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Plac Wolności, known in English as Liberty Square, is an
octagonal In geometry, an octagon () is an eight-sided polygon or 8-gon. A '' regular octagon'' has Schläfli symbol and can also be constructed as a quasiregular truncated square, t, which alternates two types of edges. A truncated octagon, t is a hex ...
public square A town square (or public square, urban square, city square or simply square), also called a plaza or piazza, is an open public space commonly found in the heart of a traditional town or city, and which is used for community gatherings. Relat ...
located in central
Łódź Łódź is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located south-west of Warsaw. Łódź has a population of 655,279, making it the country's List of cities and towns in Polan ...
, Poland. Completed in 1823, it is the northern endpoint of the commercial
Piotrkowska Street Piotrkowska Street (pronounced: ; ), also popularly known as Pietryna, is the main artery of Łódź, Poland, and one of the longest commercial thoroughfares in Europe, with a length of around 4.2 km. It is one of the major tourist attractio ...
. Its present name commemorates Poland regaining its independence in 1918.


Name

When initially marked out, the square was named ''Rynek Nowego Miasta'', translating to "New Town Market" as it symbolised the beginning of a new industrial settlement. Following Poland's independence in 1918, it was renamed to ''Plac Wolności'' to honour the freedom and liberty after 123 years of foreign rule in Poland.


Geography

The octagonal square is situated in what was to became the heart of the newly-founded city in the early 19th century. It is situated south of the old medieval marketplace, which is now known as ''Rynek Starego Miasta'' (Old Town Market). It was once an important transport hub, connecting busy trade routes extending to and from
Piotrków Trybunalski Piotrków Trybunalski (; also known by #Etymology, alternative names), often simplified to Piotrków, is a city in central Poland with 71,252 inhabitants (2021). It is the capital of Piotrków County and the second-largest city in the Łódź Voi ...
as well as other surrounding townships like Konstantynów and
Brzeziny Brzeziny (; , ''Brezin'') is a town in Poland, in Łódź Voivodeship, about east of Łódź. It is the capital of Brzeziny County and has a population of 12,326 as of December 2021. It is situated on the Mrożyca River within the historic Łęcz ...
. The routes crossed at Plac Wolności, and travellers or merchants were able to arrive at the square regardless of the direction as they entered Łódź. The contemporary squared is flanked by four exit points in each direction; Piotrkowska Street to the south, Nowomiejska to the north, Pomorska to the east, and Legionów to the west. By street numbering in ascending order, Piotrkowska commences at the square and runs south to terminate at a similarly-named public area – Plac Niepodległości (Independence Square) in the . This forms the main vertical axis of Łódź, part of which is available for general use by vehicles and the other is pedestrianised.


