Bielsko-Biała (; cs, Bílsko-Bělá, german: Bielitz-Biala, szl, Bjylsko-Bjoło) is a city in southern Poland, with a population of approximately 168,319 as of December 2021, making it the 22nd largest city in Poland, and an area of . It is a centre of the Bielsko Urban Agglomeration with 325,000 inhabitants and is an administrative, automotive, education, transport, and tourism hub of Podbeskiedzie Region as well as the

Bielsko Industrial Region Bielsko (german: Bielitz, cs, Bílsko) was until 1950 an independent town situated in Cieszyn Silesia, Poland. In 1951 it was joined with Biała Krakowska to form the new town of Bielsko-Biała. Bielsko constitutes the western part of that to ...

. It serves as the seat of the Bielsko County,

Euroregion Beskydy The Euroregion Beskidy (Polish language, Polish) or Euroregion Beskydy (Czech language, Czech) is a Euroregion joining parts of the Poland, Czech Republic and Slovakia. It was created on 9 June 2000. Main Cities * Bielsko-Biała * Frýdek-Místek * ...

Roman Catholic Diocese of Bielsko–Żywiec The Roman Catholic Diocese of Bielsko–Żywiec ( la, Bielscen(sis) – Żyviecen(sis)) is a diocese located in the cities of Bielsko and Żywiec in the Ecclesiastical province of Kraków in Poland. It was established as the Diocese of Bielsk ...

and the Evangelical Church Diocese of Cieszyn. Situated north of the Beskid Mountains, Bielsko-Biała is composed of two former towns which merged in 1951 – ''Bielsko'' in the west and ''Biała'' in the east – on opposite banks of the Biała River that once divided

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...

and

Lesser Poland Lesser Poland, often known by its Polish name Małopolska ( la, Polonia Minor), is a historical region situated in southern and south-eastern Poland. Its capital and largest city is Kraków. Throughout centuries, Lesser Poland developed a ...

. Between 1975 and 1998, the city was the seat of Bielsko Voivodeship and currently lies within the

Silesian Voivodeship Silesian Voivodeship, or Silesia Province ( pl, województwo śląskie ) is a voivodeship, or province, in southern Poland, centered on the historic region known as Upper Silesia ('), with Katowice serving as its capital. Despite the Silesian V ...

. The city is currently subdivided into 12 districts and is a member of the Association of Polish Cities (''Związek Miast Polskich'').

History

Both city names, Bielsko and Biała refer to the Biała River, with etymology stemming from either ''biel'' or ''biała'', which means "white" in Polish.

Bielsko

The remnants of a fortified settlement in what is now the

Stare Bielsko Stare Bielsko (German: ''Alt Bielitz'', both literally meaning "Old Bielsko/Bielitz") is an osiedle (district) of Bielsko-Biała, Silesian Voivodeship, southern Poland. It is located in the west-north part of the city, in Silesian Foothills. Osied ...

(Old Bielsko) district of the city were discovered between 1933 and 1938 by a Polish archaeological team. The settlement was dated to the 12th – 14th centuries. Its dwellers manufactured

iron Iron () is a chemical element with Symbol (chemistry), symbol Fe (from la, Wikt:ferrum, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 element, group 8 of the periodic table. It is, Abundanc ...

from

ore Ore is natural rock or sediment that contains one or more valuable minerals, typically containing metals, that can be mined, treated and sold at a profit.Encyclopædia Britannica. "Ore". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved 7 Apr ...

and specialized in smithery. The current centre of the town was probably developed as early as the first half of the 13th century. At that time a castle (which still survives today) was built on a hill. In the second half of the 13th century, the

Piast The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I (c. 930–992). The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of king Casimir III the Great. Branche ...

dukes of Opole invited German settlers to colonize the

Silesian Foothills Silesian Foothills ( pl, Pogórze Śląskie, cs, Slezské podhůří, szl, Pogōrze Ślōnske) are foothills located in Silesian Voivodeship, Poland. It has an area of 545 km2. Its western border is Olza river, eastern Skawa. Other main r ...

. As the dukes then also ruled over the Lesser Poland lands east of the Biała River, settlements arose on both banks like ''Bielitz'' (now

), ''Nickelsdorf'' ( Mikuszowice Śląskie), ''Kamitz'' ( Kamienica), ''Batzdorf'' ( Komorowice Śląskie) and '' Kurzwald'' in the west as well as ''Kunzendorf'' ( Lipnik), ''Alzen'' ( Hałcnów) and ''Wilmesau'' (

Wilamowice Wilamowice (earlier ''Willamowice'', german: Wilmesau, Wymysorys: ''Wymysoü'') is a rural town in southern Poland, situated in the Bielsko County, Silesian Voivodeship. The town is inhabited by a Germanic ethnic group of Vilamovians, who spea ...

