Cieszyn

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For other places with the same name, see Cieszyn (disambiguation).
Cieszyn
Town square

Flag
Coat of arms
Motto: Amore et non dolore
Cieszyn
Location of Cieszyn in Poland
Coordinates: 49°44′54.37″N 18°37′59.56″E / 49.7484361°N 18.6332111°E / 49.7484361; 18.6332111
Country  Poland
Voivodeship Silesian
County Cieszyn
First mentioned 1155
Government
 • Mayor Mieczysław Jerzy Szczurek
Area
 • Total 28.69 km2 (11.08 sq mi)
Population (2006)
 • Total 36,014
 • Density 1,300/km2 (3,300/sq mi)
Postal code 43-400
Website http://www.cieszyn.pl/
Divided town. Cieszyn (left), Olza River (centre) and Český Těšín (right).

Cieszyn [ˈt͡ɕɛʂɨn] ( listen) (Czech: Těšín, German: Teschen) is a border-town and the seat of Cieszyn County, Silesian Voivodeship, southern Poland. It has 36,109 inhabitants (2004). Cieszyn lies on the Olza River, a tributary of the Oder river, opposite Český Těšín.

It is situated in the heart of the historical region of Cieszyn Silesia. Until the end of World War I in 1918 it was a seat of the Duchy of Teschen. In 1920 Cieszyn Silesia was divided between the two newly created states of Poland and Czechoslovakia, with the smaller western suburbs of Teschen becoming part of Czechoslovakia as a new town called Český Těšín. The larger part of the town joined Poland as Cieszyn.[1] Both Polish and Czech part of the city have 61,201 inhabitants.

The town combines both Polish and Austrian peculiarities in the style of its buildings. Because of several major fires and subsequent reconstructions (the last one in the late 18th century), the picturesque old town is sometimes called Little Vienna. The only relic of the ancient castle is a square tower, dating from the 12th century and 10th century romanesque chapel.

History

Main article: History of Cieszyn

The area was populated by Slavic peoples since at least the 7th century. According to legend, in 810 three sons of a prince – Bolko, Leszko and Cieszko, met here after a long pilgrimage, found a spring, and decided to found a new settlement. They called it Cieszyn, from the words "cieszym się", "I'm happy". This well can be found at ulica Trzech Braci ("Three Brothers Street"), just west of the town square.[2][3]

The town was the capital of the Duchy of Teschen, which was ruled by the Habsburg Dynasty of Austria from 1653 to 1918. It was in Teschen that Maria Theresa and Frederick II on in May 1779 signed the Teschen Peace Treaty, which put an end to the War of the Bavarian Succession. Teschen was known for its ethnic, religious and cultural diversity, containing mostly German, Polish, Jewish and Czech communities.[4] There was also a small Hungarian community in the town consisting mostly of officers and clerks.[5]

According to the Austrian census of 1910 the town had 22,489 inhabitants, of whom 13,254 (61.5%) were German-speaking, 6,832 (31.7%) were Polish-speaking and 1,437 (6.7%) were Czech-speaking. Jews were not allowed to declare Yiddish, most of them thus declared German as their native language. The most populous religious groups were Roman Catholics with 15,138 (67.3%), followed by Protestants with 5,174 (23%) and the Jews with 2,112 (9.4%).[6]

The town was divided in July 1920, by the Spa Conference, a body formed by the Versailles Treaty, leaving a Polish minority on the Czechoslovak side. Its smaller westerns suburbs became what is now the town of Český Těšín in the Czech Republic. During interwar period two villages were merged into Cieszyn: Błogocice in 1923 and Bobrek in 1932. After 1920 many ethnic Germans left the town, while many Poles from Czechoslovakian part of the region had moved in. According the Polish census of 1921 Cieszyn had 15,268 inhabitants, of whom 9,241 (60,5%) were Poles, 4,777 (31,2%) were Germans, 1014 (6,6%) were Jews, 195 (1,3%) were Czechs. Census from 1931 displayed 14,707 inhabitants, of whom 12,145 (82,7%) were Poles, while the rest consisted mostly of Germans and Jews (in 1937 estimated to be 12 and 8% respecively).[7]

Cieszyn and Český Těšín were merged again in October 1938 when Poland annexed the Zaolzie area together with Český Těšín. In 1939 Cieszyn Silesia was occupied by German forces and during the World War II it was part of Nazi Germany. Almost entire Jewish community was murdered by Nazis. After World War II, the border between Poland and Czechoslovakia was restored to that of 1920. The town's German inhabitants fled or were expelled, and signs of German presence in the town were obliterated by a special committee.[8]

On 19 July 1970, five firefighters from Cieszyn died, when a bridge they were on fell into the Olza River, due to heavy flooding. In 1977, Boguszowice, Gułdowy, Kalembice, Krasna, Mnisztwo, Pastwiska were amalgamated with Cieszyn in 1973 and Marklowice.

