Piekary Śląskie () () is a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

Silesia Silesia (see names #Etymology, below) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at 8, ...

in southern

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 ...

, near

Katowice Katowice (, ) is the capital city of the Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland and the central city of the Katowice urban area. As of 2021, Katowice has an official population of 286,960, and a resident population estimate of around 315,000. K ...

. One of the core cities of the

Metropolis GZM The Metropolis GZM (, formally in Polish (Upper Silesian-Dąbrowa Basin Metropolis)) is a metropolitan association () composed of 41 contiguous gminas, with a total population of over 2 million, covering most of the Katowice metropolitan area i ...

– metropolis with a population of 2 million. Located in the

Silesian Highlands Silesian Upland or Silesian Highland () is a highland located in Silesia and Lesser Poland, 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 Ca ...

, on the

Brynica The Brynica (German: ''Brinitz'') is a river in the Silesian Voivodeship of Poland. It has a length of and has a drainage basin area of . The river is the main tributary of the Czarna Przemsza. Course The river flows entirely within the Sile ...

river (tributary of the

Vistula The Vistula (; ) is the longest river in Poland and the ninth-longest in Europe, at in length. Its drainage basin, extending into three other countries apart from Poland, covers , of which is in Poland. The Vistula rises at Barania Góra i ...

). It is situated in the

Silesian Voivodeship Silesian Voivodeship ( ) is an administrative province in southern Poland. With over 4.2 million residents and an area of 12,300 square kilometers, it is the second-most populous, and the most-densely populated and most-urbanized region of Poland ...

. Piekary Śląskie is one of the cities of the 2.7 million conurbation –

Katowice urban area The Katowice urban area (, ), also known as the Upper Silesian urban area (, ), is an urban area/conurbation in southern Poland, centered on Katowice. It is located in the Silesian Voivodeship. The Katowice urban area is the largest urban are ...

and within a greater

Katowice-Ostrava metropolitan area The Katowice-Ostrava metropolitan areaBrookings Institutionbr>Redefining global cities: The seven types of global metro economies(2016), p. 16. European Spatial Planning Observation Network (ESPON"''Metroborder: Cross-border Polycentric Metropol ...

populated by about 5,294,000 people. The population of the city is 54,226 (2021). Piekary is a spiritual center of

Upper Silesia Upper Silesia ( ; ; ; ; Silesian German: ; ) is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia, located today mostly in Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic. The area is predominantly known for its heav ...

, a

Marian shrine A shrine to the Virgin Mary, or Marian shrine, is a shrine marking an Marian apparitions, apparition or other miracle ascribed to the Blessed Virgin Mary, or a site on which is centered a historically strong Blessed Virgin Mary, Marian devotion ...

which is a pilgrimage site for thousands of the faithful, and a mining town.

History

Piekary Śląskie was created in 1934 in

interwar Poland 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. ...

by merging the communes of Szarlej and Wielkie Piekary into Szarlej-Wielkie Piekary. In 1935 it was renamed Piekary Śląskie.

Name and early history

There are two legends about the founding of Piekary, according to one it was founded in the late 10th century, and according to the other it was founded by Polish ruler

Casimir I the Restorer Casimir I the Restorer (; 25 July 1016 – 19 March 1058), a member of the Piast dynasty, was the duke of Poland from 1040 until his death. Casimir was the son of Mieszko II Lambert and Richeza of Lotharingia. He is known as the Restorer because ...

in 1041. The area formed part of Poland after the establishment of the state in the 10th century. Under the

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

ized name of ''Pecare'', the settlement was mentioned in a document by the

bishop of Kraków A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

Paweł of Przemankowo from 1277. The name is of Polish origin. It derives from the word ''piekarz'' (meaning "

baker A baker is a tradesperson who baking, bakes and sometimes Sales, sells breads and other products made of flour by using an oven or other concentrated heat source. The place where a baker works is called a bakery. History Ancient histo ...

"), referring to possible bakers baking bread here for the nearby city of

Bytom Bytom (Polish pronunciation: ; Silesian language, Silesian: ''Bytōm, Bytōń'', ) is a city in Upper Silesia, in southern Poland. Located in the Silesian Voivodeship, the city is 7 km northwest of Katowice, the regional capital. It is one ...

or from the word ''pieczara'' (meaning "

cavern Caves or caverns are natural voids under the Earth's surface. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. Exogene caves are smaller openings that extend a relatively short distance underground (such as rock sh ...

