted" "m ...

s built in occupied Poland. About 30,000 PoWs were force-marched westward across Poland, Czechoslovakia and Germany in winter conditions, lasting about four months from January to April 1945. 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 ...

captured Neustadt on 18 March 1945.

In modern Poland

After the end of the Second World War in 1945, Neustadt was transferred from Germany to Poland according 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 ...

, and given its original Polish name of Prądnik (changed to Prudnik in 1946). Prudnik became part of the

Katowice Voivodeship Katowice Voivodeship () can refer to one of two political entities in Poland: Katowice Voivodeship (1), initially "Silesian-Dabrowa Voivodeship" ( pl, województwo śląsko-dąbrowskie), was a unit of administrative division and local government ...

from 1946 to 1950, after which it became part of the Opole Voivodeship. Unlike other parts of the so-called

Recovered Territories The Recovered Territories or Regained Lands ( pl, Ziemie Odzyskane), also known as Western Borderlands ( pl, Kresy Zachodnie), and previously as Western and Northern Territories ( pl, Ziemie Zachodnie i Północne), Postulated Territories ( pl, Z ...

, Prudnik and the surrounding region's indigenous population remained and was not forcibly expelled as elsewhere. Over 1 million Silesians who considered themselves Poles or were treated as such by the authorities due to their language and customs were allowed to stay after they were verified as Poles in a special verification process. It involved declaring Polish nationality and an oath of allegiance to the Polish nation.
The Expulsion of 'German' Communities from Eastern Europe at the end of the Second World War
'', Steffen Prauser and Arfon Rees, European University Institute, Florense. HEC No. 2004/1. p.28 Many Polish settlers and refugees were transferred here from the

Kresy Eastern Borderlands ( pl, Kresy Wschodnie) or simply Borderlands ( pl, Kresy, ) was a term coined for the eastern part of the Second Polish Republic during the History of Poland (1918–1939), interwar period (1918–1939). Largely agricultural ...

in the former Polish eastern territories annexed by the Soviet Union. In the later years however many of them left to

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 ...

to flee the communist

Eastern Bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc and the Soviet Bloc, was the group of socialist states of Central and Eastern Europe, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America under the influence of the Soviet Union that existed du ...

(see

Emigration from Poland to Germany after World War II As a result of World War II, Poland's borders were shifted west. Within Poland's new boundaries there remained a substantial number of ethnic Germans, who were expelled from Poland until 1951. The remaining former German citizens were primarily ...

). Today Prudnik, along with the surrounding region, is known as a centre of the

German minority in Poland The registered German minority in Poland at the 2011 national census consisted of 148,000 people, of whom 64,000 declared both German and Polish ethnicities and 45,000 solely German ethnicity.Przynależność narodowo-etniczna ludności – wyni ...

that recruits mainly from the descendants of the positively verified autochthons. In the city itself however only 1% of the inhabitants declared German nationality according to the last national census of 2002. In September 1980, 1500 workers of ZPB "Frotex" and

firefighter A firefighter is a first responder and rescuer extensively trained in firefighting, primarily to extinguish hazardous fires that threaten life, property, and the environment as well as to rescue people and in some cases or jurisdictions als ...

s from Prudnik's

fire brigade A fire department (American English) or fire brigade (Commonwealth English), also known as a fire authority, fire district, fire and rescue, or fire service in some areas, is an organization that provides fire prevention and fire suppression se ...

went on the biggest anti-communist strike in Opole Voivodeship. The strike lasted 5 days (5–10 September).

Historical population

German minority

Alongside

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 ...

and Polish, many citizens of Prudnik before 1945 used a strongly German-influenced

Silesian language Silesian * Polish: ''etnolekt śląski'', ''język śląski'', ''gwara śląska'', ''śląszczyzna'' * german: link=no, Schlonsakisch, Wasserpolnisch or Upper Silesian is a West Slavic ethnolect of either the Lechitic group or the Czech ...

