Tykocin is a small town in north-eastern

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 2,010 inhabitants (2012), located on the

Narew The Narew (; be, Нараў, translit=Naraŭ; or ; Sudovian: ''Naura''; Old German: ''Nare''; uk, Нарва, translit=Narva) is a 499-kilometre (310 mi) river primarily in north-eastern Poland, which is also a tributary of the river Vi ...

river, in

Białystok County __NOTOC__ Białystok County ( pl, powiat białostocki) is a unit of territorial administration and local government (powiat) in Podlaskie Voivodeship, north-eastern Poland, on the border with Belarus. It was created on 1 January 1999 as a result o ...

in the

Podlaskie Voivodeship Podlaskie Voivodeship or Podlasie Province ( pl, Województwo podlaskie, ) is a voivodeship (province) in northeastern Poland. The name of the province and its territory correspond to the historic region of Podlachia. The capital and largest c ...

. It is one of the oldest towns in the region, with its historic center designated a Historic Monument of Poland.

History

Middle Ages

The name of Tykocin was first mentioned in the 11th century. Through the 14th century, it was a

castellany A castellan is the title used in Medieval Europe for an appointed official, a governor of a castle and its surrounding territory referred to as the castellany. The title of ''governor'' is retained in the English prison system, as a remnant o ...

in the

Duchy of Masovia Duchy of Masovia was a district principality and a fiefdom of the Kingdom of Poland, existing during the Middle Ages. The state was centered in Mazovia in the northeastern Kingdom of Poland, and during its existence, its capital was located i ...

on the border with

pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. I ...

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

. Tykocin received its

city 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 traditio ...

from prince Janusz I of Warsaw in 1425, but several months later, the settlement was transferred to the

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was Partitions of Poland, partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire, Habsburg Empire of ...

(within the Polish-Lithuanian Union) by the

Polish king Poland was ruled at various times either by dukes and princes (10th to 14th centuries) or by kings (11th to 18th centuries). During the latter period, a tradition of free election of monarchs made it a uniquely electable position in Europe (16th ...

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. ...

. Shortly later, in around 1433, Duke Sigismund Kęstutaitis gave the town along with other surrounding villages to

Jonas Gostautas Jonas may refer to: Geography * Jonas, Netherlands, Netherlands * Jonas, Pennsylvania, United States * Jonas Ridge, North Carolina, United States People with the name * Jonas (name), people with the given name or surname Jonas * Jonas, one of ...

, and it became the most important seat of the Lithuanian Gostautai noble family.

Early modern era

In the 1542, upon the death of Gostautai family's last member, the town was acquired by Polish king and Lithuanian Grand Prince

Sigismund II Augustus Sigismund II Augustus ( pl, Zygmunt II August, lt, Žygimantas Augustas; 1 August 1520 – 7 July 1572) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, the son of Sigismund I the Old, whom Sigismund II succeeded in 1548. He was the first ruler ...

who had the medieval stronghold remodelled into a Renaissance castle. One of the largest arsenals of Poland was located in Tykocin. It subsequently became a royal town of the

Polish Crown The Crown of the Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Korona Królestwa Polskiego; Latin: ''Corona Regni Poloniae''), known also as the Polish Crown, is the common name for the historic Late Middle Ages territorial possessions of the King of Poland, incl ...

, located within the

in the Lesser Poland Province and was eventually awarded to

Hetman ( uk, гетьман, translit=het'man) is a political title from Central and Eastern Europe, historically assigned to military commanders. Used by the Czechs in Bohemia since the 15th century. It was the title of the second-highest military ...

Stefan Czarniecki Stefan Czarniecki (Polish: of the Łodzia coat of arms, 1599 – 16 February 1665) was a Polish nobleman, general and military commander. In his career, he rose from a petty nobleman to a magnate holding one of the highest offices in the Com ...

for his military service during the

Swedish invasion of Poland The Deluge ( pl, potop szwedzki, lt, švedų tvanas) was a series of mid-17th-century military campaigns in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. In a wider sense it applies to the period between the Khmelnytsky Uprising of 1648 and the Truce ...

in 1661. In the 16th and 17th centuries, Tykocin was granted new privileges by kings

Stephen Báthory Stephen Báthory ( hu, Báthory István; pl, Stefan Batory; ; 27 September 1533 – 12 December 1586) was Voivode of Transylvania (1571–1576), Prince of Transylvania (1576–1586), King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania (1576–1586) ...

and

Władysław IV Vasa Władysław IV Vasa; lt, Vladislovas Vaza; sv, Vladislav IV av Polen; rus, Владислав IV Ваза, r=Vladislav IV Vaza; la, Ladislaus IV Vasa or Ladislaus IV of Poland (9 June 1595 – 20 May 1648) was King of Poland, Grand Duke of ...

