Mińsk Mazowiecki (, ) is a town in eastern Poland with 40,999 inhabitants (2020). It is situated 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 ...

and is a part of the

Warsaw metropolitan area The Warsaw metropolitan area (known in Polish language, Polish as: or ) is the metropolitan area of Warsaw, the capital of Poland. The metropolitan area covers ten List of counties in Poland, counties in the Masovian Voivodeship, with an area ...

. It is the capital of

Mińsk County __NOTOC__ Mińsk County () is a unit of territorial administration and local government (powiat) in Masovian Voivodeship, east-central Poland. It was (re)created on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Polish local government reforms passed in 19 ...

. Located 20 kilometers from the city limits of Warsaw and 38 kilometers from Warsaw's center.

Name

The source of the town name ''Mińsk'' is the Mienia River, which in turn derives from the verb '''mienić''', which means 'to shine'. The postnominal adjective '''Mazowiecki shows the historical connection to

Mazovia Mazovia or Masovia ( ) is a historical region in mid-north-eastern Poland. It spans the North European Plain, roughly between Łódź and Białystok, with Warsaw being the largest city and Płock being the capital of the region . Throughout the ...

and distinguishes Mińsk Mazowiecki () from the Belarusian capital of

Minsk Minsk (, ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach (Berezina), Svislach and the now subterranean Nyamiha, Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the administra ...

Location

Mińsk Mazowiecki is located historically in the region of

and administratively in the eastern part of

, east from

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 ...

's Center and from Warsaw's border.

History

The first mention of a settlement with commercial function comes from the 14th century. On 29 May 1421, Duke

Janusz I of Warsaw Janusz I of Warsaw (pl: ''Janusz I warszawski''), also known as Janusz I the Old (pl: ''Janusz I Starszy'') (c. 1347/52 – 8 December 1429), was a Polish prince member of the House of Piast in the Dukes of Masovia, Masovian branch, from 1373/74 D ...

from the

Piast dynasty The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented List of Polish monarchs, Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I of Poland, Mieszko I (–992). The Poland during the Piast dynasty, Piasts' royal rule in Pol ...

granted Mińsk

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 ...

. The first wooden church was built in 1422, however, it was not preserved. In 1549, the town of Sendomierz was located on the other side of Srebrna River. In 1629, the present church was opened. In 1695, Sendomierz was merged with Mińsk. The 18th century was a time of gradual decline of Mińsk connected with gradual decline of the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, also referred to as Poland–Lithuania or the First Polish Republic (), was a federation, federative real union between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ...

. Following 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, the town was annexed by

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

. After the Polish victory in the

Austro-Polish War The Austro-Polish War or Polish-Austrian War was a part of the War of the Fifth Coalition in 1809 (a coalition of the Austrian Empire and the United Kingdom against Napoleon's French Empire and allied states). In this war, Polish forces of ...

of 1809, it became part of the short-lived Polish

Duchy of Warsaw The Duchy of Warsaw (; ; ), also known as the Grand Duchy of Warsaw and Napoleonic Poland, was a First French Empire, French client state established by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1807, during the Napoleonic Wars. It initially comprised the ethnical ...

. After the duchy's dissolution, in 1815, it became part of Russian-controlled

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 ...

. 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 Russian Partition, the heartland of Partitions of Poland, partitioned Poland against the Russian Empire. ...

, it was the site of two battles between Polish insurgents and Russian troops, fought on 26 April and 14 July 1831. In 1866, the Mińsk County was established, and the first train arrived to Mińsk ( Warsaw–Terespol Railway). In 1867, the name of the town was changed to Nowomińsk (''Novominsk''). In 1870, the Dernałowicz Family became the last owners of the town (up to 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 ...

). In 1886, the first bookstore in east

was founded in the town. In 1910 or 1912, the Maria Grochowska's School was opened (present-day ''Polska Macierz Szkolna'' High School). In 1914, the old church was reopened after reconstruction, and the following year the present hospital was opened. During

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 ...

, it was occupied by Germany from 1915 to 1918. In 1916, the town was renamed to ''Mińsk Mazowiecki''. In 1918, Poland regained independence and control of Mińsk. During the

Polish–Soviet War The Polish–Soviet War (14 February 1919 – 18 March 1921) was fought primarily between the Second Polish Republic and the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, following World War I and the Russian Revolution. After the collapse ...

