Kłodzko

Coordinates: 50°26′N 16°39′E / 50.433°N 16.650°E / 50.433; 16.650
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Kłodzko
Gothic bridge and Baroque Church of Our Lady of the Rosary
Kłodzko Fortress overlooking the town
Gothic bridge and Baroque Church of Our Lady of the Rosary (top), Kłodzko Fortress overlooking the town (bottom)
Car plates
DKL
National roads
Voivodeship roads
Websiteklodzko.pl

Kłodzko (

Latin: Glacio) is a historic town in south-western Poland, in the region of Lower Silesia. It is situated in the centre of the Kłodzko Valley, on the Eastern Neisse
river.

Kłodzko is the seat of Kłodzko County (and of the rural Gmina Kłodzko, although the town itself is a separate urban gmina), and is situated in Lower Silesian Voivodeship. With 26,845 inhabitants (2019), Kłodzko is the main commercial centre as well as an important transport and tourist node for the area.

For its historical monuments it is sometimes referred to as "Little

city rights in 1233. Culturally and traditionally a part of Bohemia, administratively it has been a part of Silesia
since 1763.

History

Prehistory

The area of present-day Kłodzko has been populated at least since the 1st century BC. There are several archaeological sites both in and around the town that indicate that there must have been a settlement located on the ancient Amber Road that conducted extensive trade relations with the Roman Empire.

Medieval Bohemia and Poland

The earliest mention of the town is in the 12th-century

Chronicle of Bohemians by Cosmas of Prague. He mentions the town of Cladzco as belonging to duke Slavník, father of Adalbert of Prague, in 981. Initially in Bohemia, together with the Kłodzko Land, it changed affiliation several times, passing between Poland and Bohemia[3] in a series of conflicts which in turn devastated the town completely by the beginning of the 12th century. In 1114 Bohemian Duke Soběslav I captured and burnt the town to the ground, but he rebuilt it shortly afterwards. He also rebuilt and strengthened the castle located on a high rock overlooking the town. After the Peace of Kłodzko [pl] of 1137, Duke Bolesław III Wrymouth of Poland ceded all claims to the Kłodzko Land to the Bohemian Duchy (later Kingdom).[3]

medieval-gothic
St. John's Bridge

In 1241, Klodzko became the site of a Mongol raid during the

John of Luxembourg, relocated the town, which led to a period of fast growth, bringing German settlers to the town. A city hall was built in 1341, and in the following year a brick factory was opened. From 1366, the town has been protected by a group of professional firemen. The town gained significant profits from its location on the ancient road from Bohemia to Poland through mountain passes in the Sudetes
.

German

St. Florian's Psalter (Psałterz Floriański), was written here. In 1390 a Gothic stone bridge over the Młynówka River (local branch of Eastern Neisse
River) was built by the local lord.

County seat within Bohemia

Early modern view of the city

Kladsko developed rapidly until the start of the Hussite Wars in the 15th century. The wars left the town depopulated by plagues, partially burnt, and demolished by several consecutive floods. In 1459 whole Kłodzko Land was elevated by Bohemian king George of Poděbrady to the status of county – thus the city became a seat of Count (for most of time ruler of Bohemia itself) and local Diet – but still remained integral part of Bohemia as "outer region" (Czech: vnější kraj), and was not counted as part of Silesia. In 1472, the Polish prince Vladislaus Jagiellon stayed in the city before his coronation as King of Bohemia in Prague.[6]

In 1526 the

Habsburgs succeeded after the Jagiellons as hereditary kings of Bohemia. Thus the County of Kladsko (hrabství Kladské, Grafschaft Glatz) became a part of the Habsburg monarchy; the local counts retained their powers and Bohemian kings (i.e. Habsburg emperors) ruled this land as suzerains. It was not until the 16th century that the local economy began to recover from the previous wars. In 1540 the sewer system was built. In 1549 the remaining streets were paved and the city hall was refurbished. Most of the houses surrounding the town square were rebuilt in a pure Renaissance
style.

In 1617 the first census was organised in the County of Glatz. The city itself had approximately 1,300 houses and over 7,000 inhabitants. However, two years after the census took place the Thirty Years' War started. Between 1619 and 1649 the fortress was besieged several times. Although the fortress was never captured, the city itself was largely destroyed. Over 900 out of 1,300 buildings were destroyed by fire and artillery and the population dropped by more than a half. After the war the Austrian authorities put an end to all local self-government, and the County of Glatz existed in name only. The city was gradually converted into a small garrison town attached to the ever-growing fortress.

