Wirek (german: Antonienhütte) is a

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

in the centre of

Ruda Śląska Ruda Śląska (formerly ) is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. It is a district in the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union, a metropolis with a population of two million. It is in the Silesian Highlands, on the Kłodnica River (t ...

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 ...

, southern

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 ...

. In 2006 it had an area of 5.9 km² and was inhabited by 20,595 people. On January 12, 2006 a part of it was split off to form a new district, Czarny Las.

History

Originally, the area belonged to Kochłowice. First a settlement called Nowa Wieś (lit. ''New Village'') was established. Wirek would later be developed around ''Antonienhütte'' ironworks, opened in 1805, and became a separate municipality in 1828. In the second half of the nineteenth century, the settlement grew owing to industrial development. A school was opened in 1856; a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

church in 1874; and a year later, a rail connection with Chebzie was constructed. The municipality lost its independence in 1870. In 1921, Wirek became part of Polish

Autonomous Silesian Voivodeship In developmental psychology and moral, political, and bioethical philosophy, autonomy, from , ''autonomos'', from αὐτο- ''auto-'' "self" and νόμος ''nomos'', "law", hence when combined understood to mean "one who gives oneself one's ...

. In 1924 Nowa Wieś again absorbed Wirek. A town hall was built in years 1929–1930. During

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 ...

, it was occupied by

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. In 1948 Nowa Wieś was renamed to Wirek. Wirek was merged into

Nowy Bytom Nowy Bytom (german: Friedenshütte) is a district serving as administrative centre of Ruda Śląska, Silesian Voivodeship, southern Poland. In 2006 it had an area of 4.6 km2 and was inhabited by 12,058 people. On January 12, 2006 a part of it ...

in 1951, and as part of Nowy Bytom was amalgamated with Ruda to form Ruda Śląska on December 31, 1958.

Notable residents

* Franz Machon

Gallery

File:Ruda Śląska - Wirek - Poczta.JPG, Mail office File:Wirek St.Lawrence2.jpg, Saint Lawrence church File:Ruda Śląska Kościół Ewangelicko-Augsburski im Odkupiciela DSC 7263.jpg, Lutheran church File:RudaSynagogue.jpg, Synagogue, destroyed in 1939

References

Districts of Ruda Śląska {{Silesian-geo-stub