(sometimes called ''wasserpolnisch'' or ''

wasserpolak Wasserpolak ("Watered-down Pole") was the name used for people living in Silesia who spoke Silesian dialect''.'' Background In Silesia, the Polish, German and Czech languages and cultures influenced one another for centuries. Since the 18th ce ...

''). Because of this, the post-war

Polish state 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 ...

administration after the annexation of Silesia in 1945 did not initiate a general expulsion of all former inhabitants of Prudnik, as was done in Lower Silesia, for instance, where the population almost exclusively spoke the German language. Because they were considered " autochthonous" (Polish), the Wasserpolak-speakers instead received the right to remain in their homeland after declaring themselves as Poles. Some German speakers took advantage of this decision, allowing them to remain in Silesia, even when they considered themselves to be of German nationality. The city surroundings currently contain the largest German and Upper Silesian minorities in Poland. However, Prudnik itself is only 1% German.Deklaracje narodowościowe w gminach w 2002 r.
/ref>

Sights

Prudnik is a town rich in historic architecture from various periods. Among its sights are: * medieval Wok's Tower (''Wieża Woka''), a remnant of the castle * preserved parts of the medieval town walls with the Lower Gate (''Brama Dolna'') and the Katowska and Mała towers which are part of the local historical museum ('' Muzeum Ziemi Prudnickiej'') *

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including ...

Classicist Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Cla ...

Prudnik Town Hall * Baroque St. Michael's Church * Baroque Saints Peter and Paul Church * ''Park Miejski'' ("Town Park") with the Diana statue, a monument to local Polish activists fallen in the Silesian Uprisings and murdered in

Nazi concentration camps From 1933 to 1945, Nazi Germany operated more than a thousand concentration camps, (officially) or (more commonly). The Nazi concentration camps are distinguished from other types of Nazi camps such as forced-labor camps, as well as con ...

, a monument commemorating the 1000th anniversary of the founding of the Polish State, etc. * Prudnik Culture Centre (''Prudnicki Ośrodek Kultury'') * public Town Bath (''Łaźnia Miejska'') * St. Joseph Church *

memorials, including a memorial to Polish children and youth, heroes and victims of the war at the Plac Szarych Szeregów (" Gray Ranks Square"), a monument to Polish soldiers fighting on various war fronts for Poland's freedom at the Plac Wolności ("Freedom Square"), and two mass graves of prisoners of the Nazi German

, murdered in the town in 1945 *

Marian column and Saint

John of Nepomuk John of Nepomuk (or John Nepomucene) ( cs, Jan Nepomucký; german: Johannes Nepomuk; la, Ioannes Nepomucenus) ( 1345 – 20 March 1393) was the saint of Bohemia (Czech Republic) who was drowned in the Vltava river at the behest of Wenceslaus ...

statue Wieza bramy dolnej Prudnik.jpg, Lower Gate Muzeum Ziemii Prudnickiej.JPG, Historical museum SM Prudnik Kościół Michała Archanioła 2018 (2) ID 628446.jpg, St. Michael's Church Prudnik, altana koncertowa w parku, 2018.03.18 (02).jpg, ''Park Miejski'' in winter 1A Tadeusza Kościuszki Street in Prudnik, 2018.07.28 (01).jpg, Prudnik Culture Centre Prudnik - Pomnik Dzieciom Ofiarom Wojny (05).jpg, Memorial to Polish children and youth, heroes and victims of World War II

Education

Prudnik - Publiczna Szkoła Podstawowa nr 1 (01)

1 Armii Krajowej Street in Prudnik, 2018

Preschools

* Publiczne Przedszkole nr 1 (5 Mickiewicza Street) * Zespół Szkolno-Przedszkolny nr 2 (12 Szkolna Street) * Publiczne Przedszkole nr 3 (69 Piastowska Street) * Publiczne Przedszkole nr 4 (9 Mickiewicza Street) * Publiczne Przedszkole Specjalne nr 5 (1 Młyńska Street) * Publiczne Przedszkole nr 6 (9a Podgórna Street) * Publiczne Przedszkole nr 8 (1 Ogrodowa Street) * Niepubliczne Przedszkole "Skrzat" (66 Grunwaldzka Street)

