Giżycko

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Giżycko
Flag of Giżycko Coat of arms of Giżycko
(Flag) (Coat of arms)
Location of Giżycko
Country Poland
Voivodeship Warmia-Masuria
Municipal government Urząd Miejski w Giżycku
Mayor Jolanta Piotrkowska
Area 13,9 km²
Population
 - city
 - urban
 - density

29 800
-
2148/km²
Founded -
City rights -
Latitude
Longitude
54°02' N
21°46' E
Area code +48 87
Car plates NGI
Twin towns -
Municipal Website

Giżycko (German: Lötzen (pronunciation ), Polish: Lec, both until 1946) is a town in northeastern Poland with 29,796 inhabitants (2004). It is situated in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship (since 1999), having previously been in the Suwałki Voivodeship (1975-1998). It is the seat of Giżycko County.

Contents

[edit] History

  • Teutonic Knights erected a castle named Lötzen (in Polish – Lec) in 1340, located at the isthmus between two lakes .
  • Civic rights, with a coat of arms and a seal, were granted to the settlement in 1612.
  • In the 19th cebntury, a Lutheran church designed by the famous architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel was erected in the centre of the town.
  • While part of Germany, Lötzen was organized by the Wehrmacht as a Subarea Headquarters of the Allenstein Area headquarters, of Wehrkreis I, which was headquartered at Königsberg. The German 228th Infanterie Division was based in Lötzen until 1945. (Source: German Order of Battle, 1944)
  • In 1946 the town, formerly called Lec in Polish, was renamed to Giżycko.

[edit] Education

[edit] Famous people

  • Wojciech Kętrzyński

[edit] See also

Coordinates: 54°03′N 21°46′E