, it was briefly occupied by the Russians on 16 August 1920, and then recaptured by the Poles the next day. On 18 August 1920 Marshal

Józef Piłsudski Józef Klemens Piłsudski (; 5 December 1867 – 12 May 1935) was a Polish statesman who served as the Chief of State (Poland), Chief of State (1918–1922) and first Marshal of Poland (from 1920). In the aftermath of World War I, he beca ...

stayed in the town. In the interbellum, the town enjoyed great development, and in 1937 the first electric train arrived. The 7th Lublin Uhlan Regiment was stationed in Mińsk Mazowiecki in the interbellum, and nowadays there is a museum dedicated to the unit in the town. On 13 September 1939, it was the site of the Battle of Mińsk Mazowiecki between Poles led by General

Władysław Anders Władysław Albert Anders (11 August 1892 – 12 May 1970) was a Polish military officer and politician, and prominent member of the Polish government-in-exile in London. Born in Krośniewice-Błonie, then part of the Russian Empire, he serv ...

and the invading German army. Afterwards it fell under German occupation. In 1939, some expelled Poles from Barcin,

Kępno Kępno is a town in south-central Poland. Kępno is located in the historical Wieluń Land. It lies on the outskirts of the Greater Poland Voivodeship, bordering the historical region of Silesia and the Łódź Voivodeship. As of December 31, 200 ...

, Ostrzeszów, Rychtal and

Szubin Szubin () is a town in Nakło County, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland, located southwest of Bydgoszcz. It has a population of around 9,333 (as of 2010). It is located on the Gąsawka River in the ethnocultural region of Pałuki. A small ...

were deported to Mińsk Mazowiecki. In October 1940, the occupiers established the Mińsk Mazowiecki Ghetto, which was eventually liquidated on 21 July 1942, with most of the Jewish residents murdered at the

Treblinka extermination camp Treblinka () was the second-deadliest extermination camp to be built and operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland during World War II. It was in a forest north-east of Warsaw, south of the village of Treblinka in what is now the Mas ...

in one of the first episodes of

the Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

. Two Poles who were held by the Germans in the local prison for rescuing Jews were liberated by the Polish resistance. On 30 July 1944, Mińsk Mazowiecki was liberated by the Polish underground

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 ...

(prelude to the

Warsaw Uprising The Warsaw Uprising (; ), sometimes referred to as the August Uprising (), or the Battle of Warsaw, was a major World War II operation by the Polish resistance movement in World War II, Polish underground resistance to liberate Warsaw from ...

), however, the Soviets occupied the town the next day. On 2–3 March 1945, the Soviets carried out executions of the local Polish elite, including Mayor Hipolit Konopka. After the war, the town was restored to Poland, although with a Soviet-installed communist regime, which stayed in power until the

Fall of Communism The revolutions of 1989, also known as the Fall of Communism, were a revolutionary wave of liberal democracy movements that resulted in the collapse of most Marxist–Leninist governments in the Eastern Bloc and other parts of the world. Th ...

in the 1980s. In 1952, the ZNTK Mińsk Mazowiecki train construction factory was founded. In 1957, Mińsk Mazowiecki became a military garrison. A new train station was opened in 1979.

Solidarity Solidarity or solidarism is an awareness of shared interests, objectives, standards, and sympathies creating a psychological sense of unity of groups or classes. True solidarity means moving beyond individual identities and single issue politics ...

events took place in 1985. In 1990, Zbigniew Grzesiak was elected Mayor in first post-WWII free elections. In 1999, the Mińsk County was established.

Jewish history

In 1768, the restrictions on permanent residence for Jewish people in Mińsk had been lifted. From the 19th century to the 1930s, it became very popular. Before the

, there were thousands of Jews living in Mińsk, and they had a general synagogue and smaller temples. The Novominsk hasidic dynasty was founded here in the late 19th century by Rabbi Yaakov Perlow, a descendant of the Baal Shem Tov. Soon after the war began, the

Germans Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, constitution of Germany, imple ...

created the Mińsk Ghetto. It was liquidated on 21 July 1942. Most of the Jews were murdered in

sent in

Holocaust trains Holocaust trains were railway transports run by the ''Deutsche Reichsbahn'' and other European railways under the control of Nazi Germany and its allies, for the purpose of forcible deportation of the Jews, as well as other victims of the Holo ...

by the thousands. The remaining Jewish population were murdered in Mińsk on 10 January 1943 (500 people) and 5 June (the last 150 people).