Primary schools

* Publiczna Szkoła Podstawowa nr 1 (9 Podgórna Street) * Zespół Szkolno-Przedszkolny nr 2 (12 Szkolna Street) * Publiczna Szkoła Podstawowa nr 3 (12 Szkolna Street) * Publiczna Szkoła Podstawowa nr 4 (2 Dąbrowskiego Street) * Publiczna Szkoła Podstawowa Specjalna nr 5 (1 Młyńska Street)

Secondary schools

* Publiczne Gimnazjum nr 1 (1 Armii Krajowej Street) * Publiczne Gimnazjum nr 2 (2 Dąbrowskiego Street) * Publiczne Gimnazjum Specjalne nr 3 (1 Młyńska Street)

High schools

* I Liceum Ogólnokształcące (2 Gimnazjalna Street) * II Liceum Ogólnokształcące (55 Kościuszki Street) * Liceum Ogólnokształcące dla dorosłych (5 Podgórna Street) * Zespół Szkół Medycznych (Medical School) (26 Piastowska Street) * Zespół Szkół Rolniczych (76 Kościuszki Street) * Zespół Szkół Zawodowych (5 Podgórna Street) * Państwowa Szkoła Muzyczna I st. (36 Traugutta Street) * Szkoła policealna dla dorosłych (26 Piastowska Street)

Religion

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

Prudnik Deanery * Saint Michael the Archangel parish (Plac Farny 2) ** Saint Michael the Archangel church (Plac Farny 2) ** Saints Peter and Paul church (6 Piastowska Street) ** Saint Joseph church (Prudnik-Las, 5 Józefa Poniatowskiego Street) * Divine Mercy parish (35 Skowrońskiego Street) ** Divine Mercy church (35 Skowrońskiego Street)

Pentecostal Church Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement

* Zbór Syloe (40A Kolejowa Street)

Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The group reports a worldwide membership of approximately 8.7 million adherents involved in ...

* zbór Prudnik (

Kingdom Hall A Kingdom Hall is a place of worship used by Jehovah's Witnesses. The term was first suggested in 1935 by Joseph Franklin Rutherford, then president of the Watch Tower Society, for a building in Hawaii. Rutherford's reasoning was that these bui ...

, 22A Piastowska Street)

Cemeteries

* Cmentarz Komunalny (19 Kościuszki Street) * Jewish cemetery (40 Kolejowa Street)

Sport

Sports venues

Football pitch A football pitch (also known as soccer field) is the playing surface for the game of association football. Its dimensions and markings are defined by Law 1 of the Laws of the Game, "The Field of Play". The pitch is typically made of natural t ...

(Kolejowa 7) * Football pitch (Włoska 10) * Sports Hall "Obuwnik" * Orlik 2012 field * Summer

swimming pool A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, paddling pool, or simply pool, is a structure designed to hold water to enable Human swimming, swimming or other leisure activities. Pools can be built into the ground (in-ground pools) or built ...

Sports teams

* KS Pogoń Prudnik (

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

) * MKS Pogoń Prudnik (

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...

) * KS Obuwnik Prudnik (

archery Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In ...

) * LKS Zarzewie Prudnik (

karate (; ; Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the influence of Chinese martial arts, particularly Fuj ...

chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to dist ...

) * LKJ Olimp Prudnik (

equestrianism Equestrianism (from Latin , , , 'horseman', 'horse'), commonly known as horse riding (Commonwealth English) or horseback riding (American English), includes the disciplines of riding, driving, and vaulting. This broad description includes the ...

) * Stowarzyszenie Sportowe „Tigers" Prudnik (football,

parkour Parkour () is an athletic training discipline or sport in which practitioners (called ''traceurs'') attempt to get from point A to point B in the fastest and most efficient way possible, without assisting equipment and often while performing ...

, freerunning) * SPPS Ro-Nat GSM Prudnik (

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Sum ...

