Świecie

Świecie Świecie nad Wisłą
Town view from the Teutonic castle tower
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: Świecie - najlepsze na świecie Świecie - the best in the world
Świecie
Coordinates: 53°25′N 18°26′E / 53.417°N 18.433°E / 53.417; 18.433
Country	Poland
Voivodeship	Kuyavian-Pomeranian
County	Świecie County
Gmina	Gmina Świecie
Established	1198
Town rights	1338
Government
• Mayor	Tadeusz Grzegorz Pogoda
Area
• Total	11.87 km2 (4.58 sq mi)
Highest elevation	86 m (282 ft)
Lowest elevation	19 m (62 ft)
Population (2006)
• Total	25,614
• Density	2,200/km2 (5,600/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	86-100 to 86-105
Area code(s)	+48 52
Car plates	CSW
Website	http://www.um-swiecie.pl

Świecie [ˈɕfjɛt͡ɕɛ] (German: Schwetz) is a town in northern Poland with 25,968 inhabitants (2006), situated in Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship (since 1999); it was previously in Bydgoszcz Voivodeship (1975-1998). It is the capital of Świecie County.

Geographical location

Świecie is located on the west bank of river Vistula at the mouth of river Wda, approximately 40 kilometers north-east of Bydgoszcz, 105 kilometers south of Gdańsk and 190 kilometers south-west of Kaliningrad.

Town hall

Market place

History

In Świecie was, when in 1198 St. Mary's church was opened here, the residence of the Pomeranian Duke Grimislaw. His sphere of control included also the towns of Starogard Gdański and Lubiszewo Tczewskie as well as the region around Skarszewy. In 1310, when the Teutonic Order bought Pomeralia from the Margraves of Brandenburg, the settlement had already the status of a Civitas, just as Gdańsk and Tczew did. When it was granted Kulm law by the Teutonic Order, it was still located on the high west bank of the Vistula. Probably because of destruction by fire, during the time period 1338–75 it was translocated down into the valley at the Vistula. After the Thirteen Years' War (1454–66) the town became part of the autonomous province of Royal Prussia incorporated into the Kingdom of Poland. In 1772 the town was annexed by the Kingdom of Prussia, and Schwetz was integrated into the newly formed Province of West Prussia. In 1905 the town had a Protestant church, two Catholic churches and a synagogue.^[1] After World War I Świecie became part of the Second Republic of Poland.

During the Second World War, Nazi Germany occupied Świecie and annexed it, making it the seat of the county/district (Kreis) of Schwetz. It was administered as part of Reichsgau Danzig-West Prussia. After World War II it was put under the administration of the People's Republic of Poland.

Number of inhabitants by year

Note that the above table is based on primary, potentially biased, sources.^{[2][3][4][5][5]}

Notable residents

• Günther Radusch (1912-1988), Luftwaffe pilot
• Heinrich von Plauen (the Elder) (ca. 1370–1429), 27th grand master of the Teutonic Order.
• Aleksy Kuziemski

Major corporations

• Mondi Świecie SA (before Mondi Packaging Paper Świecie SA and Frantschach Świecie SA and Celuloza Świecie SA) (paper and packaging)

Education

• Wyższa Szkoła Menedżerska
• I LO im. Floriana Ceynowy
• II LO w Świeciu
• Zespół Szkół Ponadgimnazjalnych

Sport

• Wda Świecie
• Polpak Świecie

Footnotes

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Świecie.

v t e Świecie County Seat: Świecie Urban-rural gminas Gmina Nowe Gmina Świecie Rural gminas Gmina Bukowiec Gmina Dragacz Gmina Drzycim Gmina Jeżewo Gmina Lniano Gmina Osie Gmina Pruszcz Gmina Świekatowo Gmina Warlubie

Coordinates: 53°25′N 18°26′E / 53.417°N 18.433°E / 53.417; 18.433