Łeba (, ; ) is a seaside town in the

Pomeranian Voivodeship Pomeranian Voivodeship ( ; ) is a Voivodeships of Poland, voivodeship, or province, in northwestern Poland. The provincial capital is Gdańsk. The voivodeship was established on January 1, 1999, out of the former voivodeships of Gdańsk Voivo ...

of northern

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

. It is located in the region of

Gdańsk Pomerania Gdańsk Pomerania (; ; ) is the main geographical region within Pomerelia (also known as Vistula Pomerania, Eastern Pomerania, and previously Polish Pomerania) in northern Poland, covering the bulk of Pomeranian Voivodeship. In contrast to ''Pome ...

( Pomerelia), near Łebsko Lake and the mouth of the river Łeba on the

Slovincian Coast The Slovincian Coast (; ) (Regions of Poland, 313.41) is a Mesoregion (geomorphology), mesoregion, the northernmost part of the Koszalin Coast, with an area of 1132 km2. The highest hill is Rowokół, at 114,8 metres above sea level. The coa ...

of the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...

History

The Pomerelian settlement of Łeba was first mentioned in a 1282 document of Mestwin II, Duke of Pomerania. At that time the village was located about two kilometers () west from the present mouth of the Łeba River. The church of St. Nicholas was mentioned in 1296. Łeba was part of fragmented Poland until 1309, when it was annexed by the

Teutonic Order The Teutonic Order is a religious order (Catholic), Catholic religious institution founded as a military order (religious society), military society in Acre, Israel, Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Order of Brothers of the German House of Sa ...

after their takeover of Gdańsk. Łeba received municipal rights by the State of the Teutonic Order in 1357. Located at the Łebsko Lake at the

, it developed to a fishing port and a wood marketplace. In 1440, the town joined the Prussian Confederation, which opposed Teutonic rule, and upon the request of which King Casimir IV Jagiellon reincorporated the territory to the

Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland (; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a monarchy in Central Europe during the Middle Ages, medieval period from 1025 until 1385. Background The West Slavs, West Slavic tribe of Polans (western), Polans who lived in what i ...

in 1454. With Lauenburg (Lębork) Land it became a Polish

fief A fief (; ) 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 feudal alle ...

during the Thirteen Years' War in 1455, held by 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 ...

. Old Łeba was threatened for many centuries by floods and expanding sand dunes and therefore was rebuilt in a safer location after 1558. The town was reintegrated with the Polish Crown after the death of the last Pomeranian duke Bogislaw XIV as part of the

, until King John II Casimir Vasa enfeoffed Elector Frederick William I of Brandenburg-Prussia with Lauenburg Land by the 1657 Treaty of Bydgoszcz. With the

First Partition of Poland The First Partition of Poland took place in 1772 as the first of three partitions that eventually ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth by 1795. The growth of power in the Russian Empire threatened the Kingdom of Prussia an ...

in 1772, Łeba was incorporated into

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

. Soon after a large port was built on instruction of the Prussian king, whereby a broad channel between the Leba lake and the

was dug, which however did not weather the storms on the coast. Due to its picturesque setting, the Leba seaside after

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

became a popular resort for German bohémiens. The painter Max Pechstein and other expressionists frequented the place. In the proximity of Leba there is a large former testing area for long-range rocket weapons operated by the Rheinmetall company. On the Leba spit the German long-range rocket Rheinbote was tested between 1941 and 1945. Also the

V-1 flying bomb The V-1 flying bomb ( "Vengeance Weapon 1") was an early cruise missile. Its official Reich Aviation Ministry () name was Fieseler Fi 103 and its suggestive name was (hellhound). It was also known to the Allies as the buzz bomb or doodlebug a ...

was tested here from 1943 to 1945. Between 1963 and 1973 33 Meteor sounding rockets were launched from Łeba. In March 1945, shortly before the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the region was occupied by the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

. Following the Potsdam Conference, after the end of the war the town became again part of Poland.

Landmarks

There is an abundance of architectural and natural attractions near Łeba, above all the

Słowiński National Park The Slovincian National Park (), also known as Słowiński National Park, is a national park in Pomeranian Voivodeship, northern Poland. It is situated on the Baltic coast, between Łeba and Rowy. The northern boundary of the park consists of ...

with its moving sand dunes, about west of the city. Further objects of interest include: *Ruins of the St. Nicholas church west of the city *Fishermen's church of 1683 with a painting by Max Pechstein *Fishermen's dwellings from the 19th century in Kościuszki street * 19th century casino on Nadmorska street, today the Hotel Neptun *Former rocket test site near Pletka *Dinosaur park south of the city File:Port jachtowy Łeba2.JPG, Yacht port in Łeba File:Leba Dunes.jpg, Beachgoers on the white sand dunes of Łeba File:Nadmorska Street - Łeba.JPG, Nadmorska, one of the main tourist streets in Łeba, facing west File:Łeba-Harbor.jpg, Port of Łeba

Climate

Łeba has an

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

: ''Cfb'').

Demographics

Since the medieval Christianization of the region, the local population was

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. After the

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

, the inhabitants of the town were predominantly

Protestants Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

and the area was subjected to Germanisation. Since the end of World War II the population is predominantly composed of Polish Roman Catholics.

Famous people

* Klaus Weiher, a noble of the Weyher family * Martin Weiher (1512–1556) ( de) Lutheran bishop of Cammin

International relations

Łeba is twinned with:

References

External links

Main websiteŁeba accommodationPhotogalleryGerman Page about Łeba
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Pomeranian Voivodeship Coastal cities and towns in Poland Lębork County Seaside resorts in Poland Port cities and towns of the Baltic Sea Port cities and towns in Poland