Żyrardów
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Żyrardów is a town and former industrial hub in central
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 ...
with approximately 41,400 inhabitants (2006). It is the capital of
Żyrardów County __NOTOC__ Żyrardów County () is a unit of territorial administration and local government (powiat) in Masovian Voivodeship, east-central Poland. It came into being on 1 January 1999, as a result of the Polish local government reforms passed in 19 ...
in the
Masovian Voivodeship Masovian Voivodeship or Mazowieckie Province (, ) and any variation thereof, is a Voivodeships of Poland, voivodeship (province) in east-central Poland, containing Poland's capital Warsaw. Masovian Voivodeship has an area of and had a 2019 po ...
, west of
Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...
.


Etymology

Żyrardów, initially a textile settlement, was named after French engineer and inventor
Philippe de Girard Philippe Henri de Girard (February 1, 1775 – August 26, 1845) was a French engineer and inventor of the first flax spinning frame in 1810, and the person after whom the town of Żyrardów in Poland was named. He was also the uncredited inventor ...
, who worked in the area.


History


Origins

A textile factory founded by the Łubieński brothers opened in the village of Ruda Guzowska in 1833, after it was moved from
Marymont Marymont (from French ''Mont de Marie'' - Mary's Hill) is one of the northern neighbourhoods of Warsaw, Poland, administratively a part of the boroughs of Żoliborz (Marymont-Potok) and Bielany (Marymont-Kaskada and Marymont-Ruda). Named after ...
. One of the directors of the factory was French inventor
Philippe de Girard Philippe Henri de Girard (February 1, 1775 – August 26, 1845) was a French engineer and inventor of the first flax spinning frame in 1810, and the person after whom the town of Żyrardów in Poland was named. He was also the uncredited inventor ...
(from
Lourmarin Lourmarin (; ) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. Its inhabitants are called ''Lourmarinois''. Geography Lourmarin is located in the French region of Provence, at the foot o ...
). The village developed during the 19th century into a significant
textile Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and different types of #Fabric, fabric. ...
mill town A mill town, also known as factory town or mill village, is typically a settlement that developed around one or more List of types of mill#Manufacturing facilities, mills or factories, often cotton mills or factories producing textiles. Europe ...
in Poland. In honour of Girard, Ruda Guzowska was renamed ''Żyrardów'', a toponym derived of the polonised spelling of Girard's name. Initially, the factory's founders provided workers with good social conditions. Five schools were built, a preschool for the workers' children, bathhouses and a modern hospital staffed by English doctors. In 1845, the Warsaw–Vienna railway was opened with a station in Żyrardów. In 1889, Żyrardów was visited by Shah
Naser al-Din Shah Qajar Naser al-Din Shah Qajar (; ; 17 July 1831 – 1 May 1896) was the fourth Shah of Qajar Iran from 5 September 1848 to 1 May 1896 when he was assassinated. During his rule there was internal pressure from the people of Iran, as well as external ...
of Iran.


Labour movement

The terrible working conditions and inequality of the
cotton mill A cotton mill is a building that houses spinning or weaving machinery for the production of yarn or cloth from cotton, an important product during the Industrial Revolution in the development of the factory system. Although some were driven ...
s and textile industry in Żyrardów during the late 19th century, which was in
Congress Poland Congress Poland or Congress Kingdom of 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 was established w ...
(part of the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...
) at the time, led to a massive strike started by the female workers employed there in 1883. This event is one of the largest and most important events in the early history of the Polish workers' movement, which focused on fighting against the colonial oppressors as well as liberating the workers of partitioned Poland. Troops were used to put down a strike in April 1883, resulting in several dead or wounded. The upheavals in Żyrardów were the largest protest in Poland up until the Łódź insurrection of the
1905 Revolution The Russian Revolution of 1905, also known as the First Russian Revolution, was a revolution in the Russian Empire which began on 22 January 1905 and led to the establishment of a constitutional monarchy under the Russian Constitution of 1906, t ...
. They remain an essential element of Polish working class history, with various forms of media dedicated to them as well as street reenactments performed annually since 2004. In the 1921 census, 90.8% of the population declared Polish nationality, 7.5%
Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
, 1.2%
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
, 0.22%
Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...
.