. Later on, through the marriage of Czarniecki's daughters, it passed to the Branicki (

Gryf Gryf ( Polish for "Griffin"), also known as Jaxa, is a Polish coat of arms that was used by many noble families in medieval Poland and later under the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, branches of the original medieval Gryfita-Świebodzic famil ...

coat-of-arms) family. From 1513 until the

Third Partition of Poland The Third Partition of Poland (1795) was the last in a series of the Partitions of Poland–Lithuania and the land of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth among Prussia, the Habsburg monarchy, and the Russian Empire which effectively ended Polis ...

in 1795, Tykocin was a county (

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 ...

) seat. It was Tykocin, where in 1705, King

Augustus II the Strong Augustus II; german: August der Starke; lt, Augustas II; in Saxony also known as Frederick Augustus I – Friedrich August I (12 May 16701 February 1733), most commonly known as Augustus the Strong, was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as K ...

established the Order of the White Eagle, the highest and oldest Polish order. Most of Tykocin's landmarks was built in this era, including the Holy Trinity Church, monasteries of the

Congregation of the Mission The Congregation of the Mission ( la, Congregatio Missionis) abbreviated CM and commonly called the Vincentians or Lazarists. is a Roman Catholic society of apostolic life of Pontifical Right for men founded by Vincent de Paul. It is associated ...

and the Bernardines, the former 17th-century military hospital, the

synagogue A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of wor ...

and the statue of hetman

Late modern era and recent times

Following the

Partitions of Poland The Partitions of Poland were three partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that took place toward the end of the 18th century and ended the existence of the state, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland and Lithuania for 12 ...

Tykocin was annexed by

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

and Izabella Poniatowska-Branicka sold the town to the

Prussian government Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

in 1795. In 1807, it was briefly regained by Poles as part of 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 ...

in accordance to the

Treaty of Tilsit The Treaties of Tilsit were two agreements signed by French Emperor Napoleon in the town of Tilsit in July 1807 in the aftermath of his victory at Friedland. The first was signed on 7 July, between Napoleon and Russian Emperor Alexander, when ...

. In 1815, it became part of the

Congress Kingdom of Poland Congress Poland, Congress Kingdom of Poland, or Russian Poland, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland, was a polity created in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna as a semi-autonomous Polish state, a successor to Napoleon's Duchy of Warsaw. It ...

, later on forcibly annexed by

Imperial Russia The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. The ...

Sebastien Dulac - Bitwa pod Tykocinem 1831 r

During the

November Uprising The November Uprising (1830–31), also known as the Polish–Russian War 1830–31 or the Cadet Revolution, was an armed rebellion in the heartland of partitioned Poland against the Russian Empire. The uprising began on 29 November 1830 in W ...

, on 21 May 1831, Polish insurgents won a battle against the Russians at Tykocin. After the massacres of Polish protesters committed by the Russians in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officiall ...

in 1861, Polish demonstrations and clashes with Russian soldiers took place in Tykocin. Shortly after the outbreak of the

January Uprising The January Uprising ( pl, powstanie styczniowe; lt, 1863 metų sukilimas; ua, Січневе повстання; russian: Польское восстание; ) was an insurrection principally in Russia's Kingdom of Poland that was aimed at ...

, Tykocin was the site of a battle between Polish insurgents and Russian troops on 24-25 January 1863. During the uprising, Tykocin was attacked by a

Cossack The Cossacks , es, cosaco , et, Kasakad, cazacii , fi, Kasakat, cazacii , french: cosaques , hu, kozákok, cazacii , it, cosacchi , orv, коза́ки, pl, Kozacy , pt, cossacos , ro, cazaci , russian: казаки́ or ...

unit led by Captain Dmitriyev, who forced the populace to sign a request to the tsarist administration to make him the town's military superior.''Katalog miejsc pamięci powstania styczniowego w województwie podlaskim'', p. 14-15 In this way, he obtained office, and then committed macabre murders of the inhabitants.''Katalog miejsc pamięci powstania styczniowego w województwie podlaskim'', p. 15 Dmitryev's cruelty even caused the Russians themselves to report him to the tsarist authorities, but he was only fined. Tykocin was reintegrated with Poland after the country regained independence after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

in 1918. During the

interwar period 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 ...

