| Pińczów | |||
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| Pińczów | |||
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Pińczów
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| Coordinates: | |||
| Country | Poland | ||
| Voivodeship | Świętokrzyskie | ||
| County | Pińczów County | ||
| Gmina | Gmina Pińczów | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 14.32 km2 (5.5 sq mi) | ||
| Elevation | 300 m (984 ft) | ||
| Population (2006) | |||
| • Total | 11,886 | ||
| • Density | 830/km2 (2,149.8/sq mi) | ||
| Postal code | 28-400 | ||
| Website | http://www.pinczow.com.pl/ | ||
Pińczów [ˈpiɲt͡ʂuf] is a town in Poland, in Świętokrzyskie Voivodship, about 40 km south of Kielce. It is the capital of Pińczów County. Population is 12,304 (2005).
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The history of the town dates back to the 12th century's quarry and, today ruined, 13th century's castle.
The Calvinist nobleman Nicholas Oleśnicki drove out the Catholic monks of Pińczów in 1550 at the instigation of the Italian ex-priest Francesco Stancaro, creating a Calvinist centre, where the Synods of Pińczów were held 1550-1563. Pińczów is sometimes called the "Sarmatian Athens" for its association with the Calvinist Academy founded by Francesco Lismanino, to which scholars such as the French grammarian Pierre Statorius were invited.[1][2] The town was the site of the six years of work 1558-1563 for the translators of the Brest Bible, which is why the Bible is sometimes called the Biblia Pińczowska.
During the 18th century the town was seat of the Wielopolscy family.
Pińczów was destroyed by Germans in September 1939 and almost all Jews, who had accounted for about 70% of the town's population, were killed or sent to extermination camps. Most Pińczów's Jews were dead in the death camp Treblinka. The Jewish cemetery was also destroyed. Some Jews of Pińczów survived the Holocaust by hiding in nearby forests. Some, though not many, were hidden by Polish farmers until the end of the war.
The Republic of Pińczów was a short-lived uprising.
The town's attractions include the 18th century palace of the Wielkopolscy family, several churches and monasteries (some dating back to 15th century), the Renaissance St. Anne's Chapel, the recently restored synagogue, and ruins of the 13th century castle.
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