Pasym (; german: Passenheim) is a small town in Szczytno County,

Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship or Warmia-Masuria Province or Warmia-Mazury Province (in pl, Województwo warmińsko-mazurskie, is a voivodeship (province) in northeastern Poland. Its capital and largest city is Olsztyn. The voivodeship has an ar ...

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 a total population (as of 30 June 2016) of 2,556. It is located in

Masuria Masuria (, german: Masuren, Masurian: ''Mazurÿ'') is a ethnographic and geographic region in northern and northeastern Poland, known for its 2,000 lakes. Masuria occupies much of the Masurian Lake District. Administratively, it is part of the ...

History

A small settlement named ''Heinrichswalde'' was first mentioned in 1381. In 1386 this settlement was renamed ''Passenheim'' after the

Teutonic Knight 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 ...

Heinrich Walpot von Passenheim from modern

Bassenheim Bassenheim is a municipality in the district Mayen-Koblenz, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is part of the Verbandsgemeinde ("collective municipality") Weißenthurm. It is situated away from Koblenz. The municipal council consists of 20 pe ...

near Koblenz. In 1441 the town joined 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 ...

, at which request in 1454 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 ...

signed the act of incorporation of the region to 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 ...

, recognized the Polish king as rightful ruler and remained within Poland throughout the entire Thirteen Years’ War. After the

peace treaty A peace treaty is an agreement between two or more hostile parties, usually countries or governments, which formally ends a state of war between the parties. It is different from an armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring ...

signed in

Toruń )'' , image_skyline = , image_caption = , image_flag = POL Toruń flag.svg , image_shield = POL Toruń COA.svg , nickname = City of Angels, Gingerbread city, Copernicus Town , pushpin_map = Kuyavian-Pom ...

in 1466, the town became a part of Poland as a

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 ...

held by the

State of the Teutonic Order The State of the Teutonic Order (german: Staat des Deutschen Ordens, ; la, Civitas Ordinis Theutonici; lt, Vokiečių ordino valstybė; pl, Państwo zakonu krzyżackiego), also called () or (), was a medieval Crusader state, located in Cent ...

until 1525, and by the secular

Duchy of Prussia The Duchy of Prussia (german: Herzogtum Preußen, pl, Księstwo Pruskie, lt, Prūsijos kunigaikštystė) or Ducal Prussia (german: Herzogliches Preußen, link=no; pl, Prusy Książęce, link=no) was a duchy in the region of Prussia establish ...

afterwards, remaining a Polish fief until 1657. The town was destroyed by the

Tatar The Tatars ()Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary is an umbrella term for different

raids in 1656, which has been described by

Christoph Hartknoch Christoph Hartknoch (1644–1687) was a Prussian historian and educator. Biography Hartknoch was born in Jablonken (Jabłonka) near Ortelsburg (Szczytno) in the Duchy of Prussia. In 1650 the family moved to Passenheim (Pasym) and there wit ...

(1644–1687). In the late 17th century

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 ...

formed the majority of its population. In 1701 the town 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 subsequently, in 1871, it became part of

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 1773 it was included in the newly established province of East Prussia. During the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

, French troops stayed in the town in 1807 and 1812. In 1883, Poles formed the majority of the local Lutheran parish (majority of the town's population was Lutheran), with 5,095 people in comparison to 1,015 Germans. In the

East Prussian plebiscite The East Prussian plebiscite (german: Abstimmung in Ostpreußen), also known as the Allenstein and Marienwerder plebiscite or Warmia, Masuria and Powiśle plebiscite ( pl, Plebiscyt na Warmii, Mazurach i Powiślu), was a plebiscite organised in a ...

of 1920 1,459 inhabitants voted to remain in Germany, 40 to join reborn Poland. After

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 ...

the region became again part of Poland by the Potsdam Agreement. Most Germans

fled ''Fled'' is a 1996 American buddy action comedy film directed by Kevin Hooks. It stars Laurence Fishburne and Stephen Baldwin as two prisoners chained together who flee during an escape attempt gone bad. Plot An interrogator prepares a man to ...

or were expelled in accordance with the Potsdam Agreement. The remaining Polish population was joined by Polish settlers, many of whom were expelled from the former eastern Polish territories annexed by the Soviet Union. In 1947, an orphanage for war

orphan An orphan (from the el, ορφανός, orphanós) is a child whose parents have died. In common usage, only a child who has lost both parents due to death is called an orphan. When referring to animals, only the mother's condition is usuall ...

s was established in Pasym, which today continues to operate as an ordinary orphanage.

Transport

The Polish

National road The National Road (also known as the Cumberland Road) was the first major improved highway in the United States built by the federal government. Built between 1811 and 1837, the road connected the Potomac and Ohio Rivers and was a main tran ...

53 runs through the town, and there is also a train station.

Sports

The local football club is Błękitni Pasym. It competes in the lower leagues.

Notable residents

Johann Wilhelm Ebel Johann Wilhelm Ebel (1784–1861) was a German Lutheran clergyman and teacher. Ebel was born in Passenheim (Pasym), East Prussia, becoming a pastor in Königsberg. He was one of the founders of the Mucker Society, a group with pronounced similar ...

(1784–1861), Lutheran clergyman and teacher * Marie-Luise Gothein (1863–1931), scholar, gardener and author *

(1644-1687), teacher, historian, author * Friedrich-Wilhelm Morzik (1891-1985),

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

general

International relations

Twin towns — sister cities

Pasym is twinned with: *

Bassenheim.de

Gallery

Pasym Market 2016 1.jpg, ''Rynek'' (Market Square) filled with historic townhouses Pasym - zabytkowy budynek.jpg, Orphanage Pasym - kościół katolicki (01).jpg, Catholic Sacred Heart church Wieża wodna Pasym.jpg, Water tower

References

Cities and towns in Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship Szczytno County {{Szczytno-geo-stub