)

Economy

The biggest corporations in Prudnik were Zakłady Przemysłu Bawełnianego "Frotex", which got closed in 2014 and Prudnickie Zakłady Obuwia "Primus", which got closed in 2007. Currently, the major industrial plants in Prudnik are: * Steinpol Central Services (furniture industry) * Spółdzielnia "Pionier" (auto parts industry) * Artech Polska (printing cartridges industry) * Okręgowa Spółdzielnia Mleczarska (food industry) *

Henniges Automotive Henniges Automotive, based in Auburn Hills, Michigan is a company producing anti-vibration components and encapsulated glass systems. The company was founded in 1863. In 2015, Henniges Automotives was acquired by AVIC Automotive Systems Holding ...

(auto parts industry)

Notable people

Born in Prudnik

* Nicholas Henel (1582–1656), historian, receiver, biographer and a chronicler * Matthäus Apelles von Löwenstern (1594–1648), psalmist, musician and statesman * Shmuel of Karov (c. 1735–1820), Polish Hasidic rebbe * Karl Dziatzko (1842–1903), scholar * Karl Heinisch (1847–1923), painter *

Eugen Fraenkel Eugen Fraenkel (born 28 September 1853 in Neustadt i. OS, now Prudnik, Poland; died in Hamburg, Germany on 20 December 1925) was a German bacteriologist. Eugen Fraenkel worked as pathologist and bacteriologist researcher at the Eppendorf Ho ...

(1853–1925), pathologist and bacteriologist * Max Pinkus (1857–1934), industrialist and a bibliophile *

Otto von Garnier Otto Wladislaus Eduard Konstantin von Garnier (; 1 May 1858 – 17 June 1947) was a German General of the Cavalry during World War I. Life and army career Otto von Garnier was born in Neustadt in Oberschlesien (currently Prudn ...

(1858–1947), German General of the Cavalry during World War I * Wilhelm Siegmund Frei (1885–1943), dermatologist *

Ludwig Hardt Ludwig Hardt (16 January 1886 – 6 March 1947) was a German actor. Private life In 1913 he became the second husband of the painter Emmy Gotzmann. Filmography References External links 1886 births 1947 deaths German male ac ...

(1886–1947), actor *

Felice Bauer Felice Bauer (18 November 1887 – 15 October 1960) was a fiancée of Franz Kafka, whose letters to her were published as ''Letters to Felice''. Early life Felice Bauer was born in Neustadt in Upper Silesia (today Prudnik), into a Jewish f ...

(1887–1960), fiancée of Franz Kafka *

Hellmuth Reymann Hellmuth Reymann (24 November 1892 – 8 December 1988) was an officer in the German Army ('' Heer'') during World War II. He was one of the last commanders of the Berlin Defence Area during the final assault by Soviet forces on Berlin. World Wa ...

(1892–1988), officer in the German Army during World War II *

Dietrich von Choltitz Dietrich Hugo Hermann von Choltitz (; 9 November 1894 – 5 November 1966) was a German general. Sometimes referred to as the Saviour of Paris, he served in the Wehrmacht (armed forces) of Nazi Germany during World War II, as well as serving ...

(1894–1966), German General, the last commander of Nazi-occupied Paris * Kurt Wintgens (1894–1916), German World War I pilot * Józef Wojaczek (1901–1993), Roman Catholic Priest, member of the Mariannhill Missionaries * Hans Hoffmann (1902–1949), lyrical tenor and musicologist * Karl Streibel (1903–1986), commander of the Trawniki concentration camp * Bernd Scholz (1911–1969), composer * Margarete Müller (born 1931), politician * Dietrich Unkrodt (1934–2006), classical and jazz tuba player * Jan Góra (1948–2015), youth activist * Joanna Helbin (born 1960), archer * Tadeusz Madziarczyk (born 1961), politician * Bogusław Pawłowski (born 1962), biologist * Maria Koc (born 1964), politician *

Aleksandra Konieczna Aleksandra Konieczna (born 13 October 1965) is a Polish film and stage actress. She is a three-time Polish Film Award winner for her roles in ''The Last Family'' (2016), ''A Cat with a Dog'' (2018) and '' Corpus Christi'' (2019). Her television ...

