Powiśle or Dolne Powiśle is a cultural and geographic region 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 ...

, administratively located in the Pomeranian and Warmian-Masurian Voivodeships. It is named after the

Vistula River 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 ...

(), referring to the region's location on the right bank of the river, near its delta. The largest cities and towns of Powiśle are

Elbląg Elbląg (; ; ) is a city in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, in northern Poland, located in the eastern edge of the Żuławy region with 127,390 inhabitants, as of December 2021. It is the capital of Elbląg County. Elbląg is one of the ol ...

Kwidzyn Kwidzyn (; ; Latin: ''Quedin''; Old Prussian: ''Kwēdina'') is a town in northern Poland on the Liwa River. With a population of 36,731, it is the capital of Kwidzyn County in the Pomeranian Voivodeship. Geography Kwidzyn is located on the L ...

Malbork Malbork (German: ''Marienburg'') is a town in the Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland. It is the seat of Malbork County and has a population of 36,709 people as of 2024. The town is located on the Nogat river, in the historical region of Pomerelia. Fo ...

and

Iława Iława (; ) is a town in northern Poland with 32,276 inhabitants (2010). It is the capital of Iława County in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship. The town is located in the Iławskie Lake District, on the longest lake in Poland – Jeziorak.

. 2007 was designated the "Year of Powiśle" (''Rok Powiśla''), with various festivities held in the region, including musical, athletic, theatrical and historical re-enactments. Powiśle is bordered by

Warmia Warmia ( ; Latin: ''Varmia'', ''Warmia''; ; Warmian subdialect, Warmian: ''Warńija''; Old Prussian language, Old Prussian: ''Wārmi'') is both a historical and an ethnographic region in northern Poland, forming part of historical Prussia (reg ...

and

Masuria Masuria ( ; ; ) is an ethnographic and geographic region in northern and northeastern Poland, known for its 2,000 lakes. Masuria occupies much of the Masurian Lake District. Administratively, it is part of the Warmian–Masurian Voivodeship (ad ...

in the east, by the

Chełmno Land Chełmno land (, or Kulmerland) is a part of the historical region of Pomerelia, located in central-northern Poland. Chełmno land is named after the city of Chełmno. The largest city in the region is Toruń; another bigger city is Grudziąd ...

in the south, and by

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 ...

in the west.

Sights

Malbork Castle The Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork, commonly known as Malbork Castle (; ), is a Brick Gothic castle complex located in the town of Malbork, Poland, built in the 13th and significantly expanded in the 14th century. It is the largest cast ...

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

and Historic Monument of Poland *

Kwidzyn Castle Kwidzyn Castle (German: Marienwerder) is a large brick Gothic castle in the town of Kwidzyn, Poland. The castle is modeled on the Gothic castles of the Teutonic Knights'. Description The castle is located by Gdańska Street (''Ulica Gdańska ...

and Co-Cathedral complex in

, Historic Monument of Poland *

Elbląg Canal Elbląg Canal (; ) is a canal in Poland, in Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, in length, which runs southward from Drużno, Lake Drużno (connected by the river Elbląg (river), Elbląg to the Vistula Lagoon), to the river Drwęca and lake Jeziorak ...

, partly located in

, Historic Monument of Poland, with

Lake Ruda Woda Lake Ruda Woda (; ) is a long freshwater ribbon lake in Powiśle (region), Powiśle region in northern Poland. The lake lies entirely within Gmina Małdyty in Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship and is an integral part of the Elbląg Canal. Stretching ...

as its longest natural section *Sierakowski Palace in Waplewo Wielkie, seat of the Museum of Noble Tradition (''Muzeum Tradycji Szlacheckiej''), branch of the National Museum in Gdańsk *Archaeological and Historical Museum in

* Elbląg Upland Landscape Park and Iława Lake District Landscape Park with

Jeziorak Jeziorak () is a lake in the Iława Lake District in Warmia-Masuria, Poland. Its area is 3,219 ha (including 20 islands with a combined area of 240 ha). It is long and across at its widest. The maximum depth is . It is the longest lake in Polan ...

, the longest and sixth largest lake in Poland * Bażyński Oak in Kadyny, over 700-year-old

oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

and

natural monument A natural monument is a natural or cultural feature of outstanding or unique value because of its inherent rarity, representative of aesthetic qualities, or cultural significance. They can be natural geological and geographical features such as w ...

of Poland, one of the oldest and thickest trees in Poland

Cuisine

Powiśle is the place of cultivation of apples,

pear Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in late summer into mid-autumn. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus ''Pyrus'' , in the Family (biology), family Rosaceae, bearing the Pome, po ...

s and

plum A plum is a fruit of some species in Prunus subg. Prunus, ''Prunus'' subg. ''Prunus'.'' Dried plums are often called prunes, though in the United States they may be labeled as 'dried plums', especially during the 21st century. Plums are ...

s. The Powiśle plum (''powiślańska śliwka'') is used to make powidła,

vinegar Vinegar () is an aqueous solution of diluted acetic acid and trace compounds that may include flavorings. Vinegar typically contains from 5% to 18% acetic acid by volume. Usually, the acetic acid is produced by a double fermentation, converting ...