"), as caverns were supposedly created here as a result of exploitation of ore. As a result of the 12th-century

fragmentation of Poland The period of rule by the Piast dynasty between the 10th and 14th centuries is the first major stage of the history of Poland, history of the Polish state. The dynasty was founded by a series of dukes listed by the chronicler Gall Anonymous in t ...

it was part of various

Piast The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I (–992). The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of King Casimir III the Great. Branches of ...

-ruled duchies, the last being the

Duchy of Opole The Duchy of Opole (; ) or Duchy of Oppeln () was one of the duchies of Silesia ruled by the branch of Polish Piast dynasty, formed during the medieval fragmentation of Poland into provincial duchies. Its capital was Opole () in Upper Silesia. S ...

until 1526. Between 1303 and 1318, the first church and independent

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

were created there. In the 15th century, the

zinc Zinc is a chemical element; it has symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodic tabl ...

and

lead Lead () is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a Heavy metal (elements), heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale, soft and Ductility, malleabl ...

mining industry developed and the process of settlement evolution begun.

Modern era

In 1526 Piekary came under the suzerainty of the

Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy, also known as Habsburg Empire, or Habsburg Realm (), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities (composite monarchy) that were ruled by the House of Habsburg. From the 18th century it is ...

. In 1645, along with the Duchy of Opole, Piekary returned to Polish rule under the

House of Vasa The House of Vasa or Wasa was a Dynasty, royal house that was founded in 1523 in Sweden. Its members ruled the Kingdom of Sweden from 1523 to 1654 and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth from 1587 to 1668. Its agnatic line became extinct with t ...

. Polish King

John III Sobieski John III Sobieski ( (); (); () 17 August 1629 – 17 June 1696) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1674 until his death in 1696. Born into Polish nobility, Sobieski was educated at the Jagiellonian University and toured Eur ...

visited Piekary in 1683, while rushing to the relief of Vienna during the Ottoman invasion. The next years brought several peasant revolts against the

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 ...

magnates The term magnate, from the late Latin ''magnas'', a great man, itself from Latin ''magnus'', "great", means a man from the higher nobility, a man who belongs to the high office-holders or a man in a high social position, by birth, wealth or ot ...

. In 1697, newly elected King of Poland

Augustus II the Strong Augustus II the Strong (12 May 1670 – 1 February 1733), was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1697 to 1706 and from 1709 until his death in 1733. He belonged to the Albertine branch of the H ...

stopped in Piekary before his royal coronation in

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 ...

. He converted to

Catholicism 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 ...

in the local church and at the same time he sworn the

pacta conventa ''Pacta conventa'' (Latin for "articles of agreement") was a contractual agreement entered into between the "Polish nation" (i.e., the szlachta (nobility) of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth) and a newly elected king upon his "free electi ...

. In January 1734, his son, elected king

Augustus III of Poland Augustus III (; – "the Saxon"; ; 17 October 1696 5 October 1763) was List of Polish monarchs, King of Poland and Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1733 until 1763, as well as List of rulers of Saxony, Elector of Saxony i ...

, also stopped here, while heading for his royal coronation, and also swore the pacta conventa here. In 1742 the settlement was annexed by

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, ...

and

colonisation 475px, Map of the year each country achieved List of sovereign states by date of formation, independence. Colonization (British English: colonisation) is a process of establishing occupation of or control over foreign territories or peoples f ...

and

Germanisation Germanisation, or Germanization, is the spread of the German language, people, and culture. It was a central idea of German conservative thought in the 19th and the 20th centuries, when conservatism and ethnic nationalism went hand in hand. In l ...

of Piekary Śląskie increased. The result was a strong movement towards maintaining the Polish origins of the land. In 1842, Piekary's rector,

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

Jan Alojzy Ficek, commissioned a new

neo-romanesque Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended t ...

Basilica of St. Mary and St. Bartholomew designed by Daniel Grötschel. A painting of the Virgin Mary was placed there. In the mid-19th century, founded a Polish printing house. In the late 19th century Polish singing and gymnastic societies, reading rooms and the first patriotic organizations were established. In 1905 the Polish Gymnastic Society "Sokół" was established in Piekary.

