Konin
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- For other meanings, see Konin (disambiguation).
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| Konin | |||
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  Konin
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| Coordinates: | |||
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| Country |  Poland |
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| Voivodeship | Greater Poland | ||
| County | city county | ||
| Town rights | 1284 | ||
| Government | |||
| - Mayor | Kazimierz Pałasz | ||
| Area | |||
| - Total | 82 km² (31.7 sq mi) | ||
| Elevation | 88 m (289 ft) | ||
| Population (2006) | |||
| - Total | 80,618 | ||
| - Density | 983.1/km² (2,546.3/sq mi) | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| - Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| Postal code | 62-500 to 62-510 | ||
| Area code(s) | +48 063 | ||
| Car plates | PN | ||
| Website: http://www.konin.pl | |||
Konin [ˈkɔnin] is a town on the Warta river in central Poland. It is the capital of Konin County. Since 1999, it has been in the Greater Poland Voivodeship. Previously, it was the capital of Konin Voivodeship (1975-1998).
Konin has 81,233 inhabitants (2006)[1].
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[edit] History
The beginnings of settlements near the Konin town goes back to ancient history connected with European Amber Route leading from The Roman Empire territory to the Baltic Sea through Konin. Though there were no settlements called 'Konin' at that time, valuable record about the place remained on map drawn by Ptolemeus's Auskaukalis(Alexandrian geographer). The place named Konin was described as 'Setidava'(or 'Getidava') there, and indicated probably the wading place in Warta river and 'emporium'(trading point)- probably quite important place to merchants travelling along Amber Route (information derived from 'Kalisz-Konin on The Amber Route' written by Krzysztof Gorczyca).
In the 17th century, epidemics, fires and war with Sweden provoked the decline of the town. In 1815, with the dissolution of the Duchy of Warsaw, Konin was returned in the Congress Poland controlled by Russia. In 1853, the town participated in the January Insurrection. The repression of the Tsarist authorities was severe and the town went on to fear the statue of the Regional Centre for a long time.
The economic situation of the town did not improve when Poland regained its independence in 1918. The living conditions of residents were miserable. There was no network for distribution of water, and no sewers. The town did not benefit from the Industrial Revolution. The inter-war econonomic crisis was harshly felt. The situation did not begin to improve until the désenclavement of the town, thanks to the opening of the Poznań-Warsaw steel-tipped route (railway?) and the construction of the canal in the Gopło lake which relied on the Warta River, which borders the town.
During the Second World War, Konin was part of the land annexed by Nazi Germany (Reichsgau Wartheland). In the town's surrounding forests, the Nazis carried out mass executions of Poles, mostly Jews. Jews had represented 30% of Konin's population prior to the war. A descendant of Konin Jews, Theo Richmond, wrote Konin: A Quest, the most extensive history of Jewish life in the town ever to appear in English.
[edit] Economy
[edit] Major corporations
- Zespół Elektrowni Pątnów-Adamów-Konin SA, Konin
- Kopalnia Węgla Brunatnego Konin SA, Kleczew
- Aluminium Konin-Impexmetal SA, Konin
[edit] Education
- Wyższa Szkoła Kupiecka in Łódź, branch in Konin
- Państwowa Wyższa Szkoła Zawodowa - see http://www.pwsz.konin.edu.pl/
[edit] Sports
- Aluminium Konin - football team (2nd league 2003/2004)
[edit] Politics
[edit] Konin constituency
Members of Parliament (Sejm) elected from Konin constituency
- Paweł Arndt, PO
- Alfred Budner, non-party
- Zbigniew Dolata, PiS
- Eugeniusz Grzeszczak, PSL
- Adam Hofman, PiS
- Tomasz Nowak, PO
- Józef Pilarz, non-party
- Andrzej Ruciński, PiS
- Tadeusz Tomaszewski, SLD
[edit] Sister cities
[edit] References
Theo Richmond, Konin: A Quest, Jonathan Cape, London, 1995 Konin: One Man's Quest for a Vanished Jewish Community
[edit] Famous people from Konin
- Jan A. P. Kaczmarek
- Reni Jusis
- Szymon Bobrowski
- Kuba Przerwa
[edit] External links
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