) in the east. Nearby settlements in the mountains were ''Lobnitz'' ( Wapienica) and ''Bistrai'' ( Bystra). After the partition of the Duchy of Opole in 1281, Bielsko passed to the Dukes of Cieszyn within fragmented

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

. The town was first documented in 1312 when Duke Mieszko I of Cieszyn granted a

town charter A city charter or town charter (generically, municipal charter) is a legal document (''charter'') establishing a municipality such as a city or town. The concept developed in Europe during the Middle Ages. Traditionally the granting of a charter ...

. The Biała again became a border river, when in 1315 the eastern Duchy of Oświęcim split off from Cieszyn as a separate under Mieszko's son Władysław. After the Dukes of Cieszyn had become vassals of the Bohemian kings in 1327 and the Duchy of Oświęcim was sold to the

Polish Crown The Crown of the Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Korona Królestwa Polskiego; Latin: ''Corona Regni Poloniae''), known also as the Polish Crown, is the common name for the historic Late Middle Ages territorial possessions of the King of Poland, incl ...

in 1457, returning to Lesser Poland after three centuries, the Biała River for next centuries marked the border between the Bohemian crown land of Silesia within the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...

and the Lesser Poland Province of the

Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Królestwo Polskie; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a state in Central Europe. It may refer to: Historical political entities * Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom existing from 1025 to 1031 * Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom exi ...

and the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi- confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Poland and Lithuania ru ...

. With Bohemia and the Upper Silesian Duchy of Cieszyn, Bielsko in 1526 was inherited by the Austrian

House of Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

and incorporated into the Habsburg monarchy. From 1560 Bielsko was held by

Frederick Casimir of Cieszyn Frederick Casimir of Cieszyn also known as of Fryštát ( pl, Fryderyk Kazimierz Cieszyński or Frysztacki; german: links=no, Friedrich Kasimir von Teschen-Freystadt; b. December 1541/January 1542 - d. 4 May 1571), was a Polish prince member of the ...

, son of Duke Wenceslaus III Adam, who due to the enormous debts his son left upon his death in 1571, had to sell it to the Promnitz noble family at Pless. With the consent of Emperor Maximilian II, the Promnitz dynasty and their

Schaffgotsch The House of Schaffgotsch is the name of an old and influential Silesian noble family which dates back to the thirteenth century. History Around 1240, the first Schaffgotsch appears in a Silesian document as "Sibotho de nobili Familia Ovium" (" ...

successors ruled the Duchy of Bielsko as a Bohemian state country; acquired by the Austrian chancellor Count Friedrich Wilhelm von Haugwitz in 1743, and afterwards by Polish aristocrat Aleksander Józef Sułkowski in 1752, the ducal status was finally confirmed by Empress Maria Theresa in 1754. It remained in possession of the Polish Sułkowski family until the dissolution of the duchy in 1849, while the castle was still owned by the Sułkowskis until World War II. After the

Prussian Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

king

Frederick the Great Frederick II (german: Friedrich II.; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was King in Prussia from 1740 until 1772, and King of Prussia from 1772 until his death in 1786. His most significant accomplishments include his military successes in the S ...

had invaded Silesia, Bielsko remained with the Habsburg monarchy as part of

Austrian Silesia Austrian Silesia, (historically also ''Oesterreichisch-Schlesien, Oesterreichisch Schlesien, österreichisch Schlesien''); cs, Rakouské Slezsko; pl, Śląsk Austriacki officially the Duchy of Upper and Lower Silesia, (historically ''Herzogth ...

according to the 1742 Treaty of Breslau. In late 1849 Bielsko became a seat of

political district An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other poli ...

. In 1870 it became a statutory city.

Biała

The opposite bank of the Biała River, again Polish since 1454, had been sparsely settled since the mid-16th century. A locality was first mentioned in a 1564 deed, it received the name Biała in 1584, and belonged at that time to Kraków Voivodeship. Its population increased during the Counter-Reformation in the Habsburg lands, when many

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

artisans from Bielsko moved across the river. Though already named a town in the 17th century, Biała officially was granted city rights by the Polish king

Augustus II the Strong Augustus II; german: August der Starke; lt, Augustas II; in Saxony also known as Frederick Augustus I – Friedrich August I (12 May 16701 February 1733), most commonly known as Augustus the Strong, was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as K ...

in 1723. In the course of the First Partition of Poland in 1772, Biała was annexed by the Austrian Habsburg Monarchy and incorporated into the crownland of Galicia. The Protestant citizens received the right to establish parishes according to the 1781

Patent of Toleration The Patent of Toleration (german: Toleranzpatent) was an edict of toleration issued on 13 October 1781 by the Habsburg emperor Joseph II. Part of the Josephinist reforms, the Patent extended religious freedom to non-Catholic Christians livi ...

by Emperor

Joseph II Joseph II (German: Josef Benedikt Anton Michael Adam; English: ''Joseph Benedict Anthony Michael Adam''; 13 March 1741 – 20 February 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from August 1765 and sole ruler of the Habsburg lands from November 29, 1780 un ...