Tram A tram (also known as a streetcar or trolley in Canada and the United States) is an urban rail transit in which Rolling stock, vehicles, whether individual railcars or multiple-unit trains, run on tramway tracks on urban public streets; some ...

communication was available from 1894.

Recent history

It was one of the centers of

Silesian Uprisings The Silesian Uprisings (; ; ) were a series of three uprisings from August 1919 to July 1921 in Upper Silesia, which was part of the Weimar Republic at the time. Ethnic Polish and Polish-Silesian insurrectionists, seeking to have the area tran ...

and in 1922 was ceded to 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 ...

Weimar Germany The Weimar Republic, officially known as the German Reich, was the German Reich, German state from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional republic for the first time in history; hence it is also referred to, and unofficially proclai ...

as 86% of the population voted for joining the re-established Polish state. In June 1922, a symbolic ceremony of reintegration of Piekary with Poland took place. Polish

Uhlan Uhlan (; ; ; ; ) is a type of light cavalry, primarily armed with a lance. The uhlans started as Grand Ducal Lithuanian Army, Lithuanian irregular cavalry, that were later also adopted by other countries during the 18th century, including Polis ...

s under the command of Stanisław Szeptycki entered Piekary, greeted by the St. Mary church by the local populace led by , local Polish independence activist and poet, nicknamed the "Silesian Wernyhora". On July 10, 1939, Piekary Śląskie received

city rights 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 tradition ...

with effect from 1940. As a result of the outbreak 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 actual implementation of this law did not take place until 1947. During the joint German-Soviet

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 ...

, which started

, Piekary was captured by Germany in September 1939, and then was under

German occupation German-occupied Europe, or Nazi-occupied Europe, refers to the sovereign countries of Europe which were wholly or partly militarily occupied and civil-occupied, including puppet states, by the (armed forces) and the government of Nazi Germany at ...

until 1945. Already in September 1939, the Germans carried out several executions of

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 ...

(see ''

Nazi crimes against the Polish nation War crime, Crimes against the Polish nation committed by Nazi Germany and Axis powers, Axis collaborationist forces during the invasion of Poland, along with Schutzmannschaft#Police battalions, auxiliary battalions during the subsequent occu ...

''). On September 6, Germans murdered three Poles in the present-day district of Brzozowice. On September 17, the ''

Freikorps (, "Free Corps" or "Volunteer Corps") were irregular German and other European paramilitary volunteer units that existed from the 18th to the early 20th centuries. They effectively fought as mercenaries or private military companies, rega ...

'' murdered two miners, one local official and one former Silesian Uprisings participant in Piekary. Several miners from the present-day district of Brzozowice were murdered in nearby Lasowice (present-day district of

Tarnowskie Góry Tarnowskie Góry (; ; ) is a city in Silesia, southern Poland, located in the Silesian Highlands near Katowice and seat city of Tarnowskie Góry County Located in the north of the Metropolis GZM, a megalopolis (city type), megalopolis, the great ...

). Local teachers were among Polish teachers murdered in

Nazi concentration camps From 1933 to 1945, Nazi Germany operated more than a thousand concentration camps (), including subcamp (SS), subcamps on its own territory and in parts of German-occupied Europe. The first camps were established in March 1933 immediately af ...

. The '' Polenlager No. 188'', a

forced labour Forced labour, or unfree labour, is any work relation, especially in modern or early modern history, in which people are employed against their will with the threat of destitution, detention, or violence, including death or other forms of ...

camp for Poles, was operated in the city. During the occupation, the city's main street, Bytomska, was renamed

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

Street (''Adolf-Hitler-Straße''). In 1973 Kozłowa Góra was included within the city limits as the northernmost district. Under the administrative reform of 1975, the city limits were expanded by including the surrounding towns and settlements: Dąbrówka Wielka, Brzeziny Śląskie, Brzozowice and Kamień.

Districts

* * * * * * *

Sights

The main landmark of Piekary Śląskie is the

Romanesque Revival Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended t ...