Historical population of Kłodzko[7] 1620: 6,500, 1734: 4,400, 1807: 4,549, 1809: 4,887, 1816: 5,510, 1825: 6,187, 1834: 6,644, 1840: 7,654, 1843: 7,777, 1849: 8,222, 1858: 13,052, 1871: 11,545, 1880: 13,701, 1885: 13,588, 1894: 13,501, 1900: 15,015, 1905: 16,052, 1910: 17,121, 1912: 17,284, 2003: 30,100

Kingdom of Prussia

Early 19th-century view of the city

The Kingdom of Prussia annexed Glatz during the 18th century Silesian Wars, although Austrian influence is still evident in the architecture and culture of the region. The construction of the fortress was continued and the town had to bear the costs of the fortress expansion. In 1760 the town was captured by Austrian forces in the Siege of Glatz, but was subsequently returned to Prussia.

Unlike most of

Fryderyk Chopin travelled through the town.[9] During the 19th-century Polish national liberation fights, Polish publicist Włodzimierz Adolf Wolniewicz [pl], Polish historian Wojciech Kętrzyński and Polish priest Augustyn Szamarzewski [pl] were imprisoned in the fortress.[10][11][12]

Germany

Glatz became part of the

synagogue was built on the Grünestraße [Green Street], designed by the Breslau architect Albert Grau [de].[13][14]

The end of the 19th century saw the

Jews. During the Kristallnacht (9 November 1938), the synagogue was destroyed by an arson attack of Nazis.[13]
Most of the Jews emigrated and by 1939 there were only 25 of them left.

In September 1938 Glatz was severely damaged by "the flooding of the century", but the damage done was quickly repaired.

Czech claims

The

First World War even though it had a German majority. From the Czech perspective, Kłodzko and Kłodzko Land are culturally and traditionally a part of Bohemia, although the region has been a part of Lower Silesia since its conquest by the Kingdom of Prussia in 1763. These efforts to incorporate Kłodzko into Czechoslovakia would continue into the period after World War II
.

World War II

Memorial to 1,500 Polish forced laborers held in the fortress by the Germans during WWII

During World War II, the fortress was changed into a prison administered by the Reich Ministry of Justice and Wehrmacht.[15][16] It housed prisoners of various nationalities, including Allied prisoners of war. In 1941–1942, many prisoners were sent to forced labour in various locations in German-occupied Poland, Czechoslovakia and Austria, and in 1942–1943, six FStGA field penal battalions (1, 7, 10, 13, 16, 20) were established in the town and afterwards relocated to the Eastern Front.[16] In November 1942 and January 1943, the town was the site of a German trial of 39 members of the Związek Orła Białego Polish resistance organization, 18 of which were sentenced to death.[17] 198 prisoners were deported from the prison to various Nazi concentration camps, chiefly Gross-Rosen.[18] Presumably only two men, a Pole and a Russian, managed to escape from the prison (on 23 September 1944).[19] Beginning in 1944, the casemates housed the AEG arms factory evacuated from Łódź, in which some 1,500 Poles were subjected to slave labour. The stronghold was turned into a subcamp of the Gross-Rosen concentration camp. The Germans also established and operated eight forced labour subcamps of the Stalag VIII-B/344 POW camp in the town.[20]

In January and February 1945, many prisoners from other locations, including Katowice, Racibórz, Brzeg and Nysa, were brought to the local prison either during death marches or transports, and many were then sent further west to Bautzen.[21]

The town itself was not damaged by the war and was taken over by the Soviet Red Army without a major battle on 9 May 1945. However, all the bridges, except the Gothic stone bridge of 1390, were destroyed.

Modern Poland

Plaque commemorating the return of Kłodzko to Poland in 1945

After the capitulation of

Soviet union the Czech minority was expelled to Czechoslovakia. [citation needed
]

On August 20, 1946, the town was struck by a large tornado, rated by the European Severe Storms Laboratory (ESSL) to have been F2–F4 intensity on the Fujita scale. The ESSL documented the path length of the tornado at 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) with a maximum width of 1,000 metres (1,100 yd) and noted, "to less information to" assign a solid rating for the tornado.[22]

In the 1950s and 1960s much of the town centre was damaged by landslides. It turned out that throughout the city's history, generations of Kłodzko's merchants had developed an extensive net of underground basements and tunnels. They were used for storage and, in times of trouble, as a safe shelter from artillery fire. With time the tunnels were forgotten, especially after the original German population was deported, and during the years after World War II many of them started to collapse, along with the houses above. Since the 1970s the tunnels were conserved and the destruction of the city was stopped. Another disaster happened in 1997, when the city was damaged by flooding even greater than that of 1938. However, the town quickly recovered.

