Bytów (; csb, Bëtowò; formerly german: Bütow ) is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

in the

Gdańsk Pomerania Gdańsk Pomerania ( pl, Pomorze Gdańskie), csb, Gduńsczim Pòmòrzã, german: Danziger Pommern) is a geographical region within Pomerelia in northern and northwestern Poland, covering the bulk of Pomeranian Voivodeship. It forms a part and ...

region of northern

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 ...

with 16,730 inhabitants as of December 2021. It is the capital of

Bytów County __NOTOC__ Bytów County ( csb, bëtowsczi pòwiat, pl, powiat bytowski) is a unit of territorial administration and local government (powiat) in Pomeranian Voivodeship, northern Poland. It came into being on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Pol ...

in the Pomeranian Voivodeship. The origins of Bytów can be traced back to the early

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

when a fortified stronghold once stood near the town. In 1346 as ''Bütow'' it obtained Chełmno town rights from the

Teutonic Order The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians on ...

, which controlled it since 1329. During the Thirteen Years' War (1454–1466), the town was the site of heavy fighting and changed hands over time. Eventually, King

Casimir IV Jagiellon Casimir IV (in full Casimir IV Andrew Jagiellon; pl, Kazimierz IV Andrzej Jagiellończyk ; Lithuanian: ; 30 November 1427 – 7 June 1492) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1440 and King of Poland from 1447, until his death. He was one of the m ...

granted the town to

Eric II, Duke of Pomerania Eric II or Erich II (between 1418 and 1425 – 5 July 1474) was a member of the House of Pomerania (also known as the House of Griffins) and was the ruling Duke of Pomerania-Wolgast from 1457 to 1474. He was the son of Wartislaw IX of Pomeran ...

, as a perpetual

fiefdom A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of f ...

. After the Partitions of Poland, Bytów became part of the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918. Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. ...

and later also Germany, within which it remained until the end of

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 opposing ...

. At the final stages of the war, Bytów was the center of heavy artillery shelling initiated by 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 ...

, resulting in more than 55% of the buildings destroyed. Throughout its whole history, Bytów was known to be a multicultural town inhabited by

Kashubians 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 nor ...

Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, who share a common history, culture, the Polish language and are identified with the country of Poland in C ...

Slovincians Slovincians, also known as Łeba Kashubians, is a near-extinct ethnic subgroup of the Kashubian people, who originated from the north western Kashubia, located in the Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland, from the area around the lakes of Łebsko and G ...

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

, and

Jews 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 ...

. Since 2000 a bugle call is played during important events which taking place in the area. Bytów is a popular tourist destination in the region of

Pomerania Pomerania ( pl, Pomorze; german: Pommern; Kashubian: ''Pòmòrskô''; sv, Pommern) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The western part of Pomerania belongs to ...

and is famous for its medieval Teutonic Castle built in the late 14th century.

History

According to the city's official webpage the name Bytów comes from the founder of the settlement named "Byt".
Bytów Official Site A settlement was first mentioned by the name of ''Butow'' in 1321. Bytów passed to the

Teutonic Knights The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians o ...

in 1329. From 1335 comes the oldest mention of a Catholic parish, which, however, could have existed since the 12th or 13th century. In 1346 it was granted

town rights Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the tradition ...

. The castle seen today was built by the Knights between 1399 and 1405 at the site of the older castle, to protect their western border. It has been the seat of an administrator of the State of the Teutonic Knights. This castle was captured by Poland after the

Battle of Grunwald The Battle of Grunwald, Battle of Žalgiris or First Battle of Tannenberg was fought on 15 July 1410 during the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War. The alliance of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, led respec ...

(1410), and king

Władysław II Jagiełło Jogaila (; 1 June 1434), later Władysław II Jagiełło ()He is known under a number of names: lt, Jogaila Algirdaitis; pl, Władysław II Jagiełło; be, Jahajła (Ягайла). See also: Names and titles of Władysław II Jagiełło. ...

of Poland gave it to

Bogislaw VIII, Duke of Pomerania Bogisław VIII ( – 11 February 1418),Werner Buchholz, Pommern, Siedler, 1999, p.149, a member of the House of Griffins, was Duke of Pomerania ruling in Pomerania-Stolp from 1395 until his death. He also served as administrator of the Prince ...

