Ostrołęka

Coordinates: 53°4′N 21°34′E / 53.067°N 21.567°E / 53.067; 21.567
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For other places with the same name, see Ostrołęka (disambiguation).
Ostrołęka
Józef Bem Square and the town hall
  • From top, left to right: Józef Bem Square (Polish: Plac Bema) and the town hall
  • City Museum
  • Visitation Church
UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code
07-400 to 07-417
Area code+48 029
Vehicle registrationWO
National roads
Voivodeship roads
Websitehttp://www.ostroleka.pl

Ostrołęka (Polish: [ɔstrɔˈwɛŋka] ⓘ) is a small city in northeastern Poland on the Narew river, about 120 km (75 mi) northeast of Warsaw, with a population of 51,012 (2021)[1] and an area of 33.46 square kilometres (12.92 sq mi). It is the capital of both Ostrołęka County and Ostrołęka City County in the Masovian Voivodeship.

Until the late 1980s, Ostrołęka was a local railroad junction, with four lines stemming from Ostrołęka railway station: eastwards to Łapy and Białystok, southwestwards to Tłuszcz and Warsaw, northwards to Wielbark and Olsztyn, and southwards to Małkinia.

History

Founding

The territory became part of the emerging Polish state under its first historic ruler Mieszko I in the 10th century, and following the 12th-century fragmentation of the realm, it was part of the provincial Polish Duchy of Masovia.

The city's name refers to a sand-mud plain located on the left side of the

Siemowit III of Masovia, and therefore, the year 1373 has become the most commonly associated date of the acquisition of town rights.[2]

The 15th and 16th centuries

By the beginning of the 15th Century, Ostrołęka grew into an important economic center in the

Polish royal city, administratively located in the Masovian Voivodeship in the Greater Poland Province
.

The 17th and 18th centuries

Despite quickly recuperating in the early 17th century, the city passed through a period of impoverishment and stagnation in the middle and late 17th century. On 25 July 1656, in the midst of the Deluge, the town was laid waste by Swedish forces after having resisted them. In 1665, Bernardine monks settled in the town after a monastery was founded by Tomasz Gocłowski. The Bernardine monastery of St. Anthony of Padua was built in a late-Baroque style.

Interior of the Baroque St. Anthony's Church

Despite being inhabited by only 400 people in 1676, the town was still considered to be the most populous of towns in the Łomża region. In the following century, the town was destroyed numerous times by Swedish, Russian, and Saxon armies. As a result, further economic development was hindered and the town remained in a state of stagnation for several decades. In the second half of the 18th century the city's economy revived and local merchants renewed trade with the major cities of Gdańsk, Warsaw and Königsberg.[2]

During the Kościuszko Uprising, the First Wielkopolska National Cavalry Brigade was stationed in Ostrołęka.[3] With the aim of aiding the Kościuszko Uprising, the First Brigade, led by Antoni Madaliński, started to march towards Kraków on 12 March 1794. Prussian troops reacted quickly by heading as far south as the Narew River, and reached the town's northern outskirts on the right bank of the Narew River, yet had never marched directly into, nor fully occupied, the town. The Uprising had failed and as a consequence of the Third Partition of Poland two years later, Ostrołęka found itself within Prussia's borders for ten years. At the turn of the century, the first German and Jewish families began to settle in the town and surrounding areas. [citation needed]

The Warsaw Duchy

From the end of 1806 through June 1807, Ostrołęka was occupied by

Nicolas Charles Oudinot, prevailed. Due to this success of the French Army, Ostrołęka appears on the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. In May 1807 the first map of Ostrołęka was made (now located in Bibliothéque du Génie in Paris). From 1807 to 1815 the city was part of the short-lived Polish Duchy of Warsaw.[2]

Congress Poland

As part of a comprehensive plan of industrializing

St. Petersburg ran through Ostrołęka. Although the town's citizens were eager and proud to take part in the November Uprising
of 1830-1831, they worried that their city, as in every previous war, would be destroyed. However they did not expect that the heaviest fighting would take place on near Ostrołęka.

Rebel plans envisaged the Polish Army attacking the Russian Infantry Corps of the Tsar's Guard, which made camp between Augustów and Ostrołęka. On 18 May 1831 General Henryk Dembiński claimed Ostrołęka. But General Jan Zygmunt Skrzynecki didn't make a use of his temporary superiority and he couldn't make up his mind whether to attack the Russians situated near Łomża. As a result, Łomża was destroyed.