On 28 June 1972 the Catholic parishes of Kłodzko were redeployed from the traditional

Ecclesiastical province of Bohemia) into the Archdiocese of Wrocław.[23] From 1975 to 1998 Kłodzko was administratively part of the former Wałbrzych Voivodeship
.

Currently, Kłodzko is one of centres of culture, commerce and tourism in Lower Silesia.

Panorama of Kłodzko

Climate

The climate is semicontinental although officially it is considered as oceanic (Köppen: Cfb), near of the humid continental (Dfb), considered as such by the isotherm of 0 °C. Located in western Poland where there is the clash of marine air masses and the interior of Siberia, they collide and generate a highly variable climate, although the patterns of the west are predominant.[24][25][26]

Climate data for Kłodzko, elevation: 320 m, (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1951–present)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 16.3
(61.3) 		18.6
(65.5) 		23.0
(73.4) 		27.9
(82.2) 		31.7
(89.1) 		32.4
(90.3) 		34.8
(94.6) 		35.1
(95.2) 		33.9
(93.0) 		24.8
(76.6) 		18.5
(65.3) 		17.0
(62.6) 		35.1
(95.2)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 1.2
(34.2) 		2.9
(37.2) 		7.3
(45.1) 		13.8
(56.8) 		18.2
(64.8) 		21.5
(70.7) 		23.8
(74.8) 		23.9
(75.0) 		18.4
(65.1) 		12.7
(54.9) 		6.8
(44.2) 		2.2
(36.0) 		12.7
(54.9)
Daily mean °C (°F) −1.6
(29.1) 		−0.5
(31.1) 		2.9
(37.2) 		8.1
(46.6) 		12.5
(54.5) 		15.9
(60.6) 		17.7
(63.9) 		17.6
(63.7) 		13.0
(55.4) 		8.4
(47.1) 		3.9
(39.0) 		−0.3
(31.5) 		8.1
(46.6)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −4.4
(24.1) 		−3.6
(25.5) 		−0.8
(30.6) 		2.6
(36.7) 		6.8
(44.2) 		10.3
(50.5) 		11.9
(53.4) 		11.5
(52.7) 		8.2
(46.8) 		4.8
(40.6) 		1.3
(34.3) 		−2.9
(26.8) 		3.8
(38.8)
Record low °C (°F) −29.7
(−21.5) 		−28.8
(−19.8) 		−26.9
(−16.4) 		−10.2
(13.6) 		−4.1
(24.6) 		−0.5
(31.1) 		2.6
(36.7) 		0.8
(33.4) 		−4.1
(24.6) 		−7.6
(18.3) 		−19.3
(−2.7) 		−28.1
(−18.6) 		−29.7
(−21.5)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 24.3
(0.96) 		24.6
(0.97) 		35.6
(1.40) 		37.3
(1.47) 		67.9
(2.67) 		83.7
(3.30) 		97.3
(3.83) 		72.8
(2.87) 		59.2
(2.33) 		41.8
(1.65) 		30.7
(1.21) 		26.1
(1.03) 		601.2
(23.67)
Average extreme snow depth cm (inches) 6.2
(2.4) 		7.0
(2.8) 		5.2
(2.0) 		1.8
(0.7) 		0.2
(0.1) 		0.0
(0.0) 		0.0
(0.0) 		0.0
(0.0) 		0.0
(0.0) 		0.3
(0.1) 		2.7
(1.1) 		3.9
(1.5) 		7.0
(2.8)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) 15.27 13.37 15.37 11.23 14.20 13.97 14.73 12.13 12.57 13.83 13.50 14.83 165.00
Average snowy days (≥ 0 cm) 17.7 14.5 7.4 1.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 4.0 11.8 57.0
Average
relative humidity
(%) 		85.5 82.6 78.8 72.2 74.9 76.5 75.7 75.2 80.2 83.4 86.3 86.6 79.8
Mean monthly sunshine hours 53.8 79.6 123.7 188.5 228.1 226.1 239.1 232.2 155.8 108.3 59.6 45.6 1,740.6
Source 1: Institute of Meteorology and Water Management[27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34]
Source 2: Meteomodel.pl (records, relative humidity 1991–2020)[35][36][37]
Climate data for Kłodzko (Szalejów Dolny), elevation: 356 m, 1961-1990 normals and extremes
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 10.4
(50.7) 		17.2
(63.0) 		23.0
(73.4) 		27.8
(82.0) 		31.7
(89.1) 		32.4
(90.3) 		34.8
(94.6) 		32.5
(90.5) 		30.7
(87.3) 		24.1
(75.4) 		17.4
(63.3) 		17.0
(62.6) 		34.8
(94.6)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 0.0
(32.0) 		1.9
(35.4) 		6.4
(43.5) 		12.2
(54.0) 		17.4
(63.3) 		20.5
(68.9) 		22.0
(71.6) 		21.9
(71.4) 		18.1
(64.6) 		12.9
(55.2) 		5.9
(42.6) 		1.7
(35.1) 		11.7
(53.1)
Daily mean °C (°F) −2.7
(27.1) 		−1.3
(29.7) 		2.3
(36.1) 		6.9
(44.4) 		11.8
(53.2) 		14.9
(58.8) 		16.2
(61.2) 		15.8
(60.4) 		12.5
(54.5) 		8.2
(46.8) 		3.1
(37.6) 		−0.8
(30.6) 		7.2
(45.0)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −5.7
(21.7) 		−4.4
(24.1) 		−1.3
(29.7) 		2.1
(35.8) 		6.3
(43.3) 		9.4
(48.9) 		10.6
(51.1) 		10.4
(50.7) 		7.9
(46.2) 		4.5
(40.1) 		0.5
(32.9) 		−3.6
(25.5) 		3.1
(37.5)
Record low °C (°F) −29.7
(−21.5) 		−27.5
(−17.5) 		−26.9
(−16.4) 		−8.2
(17.2) 		−3.3
(26.1) 		−0.2
(31.6) 		2.6
(36.7) 		1.1
(34.0) 		−4.1
(24.6) 		−7.6
(18.3) 		−19.3
(−2.7) 		−26.9
(−16.4) 		−29.7
(−21.5)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 22
(0.9) 		24
(0.9) 		27
(1.1) 		35
(1.4) 		74
(2.9) 		91
(3.6) 		86
(3.4) 		88
(3.5) 		47
(1.9) 		36
(1.4) 		38
(1.5) 		26
(1.0) 		594
(23.5)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 5.9 5.9 7.3 7.3 10.3 10.9 10.4 9.9 6.7 6.2 7.8 7.3 95.9
Source: NOAA[38]