, for all of his lifetime as payment for support obtained from him against the Teutonic Knights. In the

Peace of Thorn (1411) The (First) Peace of Thorn was a peace treaty formally ending the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War between allied Kingdom of Poland and Grand Duchy of Lithuania on one side, and the Teutonic Knights on the other. It was signed on 1 February ...

Bogislaw had to return the castle to the Knights. The town did not join the

Prussian Confederation The Prussian Confederation (german: Preußischer Bund, pl, Związek Pruski) was an organization formed on 21 February 1440 at Kwidzyn (then officially ''Marienwerder'') by a group of 53 nobles and clergy and 19 cities in Prussia (region), Prussi ...

's revolt against the Teutonic Knights. The town alternated between Poland and the monastic state during the Polish-Teutonic Wars, and returned to Polish control after the

Second Peace of Thorn (1466) The Peace of Thorn or Toruń of 1466, also known as the Second Peace of Thorn or Toruń ( pl, drugi pokój toruński; german: Zweiter Friede von Thorn), was a peace treaty signed in the Hanseatic city of Thorn (Toruń) on 19 October 1466 betwe ...

. Poland gave Bytów as lien to the

Dukes of Pomerania This is a list of the duchies and dukes of Pomerania. Dukes of the Slavic Pomeranian tribes (All Pomerania) The lands of Pomerania were firstly ruled by local tribes, who settled in Pomerania around the 10th and 11th centuries. Non-dynastic ...

. Since 1526 the Pomerania dukes held it as an inheritable lien. Kościół p

In 1627 during the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battle ...

, the town was rebuilt after being destroyed by a fire. When the Pomeranian dukes died out in 1637 Bytów ceased to be a Polish fief and became directly ruled by Poland, administratively part of the Pomeranian Voivodeship. Then the local nobility obtained equal rights with the

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The character ...

of the entire

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 ...

. Bytów was overshadowed by

Lębork Lębork (; csb, Lãbòrg; formerly german: Lauenburg in Pommern) is a town of 37,000 people on the Łeba River, Łeba and Okalica rivers in the Gdańsk Pomerania region in northern Poland. It is the capital of Lębork County in Pomeranian Voivode ...

, which developed faster and became the seat of local starosts. In 1651 there was a dispute between the city authorities and the starost

Jakub Wejher Jakub Wejher (or Weyher, German ''Jakob Weiher'') (1609 – 1657), was a member of the Polish line of the Weyher family, a Count of the Holy Roman Empire and member of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth szlachta (nobility). His coat of arm ...

, regarding overdue taxes. To gain an ally against Sweden during

the Deluge The Genesis flood narrative (chapters 6–9 of the Book of Genesis) is the Hebrew version of the universal flood myth. It tells of God's decision to return the universe to its pre- creation state of watery chaos and remake it through the microc ...

, in 1657 King

John II Casimir of Poland John II Casimir ( pl, Jan II Kazimierz Waza; lt, Jonas Kazimieras Vaza; 22 March 1609 – 16 December 1672) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1648 until his abdication in 1668 as well as titular King of Sweden from 1648 ...

gave the

Lauenburg and Bütow Land Lauenburg and Bütow Land (german: Länder or , csb, Lãbòrskò-bëtowskô Zemia, pl, Ziemia lęborsko-bytowska) formed a historical region in the western part of Pomerelia (Polish and papal historiography) or in the eastern part of Farther Po ...

Margrave Margrave was originally the medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defence of one of the border provinces of the Holy Roman Empire or of a kingdom. That position became hereditary in certain feudal families in the Em ...