Battle of Ostrołęka (1831)

On 26 May 1831 the Battle of Ostrołęka (1831) took place. As a cannonade was heard, Jan Zygmunt Skrzynecki couldn't believe that Hans Karl von Diebitsch (a Russian general) had already reached the suburbs of the city. He ordered the Fourth Infantry Regiment to defend the city. The main defending forces fortified themselves in the Bernardine Monastery. Unfortunately the Russians had brought cannons with them; they quickly overpowered the Polish units and forced their surrender. [citation needed]

Monument of General Józef Bem, national hero of Poland

Von Diebitsch took over the city center, but the battle continued on the right side of the Narew. Skrzynecki and his troops valiantly defended the bridge, wanting to hold back the Russian forces from crossing over to the other side of the river. Lieutenant-Colonel Józef Bem and his Fourth Battery were called in to help defend the bridge. Bem was able to hold back the Russians, but the battle is often referred to as a Polish defeat. The defeat marked the end of the Uprising. As a result of the battle, 6000 Polish soldiers died including many Kurpie. Bem, for his bravery, was nominated as Commander-in-Chief of Artillery and was honoured with a Virtuti Militari Cross. The battle was the greatest and the bloodiest in the November Uprising.[citation needed]

1831-1918

Town Hall

After the Polish-Russian War, Ostrołęka became one of the most destroyed cities. Although it suffered great losses, Ostrołęka stayed a district city of Płock's Province. Ostrołęka's economy greatly declined. Nearly all the city's craftsmen became bankrupt. Only products of Ostrołęka's amber works were still supplied all over Europe. Ostrołęka got refunds from the Tsar's Treasury. However, it took a long time before it rose from its downfall. In 1847 a monument commemorating Russian Army's victory in the battle of Ostrołęka was raised on 26 May 1831. At the time of January's insurrection, no battles took place nearby Ostrołęka, as the Tsar placed a quite large Russian detachment in the city worrying of another Kurp Uprising. In 1864, after the Russian government's order, the Benedictines left Ostrołęka and the monastery buildings were placed under the parish-priest authority. [citation needed]

Until the

Russian Great Retreat,[4]
and in August 1915, Germans crossed the river Narew and entered the ruined city. At the time of the German occupation, life in Ostrołęka was as hard as in the time of Russian occupation. Between the years of 1916 and 1918, the Germans greatly exploited the forests for timber. To make transporting the wood easier, they built 40 km (25 mi) of road from Ostrołęka to Myszyniec and a narrow-gauge railway line.

Interbellum

interbellum

After the First World War and re-establishment of independent Poland in 1918, the city became a part of the Białystok Voivodeship. 75% of the city and population was devastated. New schools and departments were opened as the city was rebuilt.

During the

Hayk Bzhishkyan took the fort and "butchered the newly assembled cavalry group" of General Bolesław Roja.[5]: 150  Local Jewish communists organized a rally in the city, tore Polish emblems and flags from buildings, and the newly appointed revolutionary committee leader, member of Poale Zion, announced to local wealthy Poles and Jews that their property will be taken from them.[6] The local Polish intelligentsia and prominent religious Jews, along with the rabbi, were subjected to forced labour in the city.[7] However, the Soviet occupation was short lived as the Soviet XV Army retreated on 20 August, with Polish forces thundering east towards the former Polish-Soviet border after the Battle of Warsaw (1920).[5]
: 205 

After the Polish-Soviet War, Ostrołęka began to industrialize. A cinema was opened in 1923, and a power plant in 1928. During the summer of 1939, both sides of the Narew beachhead were fortified.

Second World War

Market square during World War II

During the invasion of Poland, which started World War II, on 10 September 1939 German forces reached Ostrołęka. The Germans immediately carried out searches of Polish offices and organizations.[8] Under German occupation the town was annexed directly to Germany and in 1940 it was renamed Scharfenwiese to remove traces of Polish origin. The Germans expelled its Jewish minority,[9] which was later mostly murdered in the Treblinka extermination camp.[citation needed] Ostrołęka became a border town, today's easternmost areas belonged to USSR.

Home Army Memorial

Quickly, a Polish resistance movement was established with a substantial presence of local Kurpes. Churches and schools were changed into workshops and factories controlled by the Underground. Underground partisans started attacking and destroying German fortifications in and around Ostrołęka.

The Germans established and operated a court prison, in which they held

Fall of Communism
in the 1980s.

People's Republic of Poland

Ostrołęka recovered very slowly from the war. A plan created by communist authorities, which allowed for an improvement of the economic situation in Poland, gave Ostrołęka a chance for redevelopment. Ostrołęka became a central city of Warsaw's region. In 1959, a cellulose and paper factory was built. Next, a sewage refinery was built along the banks of the Narew, which was supposed to keep water in the Narew clean without destroying its biological life. In 1973 a cellular concrete factory was built in the district of Wojciechowice. New jobs brought people to the city and caused a development of alimentary industry. During the 1970s a new factory, "Future", producing wooden articles was opened. A new swimming pool, a stadium for 5000 people, and a holiday resort were built. A new hospital was built. From 1975 to 1998, it was the capital of the Ostrołęka Voivodeship.