Monuments

*layout of medieval settlement and later city *Palace of Doria Dernałowicz Family – built probably in the 17th century (in place of 16th century residence), converted to

classicism Classicism, in the arts, refers generally to a high regard for a classical period, classical antiquity in the Western tradition, as setting standards for taste which the classicists seek to emulate. In its purest form, classicism is an aesthe ...

**park *Church of the Nativity of The Blessed Virgin Mary – built in the 17th century, converted to neo-baroque in the early 20th century **internal furnishing **cemetery *county hall (former), 19th century,

*county hall, 19th century *post office, 19th century,

empire An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...

*church of

Mariavite Church The Old Catholic Mariavite Church refers to one of two independent Christianity, Christian Church body, churches, both of which can be dated from 1906 but which became distinct after 1935 as a result of doctrinal differences, and are collective ...

, 1911 *residential areas, 19th and early 20th century *Jewish cemetery *some school buildings (early 20th century)

Economy

Trade: *

hypermarket A hypermarket or superstore is a big-box store combining a supermarket and a department store. The result is an expansive retail facility carrying a wide range of products under one roof, including full grocery lines and general merchandise. In ...

Carrefour Carrefour Group, S.A. (, ), is a French multinational retail and wholesaling corporation headquartered in Massy, Essonne, Massy, France. It operates a chain of hypermarkets, grocery stores and convenience stores. By 2024, the group had 14,000 ...

*supermarkets (about 10) *many other shops *market *developers Service: *10 banks *fast-foods, pubs and restaurants *3 hotels *construction industry *car service *satellite communication Industry: * ZNTK "Mińsk Mazowiecki" (since 2008 a subsidiary

PESA SA Pesa SA (Polish language, Polish: Pojazdy Szynowe Pesa Bydgoszcz) is a Polish rolling stock manufacturer based in Bydgoszcz. The name 'Pesa' derives from the initials PS which stand for ''Pojazdy Szynowe,'' 'railway vehicles' in Polish. Pes ...

) – maintenance and repair of railway rolling stock * Fabryka Urządzeń Dźwigowych – production of cranes and other heavy machinery * cotton products * yachts * shoes * foil

Population

Education

*''Józef Majka'' College of Social Science (catholic) *''Stanisław Staszic'' Lifelong Learning Center *University of Third Age *''Polska Macierz Szkolna'' High School *Salesian Elementary and High School (catholic) *''Kazimierz Wielki'' Professional High School *''Powstańcy Warszawy'' Professional High School *High School of Economy *''Maria Skłodowska-Curie'' High School *6 public elementary schools *over 10 preschools (6 public) *special school (for kids with problems) *clinic of psychological and pedagogical help

Bureaus

*Regional Bureau of Environmental Protection Inspection *Point of Conscription *Above Forester Bureau (Nadleśnictwo Mińsk) *County, city and commune bureaus

Safety

*Police Department of

– 2 building in Mińsk, dozens of cars (including sport cars and off-road cars) *Fire Department of Mińsk County – quite new fire engines (well equipped after big fire in industry area a few years ago) *Public Hospital of Mińsk County

Culture and sports

Culture: *House of Culture *School of Art *2 libraries *2 museums *Cinema *Magazines (2 public and 3 commercial are published in Mińsk) Sport: *Miejski Ośrodek Sportu i Rekreacji (public sport and recreation department) **2 stadiums **Ice rink *Mazovia-ZNTK **Football team in local amateur league

Religions

Roman Catholic Church 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 ...

(4 parishes and other structures) *

(1 parish) *

Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...

(1 congregation) *

Mennonite Mennonites are a group of Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian communities tracing their roots to the epoch of the Radical Reformation. The name ''Mennonites'' is derived from the cleric Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland, part of ...

