Brusy (

Kashubian Kashubian can refer to: * Pertaining to Kashubia, a region of north-central Poland * Kashubians, an ethnic group of north-central Poland * Kashubian language See also *Kashubian alphabet The Kashubian or Cassubian alphabet (''kaszëbsczi alf ...

: ''Brusë''; formerly german: Bruß) is a town in northern Poland, located in the

Pomeranian Voivodeship Pomeranian Voivodeship, Pomorskie Region, or Pomerania Province (Polish: ''Województwo pomorskie'' ; ( Kashubian: ''Pòmòrsczé wòjewództwò'' ), is a voivodeship, or province, in northwestern Poland. The provincial capital is Gdańsk. The ...

. As of December 2021, the town has a population of 5,201.

History

Brusy was a royal village of the Polish Crown, administratively located in the Tuchola County in the

. Since the 19th century Brusy was an important center of the

Kashub The Kashubians ( csb, Kaszëbi; pl, Kaszubi; german: Kaschuben), also known as Cassubians or Kashubs, are a Lechitic ( West Slavic) ethnic group native to the historical region of Pomerania, including its eastern part called Pomerelia, in nort ...

movement, although a fair amount of Kashubians from Brusy emigrated to Winona, Minnesota in the late 1900s. In 2007, the ninth Congress of Kashubians was held here, and in 2012, the annual

Kashubian Unity Day Kashubian Unity Day ( csb, Dzéń Jednotë Kaszëbów, pl, Dzień Jedności Kaszubów) is an annual festival celebrated every March 19 to commemorate the first historical written mention of Kashubians, in Pope Gregory IX's Bull of 19 March 1238. ...

celebration was conducted here. A Kashubian secondary school is also located in the town. During the German occupation of Poland ( World War II), inhabitants of Brusy were among over 450 Poles massacred by the Germans in autumn of 1939 in the Igielska Valley. In November 1939 the SS, Gestapo and Selbstschutz murdered local Polish teachers in a large massacre of Polish teachers near

Skarszewy Skarszewy ( csb, Skarszewò, german: Schöneck in Westpreußen) is a small town south of Gdańsk in Starogard Gdański County, Pomeranian Voivodeship, northern Poland. It is located between Kościerzyna and Tczew. Population: 6 809 (30 June ...

. Further executions of local Poles were carried out in January 1940 in the Igielska Valley and in the fields near Chojnice. In May 1942, the Germans expelled dozens of Poles, whose farms were handed over to Germans as part of the '' Lebensraum'' policy. The secret Polish resistance organization Pomeranian Griffin (Gryf Pomorski) operated in the Brusy area under the leadership of Colonel Józef Wrycza, who was also a Roman Catholic priest. The Germans set up a Waffen-SS training ground in the vicinity, and located its administration in Brusy. Brusy was also the location of the Nazi German Bruss subcamp of the Stutthof concentration camp, in which around 500 female prisoners were held as

forced labour Forced labour, or unfree labour, is any work relation, especially in modern or early modern history, in which people are employed against their will with the threat of destitution, detention, violence including death, or other forms of ex ...

. The town has obtained city rights on 1 January 1988.

Notable people

Stanisław Lamczyk Stanisław Józef Lamczyk (born 12 August 1957 in Brusy) is a Polish politician. He was elected to the Sejm on 25 September 2005, getting 6,276 votes in 26 Gdynia district as a candidate from the Civic Platform Civic Platform ( pl, Platforma ...

(born 1957) a Polish politician, elected to the Sejm in 2005 * Piotr Piekarski (born 1964) a retired Polish 800 metres runner, participated in the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...

* Jan Wyrowiński (born 1947) a Polish politician and Kashubian activist

References

External links

Official site

Cities and towns in Pomeranian Voivodeship Chojnice County {{Pomorze-geo-stub