Basilica of St. Mary and St. Bartholomew, a popular Catholic pilgrimage site. Another symbol of the city is the , erected in 1932–1937 to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the march of the Polish hussars of King

through Piekary to

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

and the 15th anniversary of reintegrating eastern Upper Silesia with Poland after the

. It is the highest point within the city limits. Also the Piekary

Calvary Calvary ( or ) or Golgotha () was a site immediately outside Jerusalem's walls where, according to Christianity's four canonical gospels, Jesus was crucified. Since at least the early medieval period, it has been a destination for pilgrimage. ...

with the Church of the Resurrection of Christ is one of the city's landmarks. Piekary Slaskie Andaluzja monument

Other historic architecture includes the Sacred Heart church, Saints Peter and Paul church, Our Lady Help of Christians church and the Our Lady of Perpetual Help chapel in Kozłowa Góra, as well as numerous historic townhouses and buildings. In the city there are also monuments commemorating Poles murdered during the

in World War II, and a monument to local Polish independence activist and poet Wawrzyniec Hajda, located in the Szarlej district.

Gallery

File:MOs810 WG 2018 8 Zaleczansko Slaski (Liberation Mound in Piekary Śląskie) (1).jpg, Liberation Mound File:Piekary Śląskie, kaplica Pałac Heroda 01.JPG, One of the chapels of the Piekary Calvary File:Sacred Heart church Piekary Slaskie.jpg, Sacred Heart church File:Piekary Śląskie - Wojewódzki Szpital Chirurgii Urazowej 01.jpg, Historic hospital building File:Piekary Slaskie Kozlowa Gora chapel.jpg, Our Lady of Perpetual Help chapel in Kozłowa Góra File:Piekary Śląskie, Ficka 3.jpg, Facade of an old tenement house with figurines of Holy Mary

Sports

The city's most notable sports club is

handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball, Olympic handball or indoor handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of thr ...

team Olimpia Piekary Śląskie, which competes in the I Liga (Polish second tier), but in the past played in the

Polish Superliga The Polish Superliga, officially known as the Orlen Superliga due to its sponsorship by Orlen, is the top men's handball league in Poland. It is currently a 14 teams league, played from September to May. The competition was founded in 1956 under ...

(top division), where it finished 4th in 2007.

Notable people

Piekary Slaskie Szarlej Wawrzyniec Hajda monument

* Karol Langner (1843–1912), Polish priest * (1844–1923), Polish independence activist and poet * Hans Marchwitza, born at Szarlej (1890–1965), German writer and Communist * Hans Kroll (1898–1967), German diplomat * Wilhelm Antoni Góra (1916–1975), Polish footballer * Marek Siwiec (born 1955), Polish politician,

Member of the European Parliament A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been Election, elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and S ...

Jerzy Polaczek Jerzy Jan Polaczek (born 24 August 1961 in Piekary Śląskie) is a Polish politician. He was elected to the Sejm on 25 September 2005 getting 39,335 votes in the 31st Katowice district as a candidate for the Law and Justice Law and Just ...

(born 1961), Polish politician * Adam Matysek (born 1968), Polish footballer * Dariusz Wosz (born 1969), German footballer

Twin towns – sister cities

Piekary Śląskie is twinned with: *

Kobuleti Kobuleti ( ka, ქობულეთი, ) is a town in Adjara, western Georgia (country), Georgia, situated on the eastern coast of the Black Sea. It is the seat of Kobuleti Municipality and a seaside resort. It was known as ''Çürüksu'' durin ...

, Georgia *

Kroměříž Kroměříž (; ) is a town in the Zlín Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 28,000 inhabitants. It is known for Kroměříž Castle with its castle gardens, which are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The historic town centre with the castle ...

, Czech Republic *

Marija Bistrica Marija Bistrica () is a village and municipality in the Krapina-Zagorje County in central Croatia, located on the slopes of the Medvednica mountain in the Hrvatsko Zagorje region north of the capital Zagreb. The municipality has 5,976 inhabitants, ...

, Croatia

References

External links

Piekary, Silesia

Jewish Community in Piekary Śląskie
on Virtual Shtetl {{Authority control City counties of Poland Cities and towns in Silesian Voivodeship Populated riverside places in Poland Sites of Nazi war crimes during the Invasion of Poland