Lidzbark Warmiński (; , ), often shortened to Lidzbark, is a historical town located within the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, in 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 the capital of Lidzbark County. Lidzbark Warmiński was once the capital of Warmia and formerly its largest town. Lidzbark itself was a religious and cultural center, for which it was known as the ''Pearl of Warmia''. For a long period of time it was under the control of the Warmian Bishops and it was also a major economic center, only resigning its importance to the nearby city of Braniewo. The Warmian Bishop's Castle is considered to be a great artistic and historical value in the world and has been recognised as a Historic Monument by the Polish government.

History

The town was originally a settlement of

Old Prussians Old Prussians, Baltic Prussians or simply Prussians were a Balts, Baltic people that inhabited the Prussia (region), region of Prussia, on the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea between the Vistula Lagoon to the west and the Curonian Lagoon ...

known as ''Lecbarg'' until being conquered in 1240 by the

Teutonic Knights The Teutonic Order is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem was formed to aid Christians on their pilgrimages to t ...

, who named it Heilsberg. In 1306 it became the seat for the

Bishopric of Warmia The Prince-Bishopric of Warmia (; ) was a semi-independent ecclesiastical state, ruled by the incumbent ordinary of the Warmia see and comprising one third of the then diocesan area. The Warmia see was a Prussian diocese under the jurisdictio ...

, and remained the

Prince-Bishop A prince-bishop is a bishop who is also the civil ruler of some secular principality and sovereignty, as opposed to '' Prince of the Church'' itself, a title associated with cardinals. Since 1951, the sole extant prince-bishop has been the ...

's seat for 500 years. In 1309 the settlement received

town privileges 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 ...

. In the 1350s the Castle of Warmian Bishops was built, and it was expanded in the following centuries, becoming one of the most significant and remarkable historic monuments of Warmia, which nowadays houses a museum and is listed as a Historic Monument of Poland. In 1440 the town joined the anti-Teutonic Prussian Confederation, upon the request of which in 1454 Polish King

Casimir IV Jagiellon Casimir IV (Casimir Andrew Jagiellon; ; Lithuanian: ; 30 November 1427 – 7 June 1492) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1440 and King of Poland from 1447 until his death in 1492. He was one of the most active Polish-Lithuanian rulers; under ...

incorporated the region and town 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 ...

. This caused the Polish–Teutonic Thirteen Years' War, as a result of which in the Second Peace of Thorn (1466) 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 ...

ended its claim to the area and recognized it as part of Poland. It was the capital of the Prince-Bishopric of Warmia in the province of Royal Prussia in the larger Greater Poland Province.

Nicolaus Copernicus Nicolaus Copernicus (19 February 1473 – 24 May 1543) was a Renaissance polymath who formulated a mathematical model, model of Celestial spheres#Renaissance, the universe that placed heliocentrism, the Sun rather than Earth at its cen ...

first visited the town at the turn of 1495 and 1496, and then lived at the castle from 1503. It is believed he wrote part of his ''

De revolutionibus orbium coelestium ''De revolutionibus orbium coelestium'' (English translation: ''On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres'') is the seminal work on the heliocentric theory of the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus (1473–1543) of the Polish Renaissance. The book ...

'' there. In the winter of 1703–04 the town was the residence of King

Charles XII of Sweden Charles XII, sometimes Carl XII () or Carolus Rex (17 June 1682 – 30 November 1718 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.), was King of Sweden from 1697 to 1718. He belonged to the House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken, a branch line of the House of ...

during the

Great Northern War In the Great Northern War (1700–1721) a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern Europe, Northern, Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the ant ...

. In the mid-18th century a manuscript of the '' Gesta principum Polonorum'', the oldest

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

Polish chronicle was discovered in the castle by Prince-Bishop

Adam Stanisław Grabowski Adam Stanisław Grabowski (; 3 September 1698, Wielki Buczek, near Debrzno – 15 December 1766, Lidzbark Warmiński), of the ''Zbiświcz'' coat-of-arms, was Bishop of Chełmno 1736–39, Bishop of Kujawy 1739–41, Prince-Bishop of Warmia 1 ...

, by whose decision it was then published in print for the first time. The town was annexed with the rest of the region by the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (, ) was a German state that existed from 1701 to 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1946. It played a signif ...

in 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. The town ceased to be the capital of the Prince-Bishopric of Warmia, which was disestablished, however it remained the seat of the last Prince-Bishop

Ignacy Krasicki Ignacy Błażej Franciszek Krasicki (3 February 173514 March 1801), from 1766 Prince-Bishop of Warmia (in German, ''Ermland'') and from 1795 Archbishop of Gniezno (thus, Primate of Poland), was Poland's leading Polish Enlightenment, Enlightenment ...

until 1795, and afterwards the town lost its cultural significance, which it has not regained since. In 1807 a

battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force co ...

took place near the town between the French under

Joachim Murat Joachim Murat ( , also ; ; ; 25 March 1767 – 13 October 1815) was a French Army officer and statesman who served during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Under the French Empire he received the military titles of Marshal of the ...

and Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult and the

Russians Russians ( ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Eastern Europe. Their mother tongue is Russian language, Russian, the most spoken Slavic languages, Slavic language. The majority of Russians adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church ...

and Prussians under Levin August, count von Bennigsen. From 1933 to 1945 it was the site of the large German government radio station Transmitter Heilsberg. The town was heavily damaged after its conquest by the

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

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 ...

during

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 ...

in 1945. After German surrender, sovereignty over the town was ceremoniously transferred to Polish authorities on May 19, 1945 by the Soviets. As part of territorial changes demanded by the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

, Polish rule was accepted at the Potsdam Conference, however, on preliminary terms. Germans were displaced and the town was gradually resettled by

Poles Pole or poles may refer to: People *Poles (people), another term for Polish people, from the country of Poland * Pole (surname), including a list of people with the name * Pole (musician) (Stefan Betke, born 1967), German electronic music artist ...

, many of them from the parts of eastern Poland annexed by the Soviet Union. The transfer was confirmed by the German–Polish Border Treaty.

Geography

* Elma river, a tributary of the Łyna River near Lidzbark Warmiński

Sights

The main landmark of Lidzbark Warmiński is the Gothic Castle of Warmian Bishops with adjacent fortifications, towers and the

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

Grabowski Palace. Other sights include: *Baroque- Neoclassical Krasicki Orangery (''Oranżeria Krasickiego'') *Gothic Collegiate church of Saints Peter and Paul *Medieval town walls and High Gate (''Brama Wysoka'') *Baroque Exaltation of the Holy Cross church *Town hall *Monument of

Education

Colleges * Wszechnica Warmińska - non-state college founded on 20 November 2003 High schools * Comprehensive Schools im. Kazimierza Jagiellończyka * Trade Schools im. Stanisława Staszica * Farmer School * Catholic High School Primary schools * Primary School No. 1 im. Mikołaja Kopernika * Primary School No. 3 im. Ignacego Krasickiego * Primary School No. 4 im. Jana Pawła II Music schools * National Music School I Level Kindergartens * Non-Public Kindergarten "Kubuś" * Non-Public Kindergarten "Miś" * Non-Public Kindergarten "Puchatek" * Public Kindergarten No. 5 * Public Kindergarten No. 6 Other educational institutions * Youth Educational Centre im. Marii Grzegorzewskiej * Psychological and Pedagogical Counseling Centre * Special School and Educational Centre

Sports

The local

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 ...

team is Polonia Lidzbark Warmiński. It competes in the lower leagues.

Twin towns – sister cities

Lidzbark Warmiński is twinned with: * Oud-Beijerland, Netherlands (1992) * Milanówek, Poland (2001) *

Sovetsk, Kaliningrad Oblast Sovetsk (; ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town in Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia, located on the south bank of the Neman River which forms the border with Lithuania. History Early history Tilsit, which received German town law, c ...

, Russia (2001) * Werlte, Germany (2005)

Notable people

* Mauritius Ferber (1471–1537), member of the patrician Ferber family and Roman Catholic Prince- Bishop of Warmia *

(1473–1547), famous astronomer, mathematician, physician, and

canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...

* Stanislaus Hosius (Stanisław Hozjusz) (1504–1579), Polish Roman Catholic cardinal, Prince- Bishop of Warmia * John Albert Vasa (Jan Albert Waza) (1612–1634), Polish

prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

, cardinal, Prince-Bishop of Warmia and

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

, * Teodor Andrzej Potocki (1664–1738), Prince-Bishop of Warmia,

Primate Primates is an order (biology), order of mammals, which is further divided into the Strepsirrhini, strepsirrhines, which include lemurs, galagos, and Lorisidae, lorisids; and the Haplorhini, haplorhines, which include Tarsiiformes, tarsiers a ...

of Poland, interrex in 1733 * (ca. 1732–ca. 1780), Polish painter and draughtsman *

(1735–1801), Prince-Bishop of Warmia, Primate of Poland, leading

Polish Enlightenment The ideas of the Age of Enlightenment in Poland were developed later than in Western Europe, as the Polish bourgeoisie was weaker, and szlachta (nobility) culture (Sarmatism) together with the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth political system (Gol ...

poet * Ernst Burchard (1876–1920), doctor and scientist * Dorothee Rätsch (born 1940), German sculptor and graphic artist * Andrzej Rozbicki (born 1948), Polish-Canadian conductor and music educator * Zbigniew Mikołejko (born 1951), Polish philosopher and historian of religion, essayist * Tadeusz Płoski (1956–2010), Military Ordinariate of Poland, victim of the Smolensk air disaster * Marek Mikulski (born 1981), Polish Olympic wrestler * Dawid Szymonowicz (born 1995), Polish footballer

References

External links

* *
Map of Warmia Catholic Diocese in 1755
* https://web.archive.org/web/20171010080701/https://www.heilsberg.org/ (in German) {{Authority control Populated places established in the 13th century Cities and towns in Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship Lidzbark County Warmia