Frederick William of Brandenburg-Prussia as a hereditary

fief A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form ...

in the Treaty of Bydgoszcz. Although Poland still retained sovereignty, the town was administered by Brandenburg and, after 1701, by the

. Brandenburg imposed higher taxes to pay off its debts after the

. During the 18th century, the town suffered from fires and plague. In 1773 in the First Partition of Poland the town was wholly incorporated in the Prussian Province of Pomerania. In the 18th century attempts began at Germanisation of the indigenous Polish-Kashubian population by introducing

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

into schools. It remained a center of Polish resistance against Germanisation and was a Polish-Kashubian printing center. From 1846 to 1945, Bütow was the seat of the

Landkreis Bütow In all German states, except for the three city states, the primary administrative subdivision higher than a '' Gemeinde'' (municipality) is the (official term in all but two states) or (official term in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia ...

district in Prussia. The town became part of the German Empire in 1871 during the Prussian-led

unification of Germany The unification of Germany (, ) was the process of building the modern German nation state with federal features based on the concept of Lesser Germany (one without multinational Austria), which commenced on 18 August 1866 with adoption of t ...

. Polish minority remained active in the city, and in 1910 a Polish Bank Ludowy was founded here. After the end of

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 the re-establishment of independent Poland, 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 ...

kept the town in the

Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic (german: link=no, Weimarer Republik ), officially named the German Reich, was the government of Germany from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is ...

in 1919. There was an economic decline, many Germans emigrated to western Germany, and the population was slowly decreasing. In the

interbellum In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the First World War to the beginning of the Second World War. The interwar period was relative ...

numerous Polish organizations, including the

Union of Poles in Germany Union of Poles in Germany ( pl, Związek Polaków w Niemczech, german: Bund der Polen in Deutschland e.V.) is an organisation of the Polish minority in Germany, founded in 1922. In 1924, the union initiated collaboration between other minorities, ...

, operated in the town. Poles were subjected to repressions. The hero of the local Polish population was a local Polish teacher, Jan Bauer, who was arrested by the Germans in 1929. Months before

, in 1939, the Germans carried out arrests of notable local Poles, incl. activists and the head of the local Polish bank. During

the Polish population was subject to deportations and executions, two of its leaders, and were imprisoned in

Sachsenhausen Sachsenhausen () or Sachsenhausen-Oranienburg was a German Nazi concentration camp in Oranienburg, Germany, used from 1936 until April 1945, shortly before the defeat of Nazi Germany in May later that year. It mainly held political prisoners ...

and Dachau concentration camps, however, the town remained a local center of the Polish resistance movement (

Kashubian Griffin The Kashubian Griffin, full name Secret Military Organization "Kashubian Griffin", ( pl, Tajna Organizacja Wojskowa "Gryf Kaszubski", csb, Krëjamnô Wòjskòwô Òrganizacjô "Kaszëbsczi Grif") was a Polish anti-Nazi organization during World Wa ...

). It was captured by the

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

on 8 March 1945. Some inhabitants had fled before the Soviet advance. In April 1945, it was put under Polish administration, confirmed after the end of the war by the

Potsdam Conference The Potsdam Conference (german: Potsdamer Konferenz) was held at Potsdam in the Soviet occupation zone from July 17 to August 2, 1945, to allow the three leading Allies to plan the postwar peace, while avoiding the mistakes of the Paris P ...

and the Polish name ''Bytów'' was restored. Those German inhabitants, which had remained in the town or had returned to it short after the war, were later on expelled in accordance with the Potsdam Agreement. The indigenous Polish-Kashubian population was joined by Poles displaced from former eastern Poland annexed by the Soviet Union and from the rest of

Kashubia pl, Kaszuby , native_name_lang = csb, de, csb , settlement_type = Historical region , anthem = Zemia Rodnô , image_map = Kashubians in Poland.png , image_flag ...

. Bytów became the seat of a

powiat A ''powiat'' (pronounced ; Polish plural: ''powiaty'') is the second-level unit of local government and administration in Poland, equivalent to a county, district or prefecture ( LAU-1, formerly NUTS-4) in other countries. The term "''powiat ...

(1946–1975, 1999-) within Poland. From 1975 to 1998 it was administratively part of the

Słupsk Voivodeship Słupsk Voivodeship. was a unit of administrative division and local government in Poland from 1975 to 1998, previously part of Szczecin Voivodeship (1945–50) and Koszalin Voivodeship (1950–75), superseded (since 1999) by Pomeranian Voivode ...