Tourist attractions

Colourful townhouses at the market square
  • Gothic bridge – often called a "Charles Bridge in miniature" due to its resemblance to one of the most notable historical monuments of Prague. The bridge survived a flood in 1997. The legend is that the bridge is made from eggs components.
  • City tunnels – parts of the tunnels constructed under the city since the 13th century are open for the public
  • The Church of Assumption – one of the most notable examples of Gothic architecture in Poland, constructed by the Order of Saint John in the 14th century
  • Baroque Church of Our Lady of the Rosary and the Franciscan monastery
  • The
    Frederick the Great
    , it was one of the largest fortresses in Prussia.
  • Town hall, built in 1890, but the older
    Renaissance
    tower has been preserved
  • Kłodzko Land Museum [pl]
  • Marian Column – located at the market square, or the town square. It depicts the
    Blessed Virgin Mary and was constructed after a plague in 1625. This is a common sight in many other cities and towns that once belonged to the Habsburg monarchy
    .
  • Night view of the Gothic bridge
    Night view of the Gothic bridge
  • Interior of the Church of the Assumption
    Interior of the Church of the Assumption
  • Our Lady of the Rosary church
    Our Lady of the Rosary church
  • Night view of the town hall
    Night view of the town hall
  • Franciscan monastery
    Franciscan monastery
  • Baroque sculptures of Jesuit saints in the Old Town
    Baroque sculptures of Jesuit saints in the Old Town

Education

Kłodzko's School of Enterprise

Educational establishments in Kłodzko include:

  • a branch of the Wrocław-based "Edukacja" College of Management
  • the Bolesław Chrobry Lyceum (secondary school)
  • Kłodzko's School of Enterprise (secondary school)