Ostrołęka since 1989

In 1989 the city entered a new era of capitalism, which has lasted until the present day. The same year Ostrołęka was granted provincial rights. The paper factory Cellulose downsized en masse after

privatisation. The factory Future went bankrupt but small service establishments were opened for average people to invest their money. A new hospital was built in the new century. The economy also developed. Three new trade pavilions were built. "Cellulose" changed its name to "Intercell" (later purcharsed by finnish company Stora Enso) and the cellular concrete factory was bought by the Ytong company. The centre of the city began to fulfill trade functions. [citation needed
]

In 1996, a second permanent bridge, "Most im. Antoniego Madalińskiego", was built. In 1999 the city became a district city. A new aquapark was opened in September 2010. A modernisation of the city stadium or even a completely new stadium is planned to be built in this decade, while two new modern training grounds for football are currently being built. A new power plant is currently being built and planned to open by 2015, generating 1,000 MW of power.[16][17] Also, the existing power plant is planned to undergo modernisation in the next decade. [citation needed]

Education

ZSZ nr. 1 in Ostroleka
  • Wyższa Szkoła Administracji Publicznej
  • Wyższa Szkoła Ekonomiczno-Społeczna
The Madalinski Bridge

Sport

Football

Volleyball

  • Energa Net Ostrołęka - Male volleyball team currently playing in the 2nd Polish league
  • OTPS Nike Ostrołęka - Female volleyball team currently playing in the 3rd Polish league

Handball

  • Trójka Ostrołęka - Male handball team currently playing in the 2nd league

Basketball

  • OTK Ostrołęka - Male basketball team
  • OKK Ostrołęka - Male basketball team
  • MUKS Unia Basket Ostrołęka - Female basketball team

Politics

Ostrołęka-Siedlce constituency

Members of Parliament (Sejm) elected from Ostrołęka-Siedlce constituency

  • Chrzanowski Zbigniew, PO
  • Deptuła Zbigniew, PSL
  • Dziewulski Zbigniew, Samoobrona
  • Filipek Krzysztof, Samoobrona
  • Janowski Gabriel, LPR
  • Kalinowski Jarosław, PSL
  • Krutczenko Zbigniew, SLD-UP
  • Kurpiewski Stanisław, SLD-UP
  • Oleksy Józef, SLD-UP
  • Piłka Marian, PiS
  • Prządka Stanisława, SLD-UP
  • Sawicki Marek, PSL

See also

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ostrołęka.

References

  1. ^ a b "Local Data Bank". Statistics Poland. Retrieved 19 August 2022. Data for territorial unit 1461000.
  2. ^ a b c "Historia miejscowości". Retrieved 15 April 2020.
  3. ^ Gembarzewski, Bronisław (1925). Rodowody pułków polskich i oddziałów równorzędnych od r. 1717 do r. 1831 (in Polish). Warszawa: Towarzystwo Wiedzy Wojskowej. p. 7.
  4. ISBN 9781472819376
    .
  5. ^
    ISBN 978-0-7126-0694-3
  6. ISSN 1427-1443
    .
  7. ^ Szczepański, p. 19
  8. ^ Wardzyńska, Maria (2009). Był rok 1939. Operacja niemieckiej policji bezpieczeństwa w Polsce. Intelligenzaktion (in Polish). Warszawa: IPN. p. 112.
  9. ^ Wardzyńska (2009), p. 123
  10. ^ Wardzyńska (2009), p. 224, 227
  11. ^ Wardzyńska (2009), p. 227
  12. ^ Wardzyńska (2009), p. 230
  13. ^ "Straf- bzw. Arbeitserziehungslager Scharfenwiese". Bundesarchiv.de (in German). Retrieved 6 February 2021.
  14. ISBN 978-83-8098-174-4
    .
  15. ^ Datner, Szymon (1968). Las sprawiedliwych (in Polish). Warszawa: Książka i Wiedza. pp. 55, 60.
  16. ^ "Energa upgrading Ostroleka power station". Construction Sector in Poland. PMR. 2008-06-30. Retrieved 2010-12-04.
  17. ^ "Polish coal miner Bogdanka to supply Ostroleka power plant".
    Platts
    . 2010-10-20. Retrieved 2010-12-04.
  18. ^ "Jantar Ostrołęka - informacje o klubie". kuazsuw.futbolowo.pl. Retrieved 2021-07-26.
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