Nowa Huta
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Nowa Huta | |
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UTC+2 (CEST) | |
Area code | +48 12 |
Website | http://www.dzielnica18.krakow.pl |
Nowa Huta (pronounced [ˈnɔva ˈxuta], literally "The New Steel Mill") is the easternmost district of Kraków, Poland. With more than 200,000 inhabitants, it is one of the most populous areas of the city. Until 1990, the neighbouring districts were considered expansions of the original Nowa Huta district, and were linked by the same tramway system. They are now separate districts of Kraków.
Nowa Huta is one of the largest planned socialist realist settlements or districts ever built (another being Magnitogorsk in Russia) and "one of the most renowned examples of deliberate social engineering" in the entire world.[1] Built as a utopian ideal city, its street hierarchy, layout and certain grandeur of buildings often resemble Paris or London. The high abundance of parks and green areas in Nowa Huta make it the greenest corner of Kraków.[2]
History
The historic area of present-day Nowa Huta is one of the few places in
In the nineteenth century and at the beginning of the twentieth century, during the
Following the
Nowa Huta was created in 1949 as a separate city near Kraków, on terrain repossessed by the Socialist government from the former villages of Mogiła, Pleszów and Krzesławice. It was planned as a colossal center of heavy industry. The city was intended to become an ideal city for Socialist propaganda, and populated primarily by industrial workers. In 1951, it became a part of the city of Kraków as its new district, and in the following year, construction of tramway connections was underway.[3]
On July 22, 1954, the Vladimir Lenin Steelworks was opened, and in less than twenty years, the factory became the largest steel mill in Poland. In the 1960s, the city expanded rapidly. The monumental architecture of the Plac Centralny (Central Square) was surrounded by colossal apartment blocks. In the 1970s, steel production reached seven million tons annually. At the same time, the largest tobacco factory in Poland was opened there, as well as a colossal cement factory.
The reasons for building such an industrial city near Kraków were primarily ideological, because coal needed to be transported from Silesia, and iron ore needed to be transported from the Soviet Union, while the products were shipped to other parts of Poland, due to local demand for steel being relatively small. Such disadvantages became visible in the 1980s, when the economic crisis halted the city's growth. Nevertheless, the primacy of political reasons for choosing this location is not obvious. Kraków was a center of learning, with established schools of engineering and scientific research departments, providing the necessary expertise along with qualified staff. The presence of good railway links for bringing raw materials and the proximity of the river to supply water also played a role. The site was elevated high enough to avoid flooding, and the historic villages that it replaced were relatively small. All of the above factors quickly made the investment pay off.[5][6]
In line with the then policy of state atheism, one significant type of building lacking from the original urban design of Nowa Huta was a Roman Catholic church. However, the public campaign to construct such a building lasted several years. As early as 1960, inhabitants of Nowa Huta began applying for consent to build a church. During the same year, violent street demonstrations with riot police erupted over a wooden cross that was erected without a permit. The locals were supported by then Bishop Karol Wojtyla, the future
During the 1980s, Nowa Huta became a city of many demonstrations and violent street protests of the Solidarity movement, fought by the police. At that time, almost 29,000 of the 38,000 workers of the Lenin Steelworks belonged to the Solidarity trade union.[9]
Architecture
Before 1956 (socialist realism)
The design movement of
Since the style of the
After 1956
Following the political liberalization of the
Nowa Huta's central "Avenue of Roses" featured a nationally known statue of Vladimir Lenin, unveiled on April 28, 1973. The bronze monument was pulled down in 1989 by the city, as a result of numerous protests by local citizens. Several thousand onlookers came to watch the dismantling.[10]
Sacral architecture should also be noted, particularly the Arka Pana (Lord's Ark) Church, which was built to resemble
Nowa Huta today
Since the
Cultural significance
- Nowa Huta is the location of an award-winning film by Stalinism in Poland. Man of Marble, made in the mid-1970s, presaged the Solidarity labour union movement in Gdańsk that was ultimately responsible for overthrowing the Stalinist regime in Poland, as the film begins in Nowa Huta and ends in Gdańsk. The term "Man of Marble" presented in this film also contrasts the name of Joseph Stalinhimself, whose last name means "Man of Steel".
- When the district was built in the 1950s, songs promoted by hit single: "O Nowej to Hucie piosenka" ("This Song is about Nowa Huta"),[19]still widely remembered to this day, especially by many older Poles.
