Lelow County (Polish: powiat lelowski) was an administrative unit (
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 ...
), which existed for over 400 years, both in the
Kingdom of Poland
The Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Królestwo Polskie; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a state in Central Europe. It may refer to:
Historical political entities
* Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom existing from 1025 to 1031
* Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom exi ...
and the
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 ...
. Its history dates back probably to the late 14th century, ending in 1837. In the 15th century, when Lelow County was part of
Kraków Voivodeship, its total area was almost . Among towns that belonged to it were
Zawiercie
Zawiercie is a city in the south of Poland located in the Silesian Voivodeship with 49,334 inhabitants (2019). It is situated in the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland near the source of the Warta River. The town lies near the historical region of Sile ...
,
Myszkow,
Czestochowa,
Klobuck and
Krzepice
Krzepice (german: Krippitz) is a Polish town near Częstochowa, in Kłobuck County, Silesian Voivodeship, in northwestern corner of Lesser Poland. It is located near the historic border of Lesser Poland and Silesia, which goes along the Liswart ...
. The first known
starosta of Lelow County was Zbigniew of Brzezie, mentioned in documents from 1408. The seat of the county was the town of
Lelow.
Some time in late 16th century, Lelow County was expanded, and by early 17th century, it had nine towns (out of which five had the status of royal towns), and 182 villages. The county belonged to Kraków Voivodeship until the
Partitions of Poland. In 1795 it became part of Prussian
New Silesia
New Silesia (german: Neuschlesien or ''Neu-Schlesien'') was a small province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1795 to 1807, created after the Third Partition of Poland. It was located northwest of Kraków and southeast of Częstochowa, in the lands ...
, administered from
Breslau. Prussian authorities initially renamed it Lelow-
Siewierz
Siewierz is a town in southern Poland, in the Będzin County in the Silesian Voivodeship, seat of Gmina Siewierz.
History
Siewierz was first mentioned in 1125, and was administered by the Castellan of Bytom. In 1177, Casimir II of Poland grante ...
County, and in 1807, while in the
Duchy of Warsaw
The Duchy of Warsaw ( pl, Księstwo Warszawskie, french: Duché de Varsovie, german: Herzogtum Warschau), also known as the Grand Duchy of Warsaw and Napoleonic Poland, was a French client state established by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1807, during ...
, it was renamed Lelow-Pilica County. After the
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna (, ) of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon B ...
, the county was annexed into Russian-controlled
Congress Poland. In 1837, Lelow County was liquidated.
Sources
* Powiat Lelowski w latach 1392 - 1792, praca zbiorowa, zebrali i opracowali: Antoni Białowąs, Marian Nowak, Mirosław Skrzypczyk. Lelowskie Towarzystwo Historyczno Kulturalne
Former counties of Poland
History of Lesser Poland
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