. ''Biala'' was head of the district with the same name, one of the 78 ''Bezirkshauptmannschaften'' in the Galicia crownland.

Modern times

Although separate, the two cities effectively functioned as one urban area known as Bielsko-Biała since the 19th century. With the dissolution of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

in 1918 according to the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, both cities became part of the reconstituted Polish state, although the majority of the population was German, forming a German

language island A language island (a calque of German ''Sprachinsel''; also language enclave, language pocket) is an enclave of a language that is surrounded by one or more different languages. The term was introduced in 1847. Peter Auer, Frans Hinskens, Paul Ker ...

. Some

ethnic German , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

citizens formed an anti-Polish,

anti-Jewish Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

'' Jungdeutsche Partei'', supported financially by the Foreign Ministry of Nazi Germany. Its members smuggled weapons and waged a campaign of intimidating other German residents to leave for Germany. A considerable number of young Germans joined this Party during the mid-1930s. Bielsko-Biała, Plac Chrobrego 1937

During the German

invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland (1 September – 6 October 1939) was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union which marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week aft ...

, which started World War II, the '' Einsatzgruppe I'' entered Bielsko-Biała in the first half of September 1939 to torture, plunder, and murder Jews. During the war Bielsko-Biała was annexed and

occupied ' (Norwegian: ') is a Norwegian political thriller TV series that premiered on TV2 on 5 October 2015. Based on an original idea by Jo Nesbø, the series is co-created with Karianne Lund and Erik Skjoldbjærg. Season 2 premiered on 10 October ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

. In 1939 Germans arrested several Polish teachers and principals who were then deported to

Nazi concentration camps From 1933 to 1945, Nazi Germany operated more than a thousand concentration camps, (officially) or (more commonly). The Nazi concentration camps are distinguished from other types of Nazi camps such as forced-labor camps, as well as con ...

and murdered there. A prison for Poles was operated by the Germans in Bielsko-Biała. Many of its

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

residents were murdered at the nearby

Auschwitz extermination camp Auschwitz concentration camp ( (); also or ) was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It con ...

. Less than 1000 of Bielsko-Biała's Jewish community of nearly 8000 survived the war. After the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, the remaining German population fled westward or were expelled. The town was

polonized Polonization (or Polonisation; pl, polonizacja)In Polish historiography, particularly pre-WWII (e.g., L. Wasilewski. As noted in Смалянчук А. Ф. (Smalyanchuk 2001) Паміж краёвасцю і нацыянальнай ідэя� ...

and gradually repopulated by Polish settlers. Several widely known Holocaust survivors from Bielsko-Biała were

Roman Frister Roman Frister (17 January 1928 – 9 February 2015) wrote '' The Cap: The Price of a Life'', an autobiographical account of his life living in Nazi occupied Poland and then Poland under the communists. Frister spent time in: *the Cracow detent ...

Gerda Weissmann Klein Gerda Weissmann Klein (May 8, 1924 – April 3, 2022) was a Polish-born American writer and human rights activist. Her autobiographical account of the Holocaust, ''All but My Life'' (1957), was adapted for the 1995 short film, ''One Survivor Re ...

and

Kitty Hart-Moxon Kitty Hart-Moxon, OBE (born 1 December 1926) is a Polish-British Holocaust survivor. She was sent to the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp in 1943 at age 16, where she survived for two years, and was also imprisoned at other camps. Shortly after he ...

, all of whom wrote accounts of their experiences during World War II. The combined city of Bielsko-Biała was created administratively on 1 January 1951 when the two cities of Bielsko, and Biała (known until 1951 as Biała Krakowska), were unified.

Geography

The city is situated on the border of historic

Upper Silesia Upper Silesia ( pl, Górny Śląsk; szl, Gůrny Ślůnsk, Gōrny Ślōnsk; cs, Horní Slezsko; german: Oberschlesien; Silesian German: ; la, Silesia Superior) is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia, locate ...

and

at the eastern rim of the smaller

Cieszyn Silesia Cieszyn Silesia, Těšín Silesia or Teschen Silesia ( pl, Śląsk Cieszyński ; cs, Těšínské Slezsko or ; german: Teschener Schlesien or ) is a historical region in south-eastern Silesia, centered on the towns of Cieszyn and Český T� ...

region, about south of Katowice. Administrated within

since 1999, the city was previously capital of Bielsko-Biała Voivodeship (1975–1998). Bielsko-Biała is one of the most important cities of the Beskidy Euroregion and the main city of the Bielsko Industrial Region ( pl, ), part of the Upper Silesian metropolitan area.

Climate

Bielsko-Biała has an oceanic climate (

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...

:''Cfb'') with cold, damp winters and warm, wet summers. However, using the 0 °C isotherm, the climate is a Dfb-type called of

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...

, which explains its considerable thermal amplitude for

Central Europe Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the a ...