- Nowa Huta has figured prominently in Polish literature since its very beginning. The earliest works focused on ideological progress and on the conflict between the "bourgeois city" (Kraków) and its new Socialist district of Nowa Huta (a "Party bastion"). Among writers on this topic were Marian Brandys (Początek opowieści, 1951) and Tadeusz Konwicki (Przy budowie, 1950). A hefty supply of short poems included Jalu Kurek's "Z nowej Huty pocztówka" (1953; a city park (pl) was named after him for this particular work), and future Nobel laureate Wisława Szymborska ("Na powitanie budowy socjalistycznego miasta", 1952, from the collection of Stalinist paeans of praise known as "Dlatego żyjemy").[20] Although Nowa Huta disappeared from literary narratives after the period of Socialist realism, it returned during the 1980s when it became the hotbed of struggle against Socialism, and later, during the 1990s, when it became a symbol of the new post-Socialist reality stemming from both its socialist and anti-socialist past.[5][21]
- Poland's first ever Teatr Ludowy ("People's Theater").[23]
- "Oedipus – a tragedy from Nowa Huta" is a play based on the ancient Greek myth of Oedipus, premiered in Łaźnia Nowa Theater, under direction of Bartosz Szydłowski.[24]
Cultural venues
- Łaźnia Nowa Theatre[26]
- Kino Sfinks art-house cinema[27]
- Nowohuckie Centrum Kultury [28]
- Cyprian Norwid Cultural Center[29]
Landmarks
- Wanda Mound (Polish: Kopiec Wandy)[30]
- Cistercian abbey) (1225)
- Jan Matejko Manor, Krzesławice
- Branice Manor
- Church of Saint Wenceslaus(1226)
- Church of Saint Bartholomew(1466)
- Austro-Hungarian fortresses: Batowice, Mistrzejowice, Dłubnia, Krzesławice, Grębałów, Mogiła
- Tadeusz Sendzimir Steelworks (formerly Huta Lenina im. Kraków (Vladimir Lenin Steelworks))
- Plac Centralny, and Aleja Róż (Avenue of Roses) architecture
- Arka Pana (Lord's Ark) Church and Chapel of Conciliation, Bieńczyce
- Polish Aviation Museum, Czyżyny
- Branch of the Historical Museum of Kraków, History of Nowa Huta[31]
Notable people
- Marcin Cabaj
- Jerzy Fedorowicz
- Michał Pazdan
- Ireneusz Raś
- Paulina Dudek (Dudziszon)
- Józef Szajna
- Marcin Wasilewski[citation needed]
Industry
- Tadeusz Sendzimir Steelworks (Polish: Huta im. Tadeusza Sendzimira), owned by Mittal Steel Company
- Kraków Power Station (Polish: Elektrociepłownia Kraków)
- Philip Morris Cigarette Company[32]
- Comarch, an international software house
- INTERIA.PL, a company operating Poland's third-largest portal[citation needed]
Education
- Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Tadeusz Kościuszko University of Technology
- Academy of Physical Education (AWF)[citation needed]
Sport
Nowa Huta is home to several of Kraków's notable sports clubs. Rich in history,
The Kraków Speedway Stadium is a 12,000 all-seated stadium on Odmogile road.[34] It has hosted notable events such as the 1960 Poland versus England international that attracted a crowd of 25,000 and a qualifying round of the Speedway World Team Cup in 1964.[35]
See also
Notes and references
- ^ "Nowa Huta – Krakow". www.inyourpocket.com. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ISBN 9781137303653. Retrieved 14 May 2017 – via Google Books.
- ^ ISBN 83-89186-67-5
- ^ "Cistercian monastery in Mogiła webpage". Archived from the original on 10 June 2008. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ a b Prof. Alison Stenning (2002), "Living In The Spaces Of (Post-)Socialism: The Case Of Nowa Huta" (PDF file, Wayback direct download), School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham.
- ^ Jamie Stokes (February 25, 2011), Nowa Huta: Krakow’s Brutal Brother? Archived 2015-01-04 at the Wayback Machine Krakow Post: News, Events, Lifestyle.
- ^ "The Lord's Ark – Sightseeing – Krakow". www.inyourpocket.com. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "History of Nowa Huta, Gates of Lesser Poland informational portal". Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "60 lecie Nowej Huty". www.60nh.pl. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ UPHEAVAL IN THE EAST; Lenin Statue in Mothballs, The New York Times, December 11, 1989. Retrieved June 9, 2013.
- ISBN 978-3-7643-6683-4
- ^ "The miracle of Nowa Huta – INTI – International New Town Institute". www.newtowninstitute.org. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "Krakow – News – A Day Out In Lenin Land". cracow-life.com. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "Out & About – Expatica Germany". www.expatica.com. Archived from the original on 12 March 2007. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "Nowa Huta". www.nowahuta.org.pl. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "Related story at www.zyciekrakowa.pl". Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "Nowa Huta – Krakow". www.inyourpocket.com. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "Polish town erects statue of a urinating Lenin". Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "Nowa Huta budowa". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "Buble i inne rupiecie (Schlock and other antiques)". Polityka, poezja (in Polish). Unicorn. Retrieved March 26, 2013.
- JSTOR 25479134.
- ^ Wojciech Bogusławski at Culture.pl webpage of the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, Poland.
- ^ a b "Portal główny EN – Magiczny Kraków". www.krakow.pl. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "Łaźnia nowa". laznianowa.pl. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "Teatr Ludowy Krakow – Poland – Local Life". www.cracow-life.com. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "Łaźnia nowa". laznianowa.pl. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ Sfinks art-house cinema homepage
- ^ "Portal główny EN – Magiczny Kraków". www.krakow.pl. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "The Cyprian Norwid Cultural Centre at www.okn.edu.pl". Archived from the original on 1 October 2011. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "Wanda's Mound – Sightseeing – Krakow". www.inyourpocket.com. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "Nowa Huta Branch of the Historical Museum of Kraków at www.mhk.pl". Archived from the original on 6 February 2012. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "Palin's Travels: Poland, New Europe". palinstravels.co.uk. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "Poland – KS Wanda Nowa Huta Kraków – Results, fixtures, squad, statistics, photos, videos and news – Soccerway". us.soccerway.com. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
- ^ "Stadion Sportowy KS Wanda". StadiumDB. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
- ^ "World Team Cup & World Cup". International Speedway. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
Bibliography
- Mariusz Czepczyński, Cultural Landscapes of Post-Socialist Cities. Representation of Powers and Needs. Ashgate 2008. ISBN 978-0-7546-7022-3.
- Katherine Lebow, Unfinished Utopia. Nowa Huta, Stalinism and Polish Society 1949–1956. Cornell University Press 2013. ISBN 978-0-8014-5124-9.
- Stanisław Panek and Edmund Piasecki. Nowa Huta. Wrocław 1971.