Radom

Radom
Żeromskiego Street

Coat of arms
Radom
Coordinates:
Country  Poland
Voivodeship Masovian
County city county
Established 13th century
Town rights 1364
Government
 • Mayor Andrzej Kosztowniak
Area
 • City 111.71 km2 (43.1 sq mi)
Population (2009)
 • City 223,914
 • Density 2,004.4/km2 (5,191.4/sq mi)
 • Metro 371,000
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code 26-600 to 26-618
Area code(s) +48 48
Car plates WR
Website http://www.radom.pl

Radom [ˈradɔm] ( listen) is a city in central Poland with 223,397 inhabitants (December 31, 2009). It is located on the Mleczna River in the Masovian Voivodeship (since 1999), having previously been the capital of Radom Voivodeship (1975–1998); 100 km south of Poland's capital, Warsaw.

It is home to the biennial Radom Air Show, the largest and best-attended air show in Poland, held during the last weekend of August. "Radom" is also the popular unofficial name for a semiautomatic 9 mm Para pistol of Polish design (the Model 35/ViS-35) designed by Piotr Wilniewczyc and Jan Skrzypinski (hence the designation "ViS")[1], under Director Kazimierz Ołdakowski, which had been in production from 1935 to 1945 at the national arsenal located in the city. The Łucznik Arms Factory (still located in Radom) continues to produces modern military firearms such as assault rifles.

Contents

History

The original settlement dates back to 8th–9th century. It was an early mediaeval town in the valley of the Mleczna River (approximately on the location of present-day Old Town). Around the 2nd half of 10th century, it turned into a fortified town called Piotrówka.

Radom was founded in 1340, and it belonged to the Sandomierz Voivodeship (part of Little Poland) of the Kingdom of Poland, later Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. During the partitions of Poland it was held successively by Austria and Russia in the 19th century before returning to Poland after World War I in 1918. The main industries include leather, glass, and chemicals.

Up to the Second World War, like many other cities in interwar Poland, Radom had a significant Jewish population. According to Russian census of 1897, out of the total population of 28,700, Jews constituted 11,200 (~39% percent).[2]

Important dates

Current events

In 2007, two pilots died in a fatal accident at the Air Show resulting in the cancellation of the rest of the event. On the 30th of August 2009, also during the air show, another two pilots who represented Belarus were killed when their plane crashed.

Radom was one of the main centres of the strike action taken by Polish health care workers in 2007.

Tourist attractions

St Waenceslaus church in the Old Town Square
founded by Leszek I the White, built in the 13th century in gothic style
St John the Baptist church
founded by Casimir III, built in the years 1360–1370 in gothic style, and re-constructed many times
Bernardine church and monastery
founded by Casimir IV of Poland, built in the years 1468–1507
Holy Trinity Church
built in the years 1619–1627 in the baroque style, burned in a fire and was rebuilt in the years 1678–1691
Gąska's and Esterka's Houses
16th / 17th century
Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession
built in 1785
Building of city council
built in the years 1825–1827, designed in classical style by Antonio Corazzi
City hall
built in the years 1847–1848
Cathedral of Virgin Mary
built in the years 1899–1908 in neo-gothic style
Tool gates
built in the 19th century in classical style

Culture

Philharmonic

Cinemas

Theatre

Museums and art galleries

Education

Radom is home to about 20 schools of higher education:

Other

Sports

Politics

Radom constituency

Members of Parliament (Sejm) elected from Radom constituency

International relations

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Poland

Twin towns — Sister cities

Radom is twinned with:[3]

Notable people

Notable people who have been born, have lived or have worked in Radom:

See also

References

Notes
  1. ^ Instead of WiS for exportation aims, but the Polish “w” has the same sound as the more usual “v”.
  2. ^ Joshua D. Zimmerman, Poles, Jews, and the politics of nationality, Univ of Wisconsin Press, 2004, ISBN 0-299-19464-7, Google Print, p.16
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Radom Official Website - Partner Cities". (in English and Polish) © 2007 Urząd Miasta Radom. http://www.radom.pl/_portal/118786399846cd5dbe4a35e/Miasta_partnerskie.html. Retrieved 2008-10-23. 
  4. ^ "Banská Bystrica Sister Cities". © 2001-2008. http://eng.banskabystrica.sk/main.php?id_kat_for_menu=2367&firmy_slovenska_flag=0. Retrieved 2008-10-23. 

External links

Media related to [//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Radom Radom] at Wikimedia Commons
Principal cities of Poland
City counties
Land counties
Seat (not part of the county): Radom
Urban gmina
Urban-rural gminas
Rural gminas