The Stuhm district was a

Prussia 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 ...

n district that existed between 1818 and 1945. It belonged to the part of

West Prussia The Province of West Prussia (german: Provinz Westpreußen; csb, Zôpadné Prësë; pl, Prusy Zachodnie) was a province of Prussia from 1773 to 1829 and 1878 to 1920. West Prussia was established as a province of the Kingdom of Prussia in 177 ...

that remained in the

German Reich German ''Reich'' (lit. German Realm, German Empire, from german: Deutsches Reich, ) was the constitutional name for the German nation state that existed from 1871 to 1945. The ''Reich'' became understood as deriving its authority and sovereignty ...

after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and was since part of the province of East Prussia. Today, the territory of the district is located in the Pomeranian Voivodeship in

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 ...

History

The area of the Stuhm district was annexed by

during the First Partition of Poland in 1772 and belonged to the Marienburg district until 1818. As part of a comprehensive district reform in the province of

, the new Stuhm district was formed on 1 April 1818 from the southern part of the Marienburg district. It comprised the towns of Christburg and

Stuhm Sztum () (; formerly german: Stuhm) is a town in northern Poland in the region, located in the Pomeranian Voivodeship. It is the capital of Sztum County, with some 10,141 inhabitants (2004). History Signs of settlement dating back to the Roma ...

. From 3 December 1829 to 1 April 1878, West Prussia and East Prussia were united to form the

Province of Prussia The Province of Prussia (; ; pl, Prowincja Prusy; csb, Prowincjô Prësë) was a province of Prussia from 1829 to 1878. Prussia was established as a province of the Kingdom of Prussia in 1829 from the provinces of East Prussia and West Prussia ...

, which became part of the German Empire in 1871. With the entry into force of the

Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June ...

on 10 January 1920 and the associated dissolution of the Province of West Prussia, the Stuhm district was initially subordinated to the

Oberpräsident The ''german: Oberpräsident, label=none'' (Supreme President) was the highest administrative official in the Prussian provinces. History The Oberpräsident of a Prussian province was the supreme representative of the Prussian crown, until its ...

Königsberg Königsberg (, ) was the historic Prussian city that is now Kaliningrad, Russia. Königsberg was founded in 1255 on the site of the ancient Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teutonic Knights during the Northern Crusades, and was name ...

. In preparation for the

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

on the future membership of the district, it was subordinated to the ''Inter-Allied Commission for Government and Referendum'' in

Marienwerder Kwidzyn (pronounced ; german: Marienwerder; Latin: ''Quedin''; Old Prussian: ''Kwēdina'') is a town in northern Poland on the Liwa River, with 38,553 inhabitants (2018). It is the capital of Kwidzyn County in the Pomeranian Voivodeship. Geog ...

. In the referendum on 1 July 1920, 80 percent of the voters in the Stuhm district decided that the district would remain in the German Reich. On 1 July 1922 the Stuhm district was incorporated into the province of East Prussia. Regierungsbezirk Marienwerder was renamed Regierungsbezirk Westpreußen for reasons of tradition. On 1 September 1924 the rural communities of Tessensdorf and Willenberg were transferred from the Stuhm district to the Marienburg district and were incorporated into the town of Marienburg. After the

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 ...

in 1939, the Stuhm district became part of the newly formed

Reichsgau Danzig-West Prussia Reichsgau Danzig-West Prussia (german: Reichsgau Danzig-Westpreußen) was an administrative division of Nazi Germany created on 8 October 1939 from annexed territory of the Free City of Danzig, the Greater Pomeranian Voivodship (Polish Corridor ...

. In the spring of 1945, the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army ( Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, afte ...

conquered the district and placed it under Polish administration.

Demographics

Municipalities

Prior to its dissolution in 1945, the district comprised two towns and 65 other municipalities:

Place names

In some cases, place names that were considered "not German" enough in the 1930s received phonetic alignment or translation: * Barlewitz → Wargels * Czewskawolla → Petersbruch * Jordanken → Jordansdorf * Kollosomp → Kalsen * Kommerau → Kammerau * Mlecewo → Heinrode * Nikolaiken → Niklaskirchen * Sadluken → Sadlacken * Straszewo → Dietrichsdorf * Watkowitz → Wadkeim

References

{{Authority control Sztum County 1945 disestablishments 1818 establishments