(born 1965), actress * Jarosław Wasik (born 1971), singer-songwriter * Peter Peschel (born 1972), football player * Krzysztof Szafrański (born 1972), racing cyclist * Grzegorz Kaliciak (born 1973), Colonel of Polish Armed Forces * Lukasz Gadowski (born 1977), entrepreneur and investor * Ewa Plonka (born 1982), operatic soprano * Michał "Z.B.U.K.U" Buczek (born 1992), rapper * Tomasz Pusz (born 1997), musician Tablica Filipa Roboty Prudnik

Other residents

Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, Fürst von Wahlstatt (; 21 December 1742 – 12 September 1819), ''Graf'' (count), later elevated to ''Fürst'' (sovereign prince) von Wahlstatt, was a Prussian '' Generalfeldmarschall'' (field marshal). He earne ...

(1742–1819), field marshal *

Joseph Freiherr von Eichendorff Joseph Freiherr von Eichendorff (10 March 178826 November 1857) was a German poet, novelist, playwright, literary critic, translator, and anthologist. Eichendorff was one of the major writers and critics of Romanticism.Cf. J. A. Cuddon: ' ...

(1788–1857), poet * Samuel Fränkel (1801–1881), industrialist * (1841–1902), local Polish activist, publisher and teacher *

Paul Ehrlich Paul Ehrlich (; 14 March 1854 – 20 August 1915) was a Nobel Prize-winning German physician and scientist who worked in the fields of hematology, immunology, and antimicrobial chemotherapy. Among his foremost achievements were finding a cure ...

(1854–1915), Nobel Prize-winning physician and scientist * Paul Robert Kollibay (1863–1919), lawyer and ornithologist * Kazimierz Raszewski (1864–1941), lieutenant general of the Polish Army * Paul Heinrich Theodor Müller (1896–c. 1945), Concentration Camp Operational Leader at Auschwitz concentration camp *

Stefan Wyszyński Stefan Wyszyński (3 August 1901 – 28 May 1981) was a Polish prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as the bishop of Lublin from 1946 to 1948, archbishop of Warsaw and archbishop of Gniezno from 1948 to 1981. He was created a cardinal on ...

(1901–1981), archbishop * Franz Augsberger (1905–1945), SS commander * Władysław Lemiszko (1911–1988), Ice Hockey player, Olympian, football manager *

Harry Thürk Harry Thürk (8 March 1927 – 24 November 2005) was a German writer. Life In 1934, Thürk moved with his family to Neustadt. After attending trade school, he began to work for the German train system (Reichsbahn). After being drafted in 1944 ...

(1927–2005), writer * Anna Myszyńska (1931–2015), writer * Gerard Bernacki (1942–2018), bishop * Jadwiga Szoszler-Wilejto (born 1949), archer *

Stanisław Szozda Stanisław Szozda (25 September 1950 – 23 September 2013) was an elite Polish cyclist. He had his best achievements in the 100 km team time trial. In this event he won two silver medals at the 1972 and 1976 Summer Olympics, as well a ...

(1950–2013), Olympic cyclist * Andrzej Zając (born 1956), Paralympian * Krzysztof Pieczyński (born 1957), actor * Janusz Zarenkiewicz (born 1959), boxer * Jerzy Czerwiński (born 1960), politician * Józef Stępkowski (born 1970), politician * Lukas Klemenz (born 1995), association football player

Twin towns – sister cities

See twin towns of Gmina Prudnik.

References

External links

Municipal website

Parafia pw. Miłosierdzia Bożego

Jewish Community in Prudnik
on Virtual Shtetl

Radio

Opolskie – photogallery
{{Authority control Cities in Silesia Cities and towns in Opole Voivodeship 13th-century establishments in Poland Populated places established in the 1250s Holocaust locations in Poland Province of Upper Silesia