(1 congregation)

Public transport

*Train station **Regular service (39 trains in one way daily) to

**Direct connections with many cities in Poland, and with Moscow *2 regular bus services to Warsaw

Lands

Overall: *Residential: 30% *Industrial: 6% *Communication (roads, railroads etc.): 15% *Agricultural: 29% *Parks: 5% *Other: 15%

Historical parts of city

Cities: *Mińsk – old town *Sendomierz (found 1549, joined 1695) Estates built as part of Mińsk: * – New Town – Garden Town (found 1936) *Concrete estates built in socialist realism (about 1945–1990) without names *Modern estates without names Villages: *Over railroad part of city (''all existed in 1839 and earlier'') **Kędzierak (joined partly in 1954 and fully in 1984) **Stankowizna (''joined in 19th or 20th century'') **Anielina (''joined in similar time as Kędzierak'') *Other **Górki (joined in the 18th century) **Goździk (joined during First World War) **Kolonia Stasinów (joined in 1936) **Pohulanka (joined partly in 1936) **Sewerynów (''joined in similar time as Kędzierak'')

Military

*Military police * 23rd Air Base with FA-50 aircraft

Twin towns – sister cities

Mińsk Mazowiecki is twinned with: * Borodianka, Ukraine *

Krnov Krnov (; , or ''Krnów'') is a town in Bruntál District in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 23,000 inhabitants. Administrative division Krnov consists of three municipal parts (in brackets population according to ...

, Czech Republic * Lacey, United States *

Pefki Pefki (, , meaning "pine", before 1959: Μαγκουφάνα ''Magkoufana'' ) is a town and a suburb in the northeastern part of the Athens agglomeration, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it is part of the municipality Lykovrysi-P ...

, Greece * Saint-Égrève, France *

Telšiai Telšiai (; Samogitian language, Samogitian: ''Telšē'') is a city in Lithuania with about 21,499 inhabitants. It is the capital of Telšiai County and Samogitia region, and it is located on the shores of Lake Mastis. Telšiai is one of the ol ...

, Lithuania

Notable people

* Julian Grobelny,

Righteous Among the Nations Righteous Among the Nations ( ) is a title used by Yad Vashem to describe people who, for various reasons, made an effort to assist victims, mostly Jews, who were being persecuted and exterminated by Nazi Germany, Fascist Romania, Fascist Italy, ...

Louis B. Mayer Louis Burt Mayer (; born Lazar Meir; July 12, 1884Mayer maintained that he was born in Minsk on July 4, 1885. According to Scott Eyman, the reasons may have been: * Mayer's father gave different dates for his birthplace at different times, so ...

, Hollywood film producer and studio executive * Czesław Mroczek, poseł * Teresa Wargocka, poseł * Moshe Carmel, politician in Israel * Stefan Żeromski, writer *Jan Himilsbach, actor and author *Leyb Rokhman,

Yiddish Yiddish, historically Judeo-German, is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated in 9th-century Central Europe, and provided the nascent Ashkenazi community with a vernacular based on High German fused with ...

writer in Israel *Hanna Dunowska, actor * Victor Prus, architect in Canada * Yeshurun Keshet Israeli poet, essayist, translator and literary critic *Jacques Kalisz, architect in France * Stanislav Redens, secret police officer in the Soviet Union *Hermann Birnbach, subject of a ''

Stolperstein A (; plural ) is a concrete cube bearing a brass plate inscribed with the name and life dates of victims of Nazi extermination or persecution. Literal translation, Literally, it means 'stumbling stone' and metaphorically 'stumbling block'. ...

'' in Nordhausen * Marek Piotrowski, World Champion in

Kickboxing Kickboxing ( ) is a full-contact hybrid Martial arts, martial art and Boxing (disambiguation), boxing type based on punch (combat), punching and kicking. Kickboxing originated in the 1950s to 1970s. The fight takes place in a boxing ring, norma ...

* Rafał Jackiewicz, boxer

References

Books

*585 lat Mińska Mazowieckiego, red. Janusz Kuligowski, Mińsk Mazowiecki, 2006,

External links

* Co słychać? – weekly magazine, ISSN 1425-6185 * Web page of City Hal
Minsk Maz.pl
(English) * Web page of County Hal
Powiat Minski.pl
* Web page

Jewish cemetery

Historical placards
* {{Authority control Cities and towns in Masovian Voivodeship Mińsk County Populated riverside places in Poland Holocaust locations in Poland