, the population of Tykocin had reached an estimated 4,000 inhabitants. 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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, it was

occupied ' ( Norwegian: ') is a Norwegian political thriller TV series that premiered on TV2 on 5 October 2015. Based on an original idea by Jo Nesbø, the series is co-created with Karianne Lund and Erik Skjoldbjærg. Season 2 premiered on 10 Octobe ...

by the

Soviets Soviet people ( rus, сове́тский наро́д, r=sovyétsky naród), or citizens of the USSR ( rus, гра́ждане СССР, grázhdanye SSSR), was an umbrella demonym for the population of the Soviet Union. Nationality policy in ...

from 1939 to 1941 and the Germans from 1941 to 1944. The

Jewish 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 ...

population of Tykocin estimated at 2,000 people was eradicated by

Nazi German Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

s during

the Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europ ...

. On 25–26 August 1941, the Jewish residents of Tykocin were assembled at the market square for "relocation", and then marched and trucked by the Nazis into the nearby Łopuchowo forest, "Rocznica zagłady żydowskiego Tykocina,"
(commemoration)

Gazeta Wyborcza ''Gazeta Wyborcza'' (; ''The Electoral Gazette'' in English) is a Polish daily newspaper based in Warsaw, Poland. It is the first Polish daily newspaper after the era of " real socialism" and one of Poland's newspapers of record, covering the ...

Białystok Białystok is the largest city in northeastern Poland and the capital of the Podlaskie Voivodeship. It is the tenth-largest city in Poland, second in terms of population density, and thirteenth in area. Białystok is located in the Białystok U ...

, 24 August 2009 Tykocin na mapie polskich judaików
at www.kirkuty.xip.pl where they were executed in waves into pits by SS

Einsatzkommando During World War II, the Nazi German ' were a sub-group of the ' (mobile killing squads) – up to 3,000 men total – usually composed of 500–1,000 functionaries of the SS and Gestapo, whose mission was to exterminate Jews, Polish intellect ...

Zichenau-Schroettersburg under SS-Obersturmführer Hermann Schaper. Alexander B. Rossino, "Contextualizing Anti-Jewish Violence in the Białystok District during the Opening Weeks of Operation Barbarossa", ''Polin: Studies in Polish Jewry'', Volume 16 (2003) A memorial now exists outside the town for the Tykocin pogrom. In 1950, Tykocin lost its town rights due to population loss in World War II, only to regain it in 1993. From 1975 to 1998, it was administratively located in the former Białystok Voivodeship.

Points of interest

Tykocin contains a preserved historic center listed as a Historic Monument of Poland. Notable heritage sights and points of interest include: *

Tykocin Castle The Tykocin Royal Castle is a 15th-century castle located on the right bank of the river Narew in Tykocin, Poland. It fell into ruin in the 18th century and its reconstruction began in 2002. History The castle – then located on a border area ...

built before 1469, extended in 16th century and partially reconstructed in 2005 *The

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including ...

Tykocin Synagogue ''Bejt ha-Kneset ha-Godol'', built in 1642, one of the best preserved in Poland from that period and a major tourist attraction. *A baroque Church of the Holy Trinity and former monastery of Congregation of Mission founded in 1742 by

Jan Klemens Branicki Count Jan Klemens Branicki (also known as Jan Kazimierz Branicki; 21 September 1689 – 9 October 1771) was a Polish nobleman, magnate and Hetman, Field Crown Hetman of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth between 1735 and 1752, and Great Crown ...

*Baroque Bernardine Monastery from 1771–90 *Monument of hetman

from 1763 *Former military hospital from 1633–1647, the ''Alumnat'', one of the oldest of its kind in Europe, now a hotel *Baroque manor house '' Rezydencja ekonomiczna'', currently the Center of Culture, Sport and Tourism *Catholic cemetery, dating back to the 18th century *Jewish cemetery – one of the oldest in Poland *Monument of the White Eagle from 1982, referring to the establishment of the Order of the White Eagle in Tykocin in 1705 *Abundance of

white stork The white stork (''Ciconia ciconia'') is a large bird in the stork family, Ciconiidae. Its plumage is mainly white, with black on the bird's wings. Adults have long red legs and long pointed red beaks, and measure on average from beak tip to e ...

s and their nests in the area File:Tykocin kościół Św. Trójcy 4.JPG, Church of the Holy Trinity and Narew River Bridge File:Tykocin 8299.jpg, Church of the Holy Trinity File:2013 Main altar of Trinity Church in Tykocin - 02.jpg, Main altar at Holy Trinity File:Wielka Synagoga i Dom Talmudyczny (Mała Synagoga).jpg, Great Synagogue and Little Synagogue File:2013 Hotel Alumnat in Tykocin - 01.jpg, Former 17th-century military hospital, now a hotel and restaurant File:Tykocin klasztor 02.jpg, Bernardine Monastery

Transport

The Voivodeship road 671 runs through Tykocin and links it with the S8 highway, which passes nearby, south of the town.