Notable residents

Surroundings

Twin towns – sister cities

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Poland

Kłodzko is twinned with:[39]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ "Population. Size and structure and vital statistics in Poland by territorial division in 2019. As of 30th June". stat.gov.pl. Statistics Poland. 2019-10-15. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  2. ^ "Kłodzko - "Mała Praga" na wschodzie Czech - Bibliography of the History of the Czech Lands".
  3. ^ a b Jan Rzońca, Uzdrowiska ziemi kłodzkiej, "Ziemia Kłodzka" No. 223, 2013, p. 26 (in Polish)
  4. ISBN 978-1860649721
  5. ISBN 978-1145783386
  6. ^ Waldemar Brygier, Tomasz Dudziak, Ziemia Kłodzka. Przewodnik, Oficyna Wydawnicza Rewasz, Pruszków, 2010, p. 345 (in Polish)
  7. ^ "Dawne Kłodzko". Historical Kłodzko. Archived from the original on 2005-01-25. Retrieved January 10, 2005.
  8. ISBN 0-88029-158-3
    , p. 161
  9. ISBN 83-88513-00-1
    .
  10. ^ Wolniewicz, Paweł (2019). "Włodzimierz Adolf Dołęga Wolniewicz". Wieści Lubońskie (in Polish). No. 1 (338). p. 27.
  11. ^ Brygier, Waldemar; Dudziak, Tomasz (2010). Ziemia Kłodzka. Przewodnik (in Polish). Pruszków: Oficyna Wydawnicza Rewasz. p. 348.
  12. ^ Marek Weiss (26 March 2015). "Walczył z zaborcą jako kapłan, społecznik i działacz gospodarczy". Głos Wielkopolski (in Polish). Retrieved 6 March 2020.
  13. ^ a b Grzybowski, Henryk (2 February 2016). "Nieoczekiwane wskrzeszenie kłodzkiej synagogi" [Unexpected revival of the Kłodzko synagogue]. Gazeta Prowincjonalna Ziemi Kłodzkiej (in Polish). Retrieved 4 November 2019.
  14. ISBN 83-7432-095-8
    .
  15. Zakład Narodowy im. Ossolińskich, Wydawnictwo Polskiej Akademii Nauk
    : 370–371.
  16. ^
    ISBN 978-0-253-06089-1
    .
  17. ^ Konieczny, pp. 379–380
  18. ^ Konieczny, p. 381
  19. ^ Konieczny, p. 380
  20. ^ "Working Parties". Lamsdorf.com. Archived from the original on 29 October 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  21. ^ Konieczny, pp. 377–378
  22. ^ "European Severe Weather Database". European Severe Storms Laboratory. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
  23. ^ Paulus VI, Constitutio Apostolica "Vratislaviensis - Berolinensis et aliarum", in: Acta Apostolicae Sedis, 64 (1972), n. 10, pp. 657seq.
  24. ISSN 1434-4483
    .
  25. ^ "Kłodzko climate: Average Temperature, weather by month, Kłodzko weather averages - Climate-Data.org". en.climate-data.org. Retrieved 2019-02-04.
  26. ^ "Klodzko vs No. 6 Climate & Distance Between". www.klodzko.climatemps.com. Retrieved 2019-02-04.
  27. ^ "Średnia dobowa temperatura powietrza". Normy klimatyczne 1991-2020 (in Polish). Institute of Meteorology and Water Management. Archived from the original on 3 December 2021. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  28. ^ "Średnia minimalna temperatura powietrza". Normy klimatyczne 1991-2020 (in Polish). Institute of Meteorology and Water Management. Archived from the original on 15 January 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  29. ^ "Średnia maksymalna temperatura powietrza". Normy klimatyczne 1991-2020 (in Polish). Institute of Meteorology and Water Management. Archived from the original on 15 January 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  30. ^ "Miesięczna suma opadu". Normy klimatyczne 1991-2020 (in Polish). Institute of Meteorology and Water Management. Archived from the original on 9 January 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  31. ^ "Liczba dni z opadem >= 0,1 mm". Normy klimatyczne 1991-2020 (in Polish). Institute of Meteorology and Water Management. Archived from the original on 15 January 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  32. ^ "Średnia grubość pokrywy śnieżnej". Normy klimatyczne 1991-2020 (in Polish). Institute of Meteorology and Water Management. Archived from the original on 15 January 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  33. ^ "Liczba dni z pokrywą śnieżna > 0 cm". Normy klimatyczne 1991-2020 (in Polish). Institute of Meteorology and Water Management. Archived from the original on 21 January 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  34. ^ "Średnia suma usłonecznienia (h)". Normy klimatyczne 1991-2020 (in Polish). Institute of Meteorology and Water Management. Archived from the original on 15 January 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  35. ^ "Kłodzko Absolutna temperatura maksymalna" (in Polish). Meteomodel.pl. 6 April 2018. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  36. ^ "Kłodzko Absolutna temperatura minimalna" (in Polish). Meteomodel.pl. 6 April 2018. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  37. ^ "Kłodzko Średnia wilgotność" (in Polish). Meteomodel.pl. 6 April 2018. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  38. ^ "Kłodzko (12520) - WMO Weather Station". NOAA. Retrieved January 4, 2019. Archived January 4, 2019, at the Wayback Machine.
  39. ^ "Miasta partnerskie". klodzko.pl (in Polish). Kłodzko. Retrieved 2019-10-09.

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