After Poland and the Czech Republic joined the European Union and its passport-free Schengen zone, border controls were abolished and residents of both the Polish and Czech part could move freely across the border.

Culture

Since the 19th century Cieszyn Silesia has been an important centre of Polish Protestantism. Currently Cieszyn is also the site of the Cieszyn Summer Film Festival, one of the most influential film festivals in Poland. There is also an earlier established Czech-Polish-Slovak film festival.

Industry

Cieszyn is an important centre of the electromechanical industry. It is also the site of the Olza Cieszyn sweets factory (where the famous Prince Polo wafers are made) and the Brackie Browar, where Żywiec Porter is brewed. The main source of income for many citizens is trade with the nearby Czech Republic and retail trade associated with transit across the two bridges over the Olza to Český Těšín.

Sites of interest

Copper engraving from c. 1640 depicting the town
  • Romanesque St. Nicholas' Chapel (Kaplica św. Mikołaja, a rotunda from the 11th century)
  • Remnants of the Piast dynasty castle
    • Piast Castle Tower (Wieża Piastowska, mostly 14th century)
    • Gothical St. Mary Magdalene Church (Kościół Marii Magdaleny, 13th century)
  • Old Town Square (Rynek)
    • bourgeoisie houses (15th-19th centuries)
    • Town Hall (Ratusz, early 19th century)
  • Former minting house (18th century)
  • Museum of Cieszyn Silesia in the former Larisch family palace (Pałac Laryszów, Muzeum Śląska Cieszyńskiego, the first museum in Poland)
  • Castle Brewery (Browar Zamkowy, 1846)
  • The protestant Church of Jesus (Kościół Jezusowy), with a baroque tower and statues of the Four Evangelists above the altar that liven up the plain interior.

People

International relations

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

Twin towns — Sister cities

Cieszyn is twinned with:

Gallery

  • Rotunda from circa 1180 / St. Nicholas Church

  • 14th century Piast tower

  • Głęboka St.

  • Statue of Saint Florian

  • Monastery, church, and hospital of the Sisters of Saint Elizabeth

  • Mary Magdalene Dominican Church, begun in late 13th century

  • Hunting Palace of the Habsburgs and monument commemorating Silesian legionaries fallen for Poland

  • Adam Mickiewicz Theatre

  • Hotel on the town square

  • Evangelical Protestant Church of Jesus, begun in 1710

  • Communal Cemetery in Cieszyn

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Edmund Jan Osmańczyk, Anthony Mango. Encyclopedia of the United Nations and international agreements - Volume 1 A-F (2003 ed.). Taylor & Francis. p. 382. ISBN 0-415-93921-6. 
  2. ↑ "Cieszyn - Tourism | Tourist Information - Cieszyn, Poland". Staypoland.com. Retrieved 2013-07-16. 
  3. ↑ The legend is inscribed on the Well of the Three Brothers in Cieszyn.
  4. ↑ Wawreczka et al. 1999, 13.
  5. ↑ Wawreczka et al. 1999, 10.
  6. ↑ Ludwig Patryn (ed): Die Ergebnisse der Volkszählung vom 31. Dezember 1910 in Schlesien, Troppau 1912.
  7. ↑ Dzieje Cieszyna..., 2010, t. III, p. 323
  8. ↑ Dzieje Cieszyna..., 2010, t. III, p. 439-440
  9. ↑ "Partnerstädte der Stadt Luzern". Stadt Luzern (in German). Archived from the original on 2013-06-21. Retrieved 2013-08-01. 

References

  • Dzieje Cieszyna od pradziejów do czasów współczesnych. Cieszyn: Książnica Cieszyńska. 2010. ISBN 978-83-927052-6-0. 
  • Wawreczka, Henryk; Janusz Spyra and Mariusz Makowski (1999). Těšín, Český Těšín na starých pohlednicích a fotografiích / Cieszyn, Czeski Cieszyn na starych widokówkach i fotografiach. Nebory, Třinec: Wart. ISBN 80-238-4804-6. 

Further reading

  • Długajczyk, Edward (1993). Tajny front na granicy cieszyńskiej. Wywiad i dywersja w latach 1919-1939. Katowice: Śląsk. ISBN 83-85831-03-7. 

External links

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Coordinates: 49°44′54.37″N 18°37′59.56″E / 49.7484361°N 18.6332111°E / 49.7484361; 18.6332111

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