Karpacz (, German: ''Krummhübel'') is a

spa town A spa town is a resort town based on a mineral spa (a developed mineral spring). Patrons visit spas to "take the waters" for their purported health benefits. Thomas Guidott set up a medical practice in the English town of Bath, Somerset, Ba ...

and

ski resort A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter sports. In Europe, most ski resorts are towns or villages in or adjacent to a ski area–a mountainous area with pistes (ski trails) and a ski lift system. In North Am ...

in Jelenia Góra County,

Lower Silesian Voivodeship Lower Silesian Voivodeship (, ) in southwestern Poland, is one of the 16 Voivodeships of Poland, voivodeships (provinces) into which Poland is divided. It covers an area of and has a total population of 2,899,986. It is one of the wealthiest ...

, south-western

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 ...

, and one of the most important centres for mountain

hiking A hike is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century. Long hikes as part of a religious pilgrimage have existed for a much longer time. "Hi ...

and

skiing Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow for basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the International S ...

, including

ski jumping Ski jumping is a winter sport in which competitors aim to achieve the farthest jump after sliding down on their skis from a specially designed curved ramp. Along with jump length, competitor's aerial style and other factors also affect the final ...

. Its population is about 4,500. Karpacz is situated in the Karkonosze Mountains – a resort with increasing importance for

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...

as an alternative to the

Alps The Alps () are some of the highest and most extensive mountain ranges in Europe, stretching approximately across eight Alpine countries (from west to east): Monaco, France, Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. ...

. Karpacz is located at

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...

. South of Karpacz on the border to the

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

there is Mount Sněžka-Śnieżka (). Since 2020, the town has been hosting the annual international Economic Forum.

History

The first settlements in the area of Karpacz are noted by the official website of the city as being of probable Celtic origin and date to the 4th or 3rd century BC when they inhabited the region as part of gold-digging taking place in the area. The area was part of

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

, after the establishment of the state in the 10th century. In the early 12th century the area was generally uninhabited, as mentioned in the oldest Polish chronicle '' Gesta principum Polonorum''. The first mention of permanent location within the current boundaries of the town is dated to the beginning of 15th century and connected to the destruction of a village called Broniów, whose inhabitants moved to settle the area currently located at the altitude of the town's railway station. The settlement was mentioned around the year 1599 because of

lead Lead () is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a Heavy metal (elements), heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale, soft and Ductility, malleabl ...

and

iron Iron is a chemical element; it has symbol Fe () and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, forming much of Earth's o ...

mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

in the region. It was then part of the

Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...

-ruled Bohemian Crown. During the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

, many

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 *Czech (surnam ...

Protestants settled at the site of today's town. In 1742 it was annexed by

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

and, subsequently, it was part of Germany between 1871 and 1945. Since the construction of the settlement's first railway connection in 1895, its history was connected with the development of

metallurgy Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the ...

industries and with the progress of tourism. After the defeat of

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

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 1945 it as claimed part of Poland by the Polish Communists. In accordance with the

Potsdam Agreement The Potsdam Agreement () was the agreement among three of the Allies of World War II: the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Soviet Union after the war ended in Europe that was signed on 1 August 1945 and published the following day. A ...

, the German population was expelled from the village between 1945 and 1947. The town was subsequently repopulated with

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 ...

. Some of the new settlers themselves had been expelled from former eastern Poland annexed by the Soviet Union,. Eventually renamed Karpacz in 1946, the settlement was granted town rights in 1959.

Tourist attractions

In Karpacz Górny a gravity hill is located where bottles appear to roll uphill. There is also a Norwegian stave church, moved here from Vang,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

in the mid-19th century. Tourists very often choose to go hiking on local mountain trails.

People

* Max von Schenckendorff (1875-1943), German general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany

Twin towns – sister cities

Karpacz is twinned with: * Kamenz, Germany *

Pec pod Sněžkou Pec pod Sněžkou (; ) is a town in Trutnov District in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 700 inhabitants. The town lies in the Giant Mountains at the base of the highest Czech mountain, Sněžka. From the town a two-s ...

, Czech Republic * Reichenbach, Germany * Rewal, Poland

Gallery

File:2014 Kościół Nawiedzenia NMP w Karpaczu, 01.JPG, Visitation Church File:PL Karpacz, ul. Konstytucji 3-go Maja 37 0156.JPG, "Bachus" tavern File:PL Karpacz, ul. Konstytucji 3-go Maja 58 DSC 0171.JPG, Town centre File:Karpacz6. Foto Barbara Maliszewska.JPG, "Mieszko" guesthouse File:Samotnia noca 01.jpg, "Samotnia" mountain chalet File:Karpacz, Willa nr 82 - Apteka "Pod Złotą Wagą" - fotopolska.eu (85192).jpg, A historic villa File:2014 Równia pod Śnieżką, 01.JPG, "Dom Śląski" mountain chalet File:Karpacz 14.jpg, Sacred Heart Church File:Karpacz 09.jpg, Museum of Sport and Tourism File:PL Karpacz Dworzec 0020.JPG, Railway Station in Karpacz File:Karpacz, Hotel Gołębiewski - fotopolska.eu (273864).jpg, Gołębiewski Hotel File:Karpacz-LomnitzTalsperre-3.jpg, Łomnica dam File:Chapel of Saint Lawrence on Snezka in 2010.JPG, Chapel of Saint Lawrence on Sněžka-Śnieżka File:Orlinek latem.jpg, Orlinek ski jumping hill

References

External links

*
Karpacz and wirtual Map

Karpacz 360 - virtual city

na portalu polska-org.pl
Karpacz- Gallery
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Lower Silesian Voivodeship Karkonosze County Ski areas and resorts in Poland Cities in Silesia