Szopienice-Burowiec () is a district of

Katowice Katowice ( , , ; szl, Katowicy; german: Kattowitz, yi, קאַטעוויץ, Kattevitz) is the capital city of the Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland and the central city of the Upper Silesian metropolitan area. It is the 11th most popul ...

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 populous ...

, located in the north-eastern part of the city. It has an area of 8.47 km² and in 2007 had 17,139 inhabitants. The area of a district encompasses two historically important settlements: Roździeń and

Szopienice Szopienice-Burowiec () is a district of Katowice, Poland, located in the north-eastern part of the city. It has an area of 8.47 km2 and in 2007 had 17,139 inhabitants. The area of a district encompasses two historically important settlements ...

. Shortly after 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 World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

in September 1939, a unit of the German '' Einsatzgruppe I'' was stationed in Szopienice. It was responsible for many crimes against Poles committed in the nearby cities of

Będzin Będzin (; also ''Bendzin'' in English; german: Bendzin; yi, בענדין, Bendin) is a city in the Dąbrowa Basin, in southern Poland. It lies in the Silesian Highlands, on the Czarna Przemsza River (a tributary of the Vistula). Even though par ...

Dąbrowa Górnicza Dąbrowa Górnicza is a city in Zagłębie Dąbrowskie, southern Poland, near Katowice and Sosnowiec. It is located in eastern part of the Silesian Voivodeship, on the Czarna Przemsza and Biała Przemsza rivers (tributaries of the Vistula, see ...

and

Sosnowiec Sosnowiec is an industrial city county in the Dąbrowa Basin of southern Poland, in the Silesian Voivodeship, which is also part of the Silesian Metropolis municipal association.—— Located in the eastern part of the Upper Silesian Industria ...

. During the subsequent

German occupation German-occupied Europe refers to the sovereign countries of Europe which were wholly or partly occupied and civil-occupied (including puppet governments) by the military forces and the government of Nazi Germany at various times between 1939 an ...

, the occupiers also established and operated the E734

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 ...

subcamp of the Stalag VIII-B/344

prisoner-of-war camp A prisoner-of-war camp (often abbreviated as POW camp) is a site for the containment of enemy fighters captured by a belligerent power in time of war. There are significant differences among POW camps, internment camps, and military prisons. P ...

in Szopienice. The occupation ended in 1945.

Notable people

* Hilary Krzysztofiak (1926–1979), Polish painter, graphic artist and set designer *

Piotr Libera Piotr Libera (born 20 March 1951) is a Polish prelate of the Catholic Church who was Bishop of Płock from 2008 to 2022. He was an auxiliary bishop of Katowice from 1996 to 2007 and secretary general of the Polish Episcopal Conference from 1998 t ...

(b. 1951), Roman Catholic bishop

Gallery

City by bike - Szopienice - Plac Powstańców Śląskich.jpg, ''Plac Powstańców Śląskich'' ("Silesian Insurgents' Square") Kosciol Sw Jadwigi-Szopienice 2.jpg, Church of St. Hedwig, High Duchess consort of Poland Katowice Szopienice - Powstańców Śląskich Square - monument of Freedom (2).jpg,

Silesian Uprisings The Silesian Uprisings (german: Aufstände in Oberschlesien, Polenaufstände, links=no; pl, Powstania śląskie, links=no) were a series of three uprisings from August 1919 to July 1921 in Upper Silesia, which was part of the Weimar Republic ...

Monument Katowice - Szopienice-Burowiec 374.jpg, ''Park Olimpijczyków'' ("Olympians' Park") Katowice - Szopienice-Burowiec 151.jpg, ''Ulica Wiosny Ludów'' ("

Spring of Nations The Revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the Springtime of the Peoples or the Springtime of Nations, were a series of political upheavals throughout Europe starting in 1848. It remains the most widespread revolutionary wave in Europea ...

Street") with the Primary School No. 42 on the left Katowice - Szopienice-Burowiec 199.jpg, Primary School No. 44 Katowice - Szopienice-Burowiec 293.jpg, Former brewery complex Katowice - Szopienice-Burowiec 282.jpg, Pesa Twist 2012N tram at ''Ulica Obrońców Westerplatte'' (" Defenders of Westerplatte Street") in Roździeń

References

Districts of Katowice {{Silesian-geo-stub