. The extremes may still be moderated by the western patterns and winds of this direction, which still maintains hybrid characteristics in the city's climate. Foëhn winds help maintain a milder winter in Bielsko-Biała and average about 4 °C lower than the surrounding mountains each year. The sunniest days are between late summer and early fall, with a few months reaching 9 sunny days. In the 1960s 55 cm of snow cover was recorded.

Economy and industry

Bielsko-Biała is one of the most business friendly medium size cities in Poland. In the 2014 ranking of the 'Most Attractive Cities for Business' published yearly by ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...

'' the city was ranked 3rd in the category of cities with 150,000–300,000 inhabitants.WP.PL
Ranking miast najlepszych do inwestowania.
Finanse.wp.pl: "Forbes" i Centralny Ośrodek Informacji Gospodarczych (COIG). About 2% of people are

unemployed Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work during the refere ...

(compared to 5.8% for Poland). Bielsko-Biała is known for its textile, machine-building, and especially

automotive industry The automotive industry comprises a wide range of companies and organizations involved in the design, development, manufacturing, marketing, and selling of motor vehicles. It is one of the world's largest industries by revenue (from 16 % such ...

. FCA Poland, a subsidiary of Stellantis, has a car factory based in the city. Four areas in the city belong to the

Katowice Special Economic Zone The Upper Silesian metropolitan area is a metropolitan area in southern Poland and northeastern Czech Republic, centered on the cities of Katowice and Ostrava in Silesia and has around 5 million inhabitants. Located in the three administrative ...

. The city region is a home for several manufacturers of high-performance gliders and aircraft including Margański & Mysłowski, a local producer and designer of business long range small aircraft. The labor market in the city shows deficits in the workforce in such professions as: construction workers, operators of construction machines, electricians, electromechanics, dressmakers, couriers.

Transport

Road transport

Bielsko-Biała is located within a short distance to Czech and Slovakian borders on the crossroads of two Expressways (S1 and S52) connecting Poland with Southern Europe: * Expressway S1 connects the city with Slovakia via the border town

Zwardoń Zwardoń is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Rajcza, within Żywiec County, Silesian Voivodeship, in the Żywiec Beskids mountain range in southern Poland, on the border with Slovakia. It lies approximately west of Rajcza ...

. * Expressway S52 connects the city with the Czech Republic via the border town

Cieszyn Cieszyn ( , ; cs, Těšín ; german: Teschen; la, Tessin; szl, Ćeszyn) is a border town in southern Poland on the east bank of the Olza River, and the administrative seat of Cieszyn County, Silesian Voivodeship. The town has 33,500 inhabitan ...

. Bielsko-Biała is connected with the rest of Poland by the dual carriageway DK1 road running to Tychy where it intersects the Expressway S1 and further to Katowice where it intersects the Motorway A4. It is planned to extend S1 north along the existing dual carriageway DK1 from Bielsko-Biała to

Tychy Tychy (Polish pronunciation: ; german: Tichau; szl, Tychy) is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, approximately south of Katowice. Situated on the southern edge of the Upper Silesian industrial district, the city boders Katowice to the north, ...

and Katowice, thus building an expressway connection of the city with the national motorway network of Poland. National Road DK52 connects Bielsko-Biała with

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

in the east. The most important interchange in the area is the cloverleaf north of Bielsko-Biała where S1, DK1 and S52 meet.

Voivodeship road According to classes and categories of public roads in Poland, a voivodeship road ( pl, droga wojewódzka) is a category of roads one step below national roads in importance. The roads are numbered from 100 to 993. Total length of voivodeship r ...

s nr. 940 and 942 pass through the city.

Rail transport

Bielsko-Biała is connected by direct train services with the following large Polish cities (November 2014): Bydgoszcz, Gdańsk,

Gdynia Gdynia ( ; ; german: Gdingen (currently), (1939–1945); csb, Gdiniô, , , ) is a city in northern Poland and a seaport on the Baltic Sea coast. With a population of 243,918, it is the 12th-largest city in Poland and the second-largest in th ...

, Katowice,

Łódź Łódź, also rendered in English as Lodz, is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located approximately south-west of Warsaw. The city's coat of arms is an example of cant ...

Olsztyn Olsztyn ( , ; german: Allenstein ; Old Prussian: ''Alnāsteini'' * Latin: ''Allenstenium'', ''Holstin'') is a city on the Łyna River in northern Poland. It is the capital of the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, and is a city with county rights. ...

, Opole,

Poznań Poznań () is a city on the River Warta in west-central Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business centre, and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint Joh ...

, Szczecin,

Toruń )'' , image_skyline = , image_caption = , image_flag = POL Toruń flag.svg , image_shield = POL Toruń COA.svg , nickname = City of Angels, Gingerbread city, Copernicus Town , pushpin_map = Kuyavian-Pom ...

, Warszawa (Warsaw),

Wrocław Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...