Kashubian Emigration to America

During the Kashubian diaspora, many families from Bytów such as the Brezas and the Pehlers emigrated to the area of

Winona, Minnesota Winona is a city in and the county seat of Winona County, Minnesota, Winona County, in the U.S. state, state of Minnesota. Located in bluff country on the Mississippi River, its most noticeable physical landmark is Sugar Loaf (Winona, Minnesota ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, beginning in 1859. The Prussian policy was to force the Kashubians out to make room for German settlers. Some Kashubians moved across the Mississippi River to Pine Creek, Wisconsin in the early 1860s. Many found jobs in the lumber mills during the lumber boom of the late 1800s occurring in the region.

Demographics

Up to the end of World War II most inhabitants of the town were Protestants. ;Number of inhabitants by year The above table is based on primary, possibly biased, sources.Kratz (1865)
p. 52
/ref>

Sights

* Bytów Castle of the

, built in 1399–1405, former castle of the

from the Griffin dynasty, and Polish royal officials, now housing the West Kashubian Museum (''Muzeum Zachodniokaszubskie'') *

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

tower of the old Saint Catherine church from the 14th century, now a historic museum * Church of St. George from the 17th century * Saints Catherine and John the Baptist church * Old railway bridge over Boruja river Bytow zamek panorama

Sports

Polish football club

Bytovia Bytów Bytovia Bytów is a Polish semi-professional association football club based in Bytów, Poland, founded in 1946. Bytovia currently plays in the IV liga Pomerania. Players Current squad Out on loan League histor ...

is based in Bytów.

Notable residents

* Szimón Krofey (1545–1589), Polish-Kashubian pastor, teacher and publisher *

Adolph Ferdinand Gehlen Adolph Ferdinand Gehlen (5 September 1775 – 16 July 1815) was a German chemist. Life and education Gehlen was born in Bütow, Farther Pomerania (now Bytów, Poland), he is known as the publisher of ''Neues allgemeines Journal der Chemie'' (1 ...

(1775–1815) German chemist, died from arsenic poisoning in Munich age 39 * Georg Warsow (1877-??) a German road racing cyclist who competed in the 1912 Summer Olympics * Wilhelm Abel (1904–1985), German economist, particularly agricultural economics and economic history. * Hansjoachim Walther (1939–2005), politician, became member of the Third Kohl cabinet *

Natalia Szroeder Natalia Weronika Szroeder (born 20 April 1995) is a Polish singer-songwriter and TV presenter. She is most known for her works with rapper Liber, of which she appeared with in his songs ''Wszystkiego na raz'' and ''Nie patrzę w dół'' in 2013. ...

(born 1995) a Polish singer, songwriter and TV presenter *

Kamil Małecki Kamil Małecki (born 2 January 1996) is a Polish professional racing cyclist, who currently rides for UCI ProTeam . In October 2020, he was named in the startlist for the 2020 Giro d'Italia. Major results ;2017 : 2nd Overall Carpathian Courier ...

(born 1996) a Polish professional racing cyclist

International relations

Bytów is twinned with: One regular activity is the exchange of high school students between Bytow and Winona, .

Municipality of Bytów

Sołectwo A sołectwo ( Polish plural: ''sołectwa'') is an administrative unit in Poland, an optional subdivision of a gmina. The actions and organs of the sołectwo are decided by the gmina council. On 31 December 2018 Poland had 40 740 sołectwa. G ...

s in the urban-rural commune ( gmina) of Bytów include: Dąbie, Gostkowo, Grzmiąca, Mądrzechowo, Mokrzyn, Niezabyszewo, Płotowo, Pomysk Mały Pomysk Wielki, Rekowo, Rzepnica, Sierżno, Świątkowo, Udorpie, Ząbinowice.

Gallery

File:Saints Catherine and John the Baptist church in Bytów.jpg, Saints Catherine and John the Baptist Church File:Bytow(pischmak).JPG, Tower of St. Catherine Church File:Bytów (Bëtowò) - fotopolska.eu (123370).jpg, Town centre File:Old bridge in Bytów.JPG, Railway bridge in Bytów File:Bytów (Bëtowò), Sąd Rejonowy - fotopolska.eu (123050).jpg, District court

References

;Footnotes

External links

Official website

Photo gallery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bytow Populated places established in the 12th century Cities and towns in Pomeranian Voivodeship Bytów County Kashubian-American history Kulm law