, and the Nebrowianka

nalewka Nalewka (), plural nalewki, is a traditional alcoholic beverage from Poland. Similar to medicinal tinctures, it is usually 40% to 45% alcohol by volume, though some can be as strong as 75%. Nalewka is created by macerating and / or infusing variou ...

, all officially recognized by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Poland as traditional regional products. Other

traditional food Traditional foods are foods and Dish (food), dishes that are passed on through generations or which have been consumed for many generations. Traditional foods and dishes are traditional in nature, and may have a historic precedent in a national ...

s include the Czernin apple cultivated in

Czernin The Czernin family (; ) is a Bohemian nobility, European noble family that was one of the oldest and most prominent noble families in the Kingdom of Bohemia. The family can claim descent from many important European noble families, including t ...

, Piekło

marzipan Marzipan is a confectionery, confection consisting primarily of sugar and almond meal (ground almonds), sometimes augmented with almond oil or extract. It is often made into Confectionery, sweets; common uses are chocolate-covered marzipan and ...

hearts, a local cookie, decorated with chocolate or jelly, and the Piekło kiełbasa with black mustard seed, a local type of

kiełbasa Kielbasa (, ; from Polish ) is any type of meat sausage from Poland and a staple of Polish cuisine. In American English, it is typically a coarse, U-shaped smoked sausage of any kind of meat, which closely resembles the ''Wiejska'' ''sausage'' ...

, produced in Piekło.

Sports

The most popular sports in Powiśle are

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 ...

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 ...

and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

. The top teams are men's handball team

MMTS Kwidzyn MMTS Kwidzyn is a men's handball club from Kwidzyn, Poland, that plays in the Superliga. The current name of the club is Energa Borys MMTS Kwidzyn due to sponsorship reasons. History The team was founded in 1998. In the 1999/2000 season, i ...

and women's handball team Start Elbląg, both playing in the top Polish divisions (as of 2023–24).

Curiosities

as one of the major cities of the Kingdom of Poland enjoyed voting rights during the royal election period. *There is a

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mil ...

cemetery in

at the site of the former Stalag XX-B German prisoner-of-war camp from

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 ...

, which held Polish, British, French, Belgian, Serbian, Australian, New Zealand, Canadian and other Allied POWs. *Elbląg, Malbork,

Sztum Sztum () (formerly ) is a town in northern Poland in the Powiśle region, located in the Pomeranian Voivodeship. It is the capital of Sztum County, with some 10,141 inhabitants (2004). History Signs of settlement dating back to the Roman Empir ...

Dzierzgoń Dzierzgoń (formerly also: ''Kiszpork''; ) is a town in the Pomeranian Voivodeship in northern Poland. It is located in Sztum County east of Malbork and south of Elbląg on the river Dzierzgoń. Dzierzgoń has a population of 5,242, while the t ...

and

Tolkmicko Tolkmicko (pronounced , ) is a town in northern Poland, on the Vistula Lagoon, about 20 km northeast of Elbląg. It is located in Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, in Elbląg County. Its population is 2,766 (2004). History Middle Ages The site ...

are former

royal cities The term royal city denotes a privilege that some cities in the Lands of the Bohemian Crown enjoyed during the Middle Ages. It meant the city was an inalienable part of the royal estate; the king could not sell or pledge the city. At the beginnin ...

of the Kingdom of Poland. *The village of

Stary Targ Stary Targ () () (literally "Old Market") is a village in Sztum County, Pomeranian Voivodeship, in northern Poland. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Stary Targ. It lies approximately east of Sztum and south-ea ...

was the place of signing of a

truce A ceasefire (also known as a truce), also spelled cease-fire (the antonym of 'open fire'), is a stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions often due to mediation by a third party. Ceasefires may b ...

, which ended the Polish–Swedish War of 1626–1629. There is a memorial in the village. *The village of Fiszewo was the site of a massacre of Polish insurgents committed by the

Prussians Prussia () was a German state that formed the German Empire in 1871. Prussia or Prussian may also refer to: *Prussia (region), a historical region on the south-eastern coast of the Baltic Sea that lent its name to the later German state Count ...

in 1832, commemorated with a monument and an annual rally. *The town of

Pasłęk Pasłęk (pronounced ; formerly known in Polish as Holąd Pruski, , Old Prussian: ''Pāistlauks'') is a historic town in northern Poland, within Elbląg County in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship. In 2017, the town had 12,298 registered inhabit ...

is the first place where Dutch immigrants settled in present-day Poland in 1297. *The towns of Kisielice and

Morąg Morąg (; , ) is a town in northern Poland in Ostróda County in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship. It is the seat of Gmina Morąg (commune). Geography The town is situated in the western uplands of the historic Prussia region. Its centre is loc ...

are members of

Cittaslow Cittaslow is an organisation founded in Italy and inspired by the slow food movement. Cittaslow's goals include improving the quality of life in towns by slowing down its overall pace, especially in a city's use of spaces and the flow of life ...

References

{{coord missing, Poland Regions of Poland