Airports

There are 3 international airports within the 90 km distance from Bielsko-Biała, all serving connections with major European cities:

Katowice International Airport Katowice Wojciech Korfanty Airport ( pl, Katowice Airport im. Wojciecha Korfantego) is an international airport, located in Pyrzowice, north of Katowice, Poland. The airport has the 4th-biggest annual passenger flow in Poland. Katowice Air ...

, Kraków John Paul II International Airport, Ostrava Leoš Janáček Airport.

Sights

Bielsko-Biała is known for its Art Nouveau architecture and is often referred to as Little Vienna . Sights include: * The Bielsko-Biała Museum, housed in the castle of the Dukes of Cieszyn from 15th century, later Castle of the Sułkowski princes * built in 1897 * ''Ulica 11 Listopada'' ("November 11 Street"), the main

pedestrian zone Pedestrian zones (also known as auto-free zones and car-free zones, as pedestrian precincts in British English, and as pedestrian malls in the United States and Australia) are areas of a city or town reserved for pedestrian-only use and in whi ...

of the city center * ''Plac Bolesława Chrobrego'' ("

Bolesław the Brave Boleslav or Bolesław may refer to: In people: * Boleslaw (given name) In geography: *Bolesław, Dąbrowa County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland *Bolesław, Olkusz County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland *Bolesław, Silesian Voivodeship, Pol ...

Square"), the main square in the city center *

Frog House Frog House ( pl, kamienica Pod Żabami) is an example of Art Nouveau architecture in the city of Bielsko-Biała, in southern Poland's Silesian Voivodship, Silesia Province. It features two frogs seated over the entrance, one smoking a smoking pip ...

(''Kamienica Pod Żabami''), an Art Nouveau mansion * The only statue of

Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation and the namesake of Lutherani ...

in Poland. * built in 1888 * BWA Bielsko-Biała Gallery of Art * St. Nicholas Cathedral built in 1447 and rebuilt in 1909–1910 * built in 1890 * , the city's oldest church, built in the Middle Ages in Gothic style * Jewish Cemetery, founded in 1849 *

Weaver's House Museum The Weaver's House is a unique example of the 18th-century American Craftsman, craftsman architecture. Located in Bielsko-Biała, it is situated in the Old Uptown in a log cabin with its characteristic hay store. The building is a museum branch be ...

, Dom Tkacza, reconstructed workshop of a draper *

Museum of Technology and Textile Industry The Museum of Technology and Textile Industry - a branch of the Museum in Bielsko-Biała, Poland - was founded on January 1, 1979 with the aim of evidencing the traditions of the local wool industry centre by means of collecting machines, devices a ...

* mountain located within the city borders and the * Dębowiec ski slope Apart from being an attractive destination itself the city is a convenient base for hiking in

Silesian Beskids Silesian Beskids ( Polish: , Czech: , german: Schlesische Beskiden) is one of the Beskids mountain ranges in Outer Western Carpathians in southern Silesian Voivodeship, Poland and the eastern Moravian-Silesian Region, Czech Republic. Most of ...

and Żywiec Beskids as well as for skiing in one of the most popular Polish ski resorts Szczyrk (located from the city centre) and in a couple of smaller nearby ski resorts. Kamienica Patria

Districts

* Aleksandrowice * Biała * Hałcnów * Kamienica * Komorowice Śląskie i Komorowice Krakowskie * Leszczyny * Lipnik * Mikuszowice Śląskie and Mikuszowice Krakowskie * Olszówka Dolna and Olszówka Górna *

* Straconka * Wapienica

Education

* University of Bielsko-Biała * * * * * Wyższa Szkoła Ekonomiczno-Humanistyczna * Teacher Training College of Bielsko-Biała

Politics

The executive body of the gmina is the President (Mayor) of the City of Bielsko-Biała. This office was created in 1951 when Bielsko and Biała became one city. Previously the city of Bielsko was governed by a President while the city of Biała was governed by a

burmistrz Burgomaster (alternatively spelled burgermeister, literally "master of the town, master of the borough, master of the fortress, master of the citizens") is the English form of various terms in or derived from Germanic languages for the chief ...

. The city is divided into five constituencies during the

local elections In many parts of the world, local elections take place to select office-holders in local government, such as mayors and councillors. Elections to positions within a city or town are often known as "municipal elections". Their form and conduct vary ...

Bielsko-Biała constituency

Senators from Bielsko-Biała constituency: * Agnieszka Gorgoń-Komor (

Civic Platform Civic Platform ( pl, Platforma Obywatelska, PO)The party is officially the Civic Platform of the Republic of Poland (''Platforma Obywatelska Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''). is a political party in Poland. It is currently led by Donald Tusk. It ...

) Members of Sejm from Bielsko-Biała constituency: * Przemysław Drabek ( Law and Justice) * Grzegorz Gaża ( Law and Justice) *

Kazimierz Matuszny Kazimierz Władysław Matuszny (born 4 March 1960 in Milówka, Silesian Voivodeship, Milówka) is a Polish politician. He was elected to the Sejm on 25 September 2005, getting 9,033 votes in 27 Bielsko-Biała district as a candidate from the Law a ...