History

A central marketplace was commissioned by
Rajmund Rembieliński Rajmund Rembieliński (1774–1841) was a Polish nobleman (szlachcic), political activist, and landowner. Rembieliński owned estates in Jedwabne, Krośniewice and Giełczyn. He was a graduate of the Knight School in Warsaw (1788–1 ...
, an economist tasked by the
Administrative Council Administrative Council () was a part of Council of State (Kingdom of Poland), Council of State of the Congress Poland. Introduced by the Constitution of the Kingdom of Poland in 1815, it was composed of 5 ministers, special nominees of the Tsar, Ki ...
of
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 ...
to organise the
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. ...
industry across the region. Inaugurated in 1823, the octagonal square was designated to become the centre-point of a new settlement that later grew into the modern city. Rembieliński advocated for concentrated classicist
urban planning Urban planning (also called city planning in some contexts) is the process of developing and designing land use and the built environment, including air, water, and the infrastructure passing into and out of urban areas, such as transportatio ...
, with axial and symmetrical street systems. As such, the streets around Plac Wolności intersect each other to form a grid. The surrounding roads were named after towns in proximity to Łódź or after the four
cardinal directions The four cardinal directions or cardinal points are the four main compass directions: north (N), south (S), east (E), and west (W). The corresponding azimuths ( clockwise horizontal angle from north) are 0°, 90°, 180°, and 270°. The four ...
, for example Zachodnia, Wschodnia and Północna (West, East and North Streets) retain their original designations to this day. Some were renamed over the course of history, for instance Południowa (South Street) to Rewolucji 1905 r. in commemoration of the
Łódź Insurrection The Łódź insurrection (), also known as the June Days (), was an uprising by Polish workers in Łódź against the Russian Empire between 21 and 25 June 1905. This event was one of the largest disturbances in the Russian-controlled Congress P ...
, and Średnia (Central Street) changed to Pomorska after Poland regained access to 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 ...
through
Pomerania Pomerania ( ; ; ; ) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The central and eastern part belongs to the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, West Pomeranian, Pomeranian Voivod ...
following independence. In 1827, the Old City Hall, or Magistrate, was constructed on the square's southern fringe in the
Neoclassical style Neoclassicism, also spelled Neo-classicism, emerged as a Western cultural movement in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that drew inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiquity. Neoclassici ...
; it can be classified as the city's first significant brick building which survived without major alterations. The year 1828 saw the inauguration of a
Protestant 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 ...
church on the adjacent corner which strongly resembled the magistrate building in shape and architectural manner. In 1857, a secondary technical school opened next to that church; the edifice now hosts the Archeological and Ethnographical Museum. Between 1889 and 1891, the current domed church was erected in place of the former and much smaller place of worship. Its design was conceived by
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 ...
-born entrepreneur , who collaborated on the project with the city's chief architect and planner Hilary Majewski. In 1898, the square was transformed from a marketplace into a more representative and dignifying plaza along with a newly established tram network. During the
Second Polish Republic The Second Polish Republic, at the time officially known as the Republic of Poland, was a country in Central and Eastern Europe that existed between 7 October 1918 and 6 October 1939. The state was established in the final stage of World War I ...
(1918–1939), the square was a place of manifestations, marches and public events. The 1930s saw new monuments and features erected. After 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 ...
in 1939, it was renamed by the occupying German forces to 'Freiheitsplatz' and in 1940 to 'Deutschlandplatz'. These were revoked in the aftermath of the
Second World War 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 ...
. Under the
Polish People's Republic The Polish People's Republic (1952–1989), formerly the Republic of Poland (1947–1952), and also often simply known as Poland, was a country in Central Europe that existed as the predecessor of the modern-day democratic Republic of Poland. ...
(1947–1989), some of the square's northern
tenement A tenement is a type of building shared by multiple dwellings, typically with flats or apartments on each floor and with shared entrance stairway access. They are common on the British Isles, particularly in Scotland. In the medieval Old Town, E ...
buildings were deemed obsolete and demolished; they were replaced by arcaded apartment blocks in the controversial
Brutalist Brutalist architecture is an architectural style that emerged during the 1950s in the United Kingdom, among the reconstruction projects of the post-war era. Brutalist buildings are characterised by minimalist constructions that showcase the b ...
architectural style. In 1971, the urban area of Plac Wolności became protected cultural property (''zabytek''), and in 2015 it was inscribed into Poland's more prestigious List of Historic Monuments (''pomnik historii''). Due to its poor state coupled with outdated infrastructure, the octagonal square underwent a major restoration and redevelopment effort from 2022 to 2024. Most notable surface changes included rerouting the tram network to only half of the square, thus eliminating the previous roundabout and allowing pedestrian traffic on the other half, as well as new greenery, amenities and a playground.


Features


Monuments

The central feature of the square is a monument dedicated to Polish, Lithuanian and American freedom fighter
Tadeusz Kościuszko Andrzej Tadeusz Bonawentura Kościuszko (; 4 or 12 February 174615 October 1817) was a Polish Military engineering, military engineer, statesman, and military leader who then became a national hero in Poland, the United States, Lithuania, and ...
. Measuring in total height, it was initially erected between 1927 and 1930, and was unveiled to the public on 14 December 1930. Destroyed by the
Nazis Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...
during the
Second World War 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 current memorial dates to 1960 and is an exact replica of the original. The plaza also features a small 1930s fountain flanked by decorative fish, and the main entrypoint into the city's sewerage system that is managed by the Museum of the Sewer "Tube" (Muzeum Kanału "Dętka"), a branch of the City Museum based at the nearby Poznański Palace. The red-brick dried canals, designed by British engineer William Heerlein Lindley, are open to tourists.


Buildings

Among the recognisable structures or places of interest are: *Church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit (''Kościół Zesłania Ducha Świętego''), now
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 ...
and formerly the
Protestant 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 ...
Church of the Holy Trinity. *
Archeological Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscapes. Archaeology ...
and
Ethnographical Ethnography is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. It explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject of the study. Ethnography is also a type of social research that involves examining ...
Museum (''Muzeum Archeologiczne i Etnograficzne''). *Old City Hall hosting the State Archives (''Ratusz'', ''Archiwum Państwowe''). *Pharmacy Museum (''Muzeum Farmacji''), where the city's first chemist/drugstore opened. *A branch of the City Library called 'Wolność' (''Biblioteka Miejska, WOLNOŚĆ filia nr 39''). *Historical
tenement A tenement is a type of building shared by multiple dwellings, typically with flats or apartments on each floor and with shared entrance stairway access. They are common on the British Isles, particularly in Scotland. In the medieval Old Town, E ...
s and socialist apartment blocks.


See also

*
History of Łódź History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...


References


Citations


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *{{cite book , last=Wojalski , first=Mirosław Zbigniew , date=1992 , title=Działo sie̜ w Łodzi , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=l95GAAAAIAAJ&q=liberty+square+lodz , location=Łódź , publisher=ZORA , isbn=9788390080604 , lang=en , access-date=8 January 2025 Łódź Transport in Łódź Squares in Poland Tourist attractions in Łódź Voivodeship