Notable individuals

Joshua Höschel ben Joseph Joshua Höschel ben Joseph was a Polish rabbi born in Vilnius, Lithuania about 1578 and died in Kraków on August 16, 1648. In his boyhood, he journeyed to Przemyśl, Red Ruthenia, to study the Talmud under Rabbi Samuel ben Phoebus of Kraków. He ...

, a Polish rabbi born in

Wilno Vilnius ( , ; see also #Etymology and other names, other names) is the capital and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the munic ...

, Field Crown Hetman of 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 Crown of the Kingdom of ...

* Bolesław Gebert, Communist Party official * Łukasz Górnicki, Chancellor of

Sigismund Augustus of Poland Sigismund II Augustus ( pl, Zygmunt II August, lt, Žygimantas Augustas; 1 August 1520 – 7 July 1572) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, the son of Sigismund I the Old, whom Sigismund II succeeded in 1548. He was the first ruler ...

Mikołaj Ostroróg Mikołaj Ostroróg (1593–1651) was a Polish–Lithuanian szlachcic (nobleman), politician and general. He was Podstoli of the Crown since 1633, Stolnik of the Crown since 1624, Krajczy of the Crown since 1636, Podczaszy of the Crown since 1 ...

, a Polish-Lithuanian

nobleman 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 characteris ...

Bogusław Radziwiłł Bogusław Radziwiłł ( lt, Boguslavas Radvila; 3 May 1620 – 31 December 1669) was a Polish princely magnate and a member of the Polish-Lithuanian ''szlachta'', or nobility. He was of the Radziwiłł magnate family. By birth he was an ...

, an Imperial Prince of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 unt ...

Janusz Radziwiłł (1612-1655) Janusz Radziwiłł is the name of several Polish–Lithuanian nobles: * Janusz Radziwiłł (1579–1620), castellan of Vilnius and the starost of Borysów * Janusz Radziwiłł (1612–55), signatory of the Union of Kėdainiai * Janusz Radziwił� ...

, Polish prince, magnate and

Field Hetman of Lithuania Field may refer to: Expanses of open ground * Field (agriculture), an area of land used for agricultural purposes * Airfield, an aerodrome that lacks the infrastructure of an airport * Battlefield * Lawn, an area of mowed grass * Meadow, a gra ...

Paweł Jan Sapieha Paul John Sapieha ( lt, Povilas Jonas Sapiega) (1609–1665) was a Polish–Lithuanian nobleman (szlachcic). Sapieha became a Hussar Rotmistrz in 1633, courtier in 1635, Obozny of Lithuania in 1638, Podstoli of Lithuania in 1645, voivode ...

and military commander * Jan Smółko (b. 1907, AK alias Lokalizator), wife Władysława (b. 1908),

Polish Righteous among the Nations The citizens of Poland have the world's highest count of individuals who have been recognized by Yad Vashem of Jerusalem as the Polish Righteous Among the Nations, for saving Jews from extermination during the Holocaust in World War II. There ...

– produced over a hundred fake IDs for Tykocin Jews during World War II, based on Catholic parish records. *

Rebecca bat Meir Tiktiner Rebecca bat Meir Tiktiner (; died 1605), was a Yiddish writer, whose works include a treatise on Jewish ethics in the style of musar literature as well as a poem about Simchat Torah. Life She or her father probably resided in the northeast Polan ...

(d. 1550) * Krzysztof Wiesiołowski

References

External links

Tykocin on the map of Poland, at www.pilot.pl"Tykocin – news, photos... all about this beautiful town,"
at www.tykocin1425.az.pl.
Plac Czarnieckiego 10
Anthropological project: art, history and heritage of Tykocin.

{{Authority control Shtetls Cities and towns in Podlaskie Voivodeship Białystok County Podlachian Voivodeship Łomża Governorate Białystok Voivodeship (1919–1939) Belastok Region Holocaust locations in Poland