( Law and Justice) *

Grzegorz Puda Grzegorz Paweł Puda (born July 13, 1982) is a Polish politician and local government official, member of the Sejm of the List of Sejm members (2015–2019), 8th and List of Sejm members (2019–2023), 9th term (since 2015), in 2019 secretary of ...

( Law and Justice) * Stanisław Szwed ( Law and Justice) * Mirosława Nykiel (

) * Małgorzata Pępek (

) * Mirosław Suchoń (

Poland 2050 Szymon Hołownia's Poland 2050 ( pl, Polska 2050 Szymona Hołowni, PL2050) is a centrist political party in Poland. It was founded as a social movement in 2020, shortly after the presidential election. It was officially registered as a politic ...

) * Przemysław Koperski ( New Left)

Municipal politics

Mayor

* Mayor – Jarosław Klimaszewski ( PO) * Deputy Mayor – Przemysław Kamiński * Deputy Mayor – Adam Ruśniak * Deputy Mayor – Piotr Kucia

City council

* President of the council – Dorota Piegzik-Izydorczyk ( PO) * Deputy Chairman – Piotr Ryszka ( PiS) * Deputy Chairman – Jacek Krywult (KWW JK)

Sports

Kolej linowa na Szyndzielnie z widokiem na Bielsko-Białą

The city co-hosted the

1978 UEFA European Under-18 Championship The UEFA European Under-18 Championship 1978 Final Tournament was held in Poland. It also served as the European qualification for the 1979 FIFA World Youth Championship. Qualification Group 1 Group 4 Other groups Teams The ...

and

2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup The 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the 22nd edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup, the biennial international men's youth football championship contested by the under-20 national teams of the member associations of FIFA, since its inception in 1977 ...

Major teams and athletes

* TS Podbeskidzie Bielsko-Biała – men's football team playing in the

Ekstraklasa Poland Ekstraklasa (), meaning "Extra Class" in Polish, named PKO Ekstraklasa since the 2019–20 season due to its sponsorship by PKO Bank Polski, is the top Polish professional league for men's association football teams. Contested by 18 ...

, Poland's top division. * BTS Rekord Bielsko-Biała – men's

futsal Futsal is a football-based game played on a hard court smaller than a football pitch, and mainly indoors. It has similarities to five-a-side football and indoor football. Futsal is played between two teams of five players each, one of whom is ...

team playing in Polish Futsal Ekstraklasa, Polish Champions 2013/2014, Polish Cup and Supercup winners 2012/2013. * BKS Stal Bielsko-Biała – women's

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Sum ...

team playing in Polish , Polish Champions 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1996, 2003, 2004, 2010; Polish Cup winners 1955, 1979, 1988, 1989, 1990, 2004, 2006, 2009. * BBTS Siatkarz Original Bielsko-Biała – men's

team playing in Polish Plus Liga. * KS Sprint – a

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

club based in Bielsko-Biała which organized the international athletics meeting ''Beskidianathletic''. * Podbeskidzie Kuloodporni Bielsko-Biała – an

amputee football Amputee football is a disabled sport played with seven players on each team (six outfield players and one goalkeeper). Outfield players have lower extremity amputations, and goalkeepers have an upper extremity amputation. Outfield players use lof ...

club that plays in the Polish Amp Futbol Ekstraklasa. * Bielsko-Biała Aeroclub – a

flying club A flying club or aero club is a not-for-profit, member-run organization that provides its members with affordable access to aircraft. Many clubs also provide flight training, flight planning facilities, pilot supplies and associated services, as ...

founded in 1945 based in Bielsko-Biała. * Sebastian Kawa, member of the local aeroclub, is the eight times

World Champion A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

, World's most accomplished glider competition pilot in history, World's ( FAI) leading glider competition pilot (currently number two in the world rankings of the

FAI Gliding Commission The International Gliding Commission (IGC) is the international governing body for the sport of gliding. It is governed by meetings of delegates from national gliding associations. It is one of several Air Sport Commissions (ASC) of the Fédérati ...

) and the current World Champion in Standard Class and 15m Class.

Notable people

* Adam Broż (born 1935), art historian and journalist * Heinrich Conried (1855–1909), Austrian theatre director *

Marek Dopierała Marek Franciszek Dopierała (born July 30, 1960 in Bielsko-Biała) is a Polish sprint canoeist who competed during the 1980s. Competing in two Summer Olympics, he won two medals with Marek Łbik at Seoul in 1988 with a silver in the C-2 500 m ...

(born 1960), sprint canoeist, Olympic medallist *

Piotr Fijas Piotr Fijas (born 27 July 1958) is a Polish former ski jumper. Career Fijas won a bronze medal at the 1979 FIS Ski Flying World Championships in Planica, Yugoslavia (now Slovenia). He finished seventh on the individual normal hill at the 1984 ...