World War II

During the
invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939), was a joint attack on the Second Polish Republic, Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak R ...
at the start 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 ...
, with the onset of dawn on September 12, 1939, units of the 8th German Army launched an attack on Żyrardów. After several hours of fierce defence of the town, the Polish army had to leave their positions and start delaying actions towards Wiskitki, Guzów, Szymanów, and Paprotnia. In 1941, the Germans transported local Jews into the
Warsaw Ghetto The Warsaw Ghetto (, officially , ; ) was the largest of the Nazi ghettos during World War II and the Holocaust. It was established in November 1940 by the Nazi Germany, German authorities within the new General Government territory of Occupat ...
. The Polish resistance organized a unit of the Union of Armed Struggle and
Home Army The Home Army (, ; abbreviated AK) was the dominant resistance movement in German-occupied Poland during World War II. The Home Army was formed in February 1942 from the earlier Związek Walki Zbrojnej (Armed Resistance) established in the ...
in Żyrardów, under the cryptonym "Żaba" ("frog"). In revenge for the activities of the Polish resistance, the occupiers carried out mass arrests and executions of city residents. The largest arrests of over 1,000 people took place in June and August 1943. The largest public execution was committed on 18 November 1943, with 24 victims. One person managed to escape. German occupation ended on 16 January 1945.


Post-war period

From 1975 to 1998, Żyrardów was administratively located in the Skierniewice Voivodeship. The town museum is nowadays located in the former palace of owner of factory K. Dittrich. A sign near the entrance to the little city states that it was the only town in Europe entirely set up for a factory. The city was named one of Poland's official national Historic Monuments (''
Pomnik historii Historic Monument (, ) is one of several categories of objects of cultural heritage in Poland, objects of cultural heritage (in the singular, ''zabytek'') in Poland. To be recognized as a Polish historic monument, an object must be declared suc ...
''), as designated 17 January, 2012. Its listing is maintained by the National Heritage Board of Poland.


Monuments

Most of Żyrardów's monuments are located in the manufacturing area which dates from the 19th and early 20th centuries. It is widely believed that Żyrardów's textile settlement is the only complete 19th-century urban industrial complex to be preserved in Europe.


Education

* Szkoła Mistrzostwa Sportowego w Kolarstwie * Wyższa Szkoła Rozwoju Lokalnego * Liceum Ogólnokształcące im. Stefana Żeromskiego * Zespół Szkół Publicznych nr. 7 im. Henryka Sienkiewicza w Żyrardowie


Sport

Since 1923 Żyrardów has a
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
club named Żyrardowianka Żyrardów (formerly Włókniarz Żyrardów), which in 2015/2016 played in the Polish IV League.


Notable people

*
Feliks Łubieński Feliks Walezjusz Władysław Łubieński (born 22 November 1758 Minoga near Olkusz, died 2 October 1848 Guzów) was a Polish politician, jurist, Minister of Justice in the Grand Duchy of Warsaw, starosta of Nakieł, a member of the Friend ...
(1758–1848), landowner who gave the estate and his blessing to his sons to build the very first textile factory * Henryk Łubieński (1793–1883), banker and industrialist, son of Felix * Feliks Sobański (1833–1913), philanthropist who donated land for the church * Paweł Hulka-Laskowski (1881–1946), a writer, translator and
social activist Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make Social change, changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from ...
*
Leszek Miller Leszek Cezary Miller (Polish pronunciation: ; born 3 July 1946) is a Polish politician who served as prime minister of Poland from 2001 to 2004. He has served as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) in 2019–2024. From 1989 to 1990, Mill ...
(born 1946), former
Prime Minister of Poland A prime number (or a prime) is a natural number greater than 1 that is not a product of two smaller natural numbers. A natural number greater than 1 that is not prime is called a composite number. For example, 5 is prime because the only wa ...
, started his professional life as
electrician An electrician is a tradesman, tradesperson specializing in electrical wiring of buildings, transmission lines, stationary machines, and related equipment. Electricians may be employed in the installation of new electrical components or the ...
in a local textile factory * Piotr Nowakowski (born 1987), volleyball player, double World Champion * Gosia Rdest (born 1993), a racing driver who competed in the W Series


International relations


Twin towns — Sister cities

Żyrardów is twinned with: *
Tangshan Tangshan ( zh, c=唐山 , p=Tángshān) is a coastal, industrial prefecture-level city in the northeast of Hebei province. It is located in the eastern part of Hebei Province and the northeastern part of the North China Plain. It is located in t ...
, China * Delchevo, North Macedonia *
Lourmarin Lourmarin (; ) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. Its inhabitants are called ''Lourmarinois''. Geography Lourmarin is located in the French region of Provence, at the foot o ...
, France * Siero, Spain * Tryavna, Bulgaria


References


External links


Official Site of Żyrardów

A web page of the history of Żyrardów (in Polish)

Current Population



Jewish Community in Żyrardów
on Virtual Shtetl {{DEFAULTSORT:Żyrardów Cities and towns in Masovian Voivodeship Żyrardów County Populated places established in 1833 Holocaust locations in Poland Sites of World War II massacres of Poles 1833 establishments in Poland