(born 1958), ski jumper *

Alfred Hetschko Alfred Paul Hetschko (24 August 1898 – 18 April 1967) was an Austro-German music educator, ''Kapellmeister'' and composer, who rendered outstanding services to men's choir. From 1952 to 1955, he was director of the . Life Austrian-Silesian o ...

(1898–1967), music educator * Adolf Hyła (1897–1965), painter and art teacher *

Jolanta Januchta Jolanta Januchta-Strzelczyk (born 16 January 1955) is a Polish former middle-distance runner specialising in the 800 metres. She won the gold medal at the 1980 European Athletics Indoor Championships, 1980 European Indoor Championships and bronze ...

(born 1955), middle-distance runner * Małgorzata Klimek (born 1957), mathematical physicist *

Jacek Koman Jacek Koman (born 15 August 1956) is a Polish actor and singer. Early life Koman was born in Bielsko-Biała, Poland, to actors Halina Koman (née Dobrowolska; born 3 January 1923) and Adam Koman (24 December 1922 – 1 December 2005), and ca ...

(born 1956), actor and singer *

Maria Koterbska Maria Koterbska (13 July 1924 – 18 January 2021) was a Polish singer who was particularly popular in the 1950s and 1960s. Her biggest hits include ''Augustowskie noce'', ''Brzydula i rudzielec'', ''Karuzela'', ''Parasolki'', ''Serduszko puka w ...

(born 1924), singer * Przemysław Lechowski (born 1977), classical pianist *

Tadeusz Pietrzykowski Tadeusz Pietrzykowski (Polish pronunciation: ; born 8 April 1917, Warsaw died 17 April 1991, Bielsko-Biała) was a Polish boxer, Polish Armed Forces soldier, and a prisoner at the Auschwitz-Birkenau and Neuengamme concentration camps run by the ...

(1917–1991), boxer and soldier, known as the "boxing champion of Auschwitz" *

Grzegorz Pilarz Grzegorz Pilarz (born February 12, 1980) is a Polish volleyball player, Polish club BBTS Siatkarz Original Bielsko-Biała, BBTS Bielsko-Biała, Polish Champion (2004). Career Clubs In 2014 moved to BBTS Siatkarz Original Bielsko-Biała, BBTS Bi ...

(born 1980), volleyball player *

Radosław Piwowarski Radosław Piwowarski (born 20 February 1948, Bielsko-Biała) is a Polish film director, screenwriter and actor. Life and career He was born on 20 February 1948 in Olszówka Dolna, a district of Bielsko-Biała in southern Poland. In 1971, he gradu ...

(born 1948), film director, screenwriter and actor * Jerzy Porębski (born 1957), film producer and screenwriter *

Zbigniew Preisner Zbigniew Preisner (; born 20 May 1955 as Zbigniew Antoni Kowalski) is a Polish film score composer, best known for his work with film director Krzysztof Kieślowski. He is the recipient of the Gold Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis as we ...

(born 1955), film score composer * Renata Przemyk (born 1966), singer and songwriter * Aneta Sablik (born 1989), singer-songwriter *

Franz Sauer Franz Sauer (11 March 1894 – 28 October 1962) was an Austrian organist and music education, music educator. Life Born in the Bielsko-Biała, Bielitz-Bialaer Sprachinsel in Austrian Silesia, Sauer learned music from his father at a very early ...

(1894–1962), organist *

Oswald Seeliger Oswald Seeliger (14 May 1858 in Bielsko-Biała, Biala – 17 May 1908 in Leipzig) was a German zoologist, known for his studies involving the anatomy and developmental history of tunicates. From 1877 he studied natural sciences at the universi ...

(1858–1908), German zoologist *

Kriss Sheridan Kriss Sheridan (born 15 April 1989) is a Polish Americans, Polish-American singer, songwriter, actor, model and traveler. Early life A son of a US American father and a Polish mother, as well as a German citizen. His studies took him to Munic ...

(born 1989), Polish-American singer, songwriter, actor, model and traveler *

Josef Strzygowski Josef Rudolph Thomas Strzygowski (March 7, 1862 – January 2, 1941) was a Polish-Austrian art historian known for his theories promoting influences from the art of the Near East on European art, for example that of Early Christian Armenian archi ...

(1862–1941), Polish-Austrian art historian *

Jan Szarek Jan Szarek (13 February 1936 – 8 October 2020) was a Polish bishop of the Evangelical-Augsburg Church in Poland. He was also the head of the Polish Ecumenical Council from 1993 to 2001. He held an honorary doctorate from the Christian Theolo ...

(1936–2020), bishop of the

Evangelical-Augsburg Church in Poland The Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in the Republic of Poland ( pl, Kościół Ewangelicko-Augsburski w Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej) is a Lutheran denomination and the largest Protestant body in Poland with about 61,000 members and ...

Sabina Wojtala Sabina Wojtala (Polish pronunciation: ; born 12 September 1981) is a Polish former competitive figure skater. She won eight senior international medals and six Polish national titles. She reached the free skate at nine ISU Championships – fou ...

(born 1981), figure skater *

Jakub Wolny Jakub Wolny (born 15 May 1995) is a Polish ski jumper, a member of the national team, a double 2014 Junior World Champion. Personal life Jakub Wolny was born in Bielsko-Biała, but lives in Wilkowice. Career His first jump he gave in 2002. Sin ...

(born 1995), ski jumper * Aleksander Zawadzki (1798–1868), Polish naturalist * Emil Zegadłowicz (1888–1941), poet, prose writer, novelist, playwright and translator * Sigmund Zeisler (1860–1931), German-Jewish lawyer * Wojciech Zurek (born 1951), theoretical physicist

International relations

Twin towns – sister cities

Bielsko-Biała is twinned with: * Acre, Israel *

Baia Mare Baia Mare ( , ; hu, Nagybánya; german: Frauenbach or Groß-Neustadt; la, Rivulus Dominarum) is a municipality along the Săsar River, in northwestern Romania; it is the capital of Maramureș County. The city lies in the region of Maramur ...

, Romania *

Besançon Besançon (, , , ; archaic german: Bisanz; la, Vesontio) is the prefecture of the department of Doubs in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. The city is located in Eastern France, close to the Jura Mountains and the border with Switzer ...

, France *

Berdyansk Berdiansk or Berdyansk ( uk, Бердя́нськ, translit=Berdiansk, ; russian: Бердя́нск, translit=Berdyansk ) is a port city in the Zaporizhzhia Oblast (province) in south-eastern Ukraine. It is on the northern coast of the Sea o ...

, Ukraine *

Frýdek-Místek Frýdek-Místek (, pl, Frydek-Mistek; german: Friede(c)k-Mistek) is a city in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 54,000 inhabitants. The historic centres of both Frýdek and Místek are well preserved and are protecte ...

, Czech Republic * Grand Rapids, United States *

Kirklees Kirklees is a local government district of West Yorkshire, England, governed by Kirklees Council with the status of a metropolitan borough. The largest town and administrative centre of Kirklees is Huddersfield, and the district also includes ...

, United Kingdom * Kragujevac, Serbia *

Nyíregyháza Nyíregyháza (, sk, Níreďháza) is a city with county rights in northeastern Hungary and the county capital of Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg. With a population of 118,001, it is the seventh-largest city in Hungary and the second largest in ...

, Hungary *

Szolnok Szolnok (; also known by other #Name and etymology, alternative names) is the county seat of Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok county in central Hungary. A City with county rights, city with county rights, it is located on the banks of the Tisza river, i ...

, Hungary *

Tienen Tienen (; french: Tirlemont ) is a city and municipality in the province of Flemish Brabant, in Flanders, Belgium. The municipality comprises Tienen itself and the towns of Bost, Goetsenhoven, Hakendover, Kumtich, Oorbeek, Oplinter, Sint-Margriete ...

, Belgium *

Třinec Třinec (; pl, Trzyniec ; german: Trzynietz) is a city in Frýdek-Místek District in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 34,000 inhabitants and is the least populated statutory city in the country. The city is a ...

, Czech Republic *

Ustka Ustka (pronounced ; csb, Ùskô; german: Stolpmünde) is a spa town in the Middle Pomerania region of northern Poland with 17,100 inhabitants (2001). It is part of Słupsk County in Pomeranian Voivodeship. It is located on the Slovincian Coast o ...

, Poland *

Wolfsburg Wolfsburg (; Eastphalian: ''Wulfsborg'') is the fifth largest city in the German state of Lower Saxony, located on the river Aller. It lies about east of Hanover and west of Berlin. Wolfsburg is famous as the location of Volkswagen AG's he ...

, Germany *

Žilina Žilina (; hu, Zsolna, ; german: Sillein, or ; pl, Żylina , names in other languages) is a city in north-western Slovakia, around from the capital Bratislava, close to both the Czech and Polish borders. It is the fourth largest city of ...

, Slovakia

References

External links

Official website

Bielsko - Aerial photos

Bielsko-Biała Museum

Jewish Community of Bielsko-Biała
on

Virtual Shtetl The Virtual Shtetl ( pl, Wirtualny Sztetl) is a bilingual Polish-English portal of the Museum of the History of Polish Jews in Warsaw, devoted to the Jewish history of Poland. History The Virtual Shtetl website was officially launched on June ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bielsko-Biala City counties of Poland Cities and towns in Silesian Voivodeship 1312 establishments in Europe Populated places established in 1951 Kraków Voivodeship (14th century – 1795) Populated places in the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria Silesian Voivodeship (1920–1939) Kraków Voivodeship (1919–1939) Shtetls Holocaust locations in Poland 14th-century establishments in Poland Jewish communities destroyed in the Holocaust