- Braniewo
Infobox Settlement
name = Braniewo
imagesize = 250px
image_caption =Collegium Hosianum - defensive walls
image_shield = POL Braniewo COA.svg
pushpin_
pushpin_label_position = bottom
subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = POL
subdivision_type1 = Voivodeship
subdivision_name1 = Warmian-Masurian
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name2 =Braniewo County
subdivision_type3 =Gmina
subdivision_name3 = Braniewo (urban gmina)
leader_title = Mayor
leader_name = Henryk Mroziński
established_title = Established
established_date =13th century
established_title3 = Town rights
established_date3 = 1284
area_total_km2 = 12.36
population_as_of = 2006
population_total = 17875
population_density_km2 = auto
timezone = CET
utc_offset = +1
timezone_DST = CEST
utc_offset_DST = +2
latd = 54 | latm = 23 | lats = | latNS = N | longd = 19 | longm = 50 | longs = | longEW = E
postal_code_type = Postal code
postal_code = 14-500
area_code = +48 55
blank_name = Car plates
blank_info = NBR
website = http://www.braniewo.pl/ Braniewo [IPA-pl|b|r|a|'|ń|e1|w|o] (Audio-de|Braunsberg|Braunsberg.ogg; former _pl. Brunsberga, _lt. Prūsa) is atown in northeasternPoland , in theWarmian-Masurian Voivodeship , with a population of 18,068 (2004). It is the capital ofBraniewo County . Located on thePasłęka River, about five km from theVistula Lagoon , Braniewo lies about halfway betweenGdańsk and theRussia n city ofKaliningrad .History
During the conquest and
Christianization of Prussia, theTeutonic Knights conquered an Old Prussian settlement named "Brusebergue" in 1240 and built a new town atop it on the Passarge (Pasłęka) River. The German name of this new town was "Braunsberg" (literally "Brown's Mountain"). It was probably derived from aGermanization ("Brus-berg" and "Brunsberg") of the older Prussian name, or possibly named after SaintBruno of Querfurt , who had been martyred on theKievan Rus ' border Fact|date=May 2008in 1009.In 1243 the town, together with the surrounding region of
Warmia , was given by the Order to the newly created Bishopric of Warmia, whose bishop built his cathedral in the town and made it his chief residence. Braunsberg was grantedtown privileges based on those of Lübeck in 1254, but was destroyed and depopulated in the second uprising of native Prussians in 1261. It was rebuilt in a new location in 1273 and settled by newcomers fromLübeck . In 1284 Braunsberg was given a new town charter, again based on the laws of Lübeck. However, the next bishop,Heinrich Fleming (1278-1300) transferred the chapter from Braunsberg to Frauenburg (Frombork) where it remained until the 20th century.In 1296 a
Franciscan abbey was built in Braunsberg, and in 1342 a "new town" (still called "Neustadt" or "Nowe Miasto") was added. Braunsberg became a prosperous member of theHanseatic League . The town remained a part of themonastic state of the Teutonic Knights until 1466, when as a consequence of the Second Peace of Thorn ending theThirteen Years' War , it passed to the Kingdom of Poland as part of the new (autonomous till 1569) province ofRoyal Prussia . In 1487 it withstood a siege by Polish troops during theWar of the Priests .During the reign of Duke Albert in the neighboring
Duchy of Prussia , a large part of Braniewo's populace converted to LutheranProtestantism . Albert sought to uniteWarmia with Ducal Prussia, causing the Catholics of the town to swear allegiance to the king of Poland in return for aid against Protestant Prussia. In 1526 a Polish royal commission released Braunsberg's burghers from the oath to the Polish king and handed the town back to Prince-BishopMauritius Ferber . Braniewo swore allegiance to the Prince-Bishops of Warmia, but had to denounce all Lutheran teachings and hand over Lutheran writings.The town suffered from warfare and the church tower was not rebuilt until 1544, when Prince-Bishop
Johannes Dantiscus ordered 20zentner copper fromAnton Fugger inAugsburg . It could only be paid off slowly with yearly payments of 100 marks. For many years Braniewo was not able to directly attend Hanseatic meetings; it was not until 1557 that representatives attended session in Lübeck again.Braniewo was occupied by Sweden for several years during the
Livonian War .During Prince-Bishop
Stanislaus Hosius ' government, Lutheran teachings again became popular in Braunsberg. They were suppressed when Hosius brought in the Jesuits and founded theCollegium Hosianum gymnasium. The Jesuit theologianAntonius Possevinus was instrumental in enlarging the Collegium Hosianum to receive Swedes. A priest seminary was added in 1564.Pope Gregory XIII later added a papal mission seminary for northern and eastern European countries.Regina Protmann , a native of Braniewo, founded theSaint Catherine Order of Sisters in the town, recognized by the church in 1583. The Jesuit theologianAntonius Possevinus was instrumental in enlarging the Collegium Hosianum in the 1580s to educate Swedes andRuthenians there as well in order to counter the widespread Protestant movement.The ethnically German, politically Polish, and primarily Catholic town was annexed by the mostly Protestant
Kingdom of Prussia in 1772 during the First Partition of Poland and made part of the province ofEast Prussia the following year. Braunsberg obtained its first railway connection in 1852. In 1871 it became part of the newly establishedGerman Empire during the Prussian-ledunification of Germany .Next to
Königsberg , Braunsberg was the leading academic center of the Prussian region. In 1912 the Jesuit college became the State Academy of Braunsberg ( _de. Staatliche Akademie Braunsberg).During
World War II , Braunsberg was captured by the SovietRed Army following theBraunsberg Offensive Operation (13 March 1945 - 22 March 1945) following the elimination of the GermanHeiligenbeil Pocket , and suffered heavy destruction due to fighting and subsequent looting. The German inhabitants of the town were either evacuated before the Red Army arrived, killed during the fighting, or expelled westward after the war. It was placed under Polish administration according to thePotsdam Conference in 1945.In 2001 the St. Catherine Church, built in 1346, destroyed in 1945, and rebuilt after 1979, was declared a Basilica Minor ("Bazylika Mniejsza"). This Gothic Hall church was built on a site, which held a previous wooden Church of St. Catherine since 1280. Prince-Bishop Lucas Watzenrode of Warmia had added extensively to the building.
Political timeline
*
1240 first mentioned as part of theMonastic State
*1254 Lübeck law rights granted
*1466 Second Peace of Thorn (1466) : now part of thePrince-Bishopric ofWarmia andRoyal Prussia in Poland
*1772 First partition of Poland: now part of theKingdom of Prussia
*1871 German Empire founded: now automatically a part of it
*1945 Occupation bySoviet Red Army , now part ofPoland Notable residents
*
Stanislaus Hosius (1504-1579), prince-bishop
*Regina Protmann (1522-1613), charity pioneer
*August Willich (1810-1878), politician and general
*Karl Weierstrass (1815-1897), mathematician
*Elimar Klebs (1852-1918), historian
*Rainer Barzel (1924-2006), politicianExternal links
* [http://www.braniewo.pl/ Municipal website] pl icon
* [http://www.braniewo.com.pl/ City business page] pl icon
* [http://braniewo.er.pl/ History of Braniewo] (including modern and pre-1945 photographs) pl icon
* [http://mapa.szukacz.pl/?x=553256&y=723976&m=Braniewo&w=warmi%f1sko%2dmazurskie&p=braniewski&g=Braniewo&z=3 Map of Braniewo] pl icon
* [http://www.braniewo.pl/graf/PLAN.jpgStreet plan] pl icon
* [http://www.braunsberg-ostpreussen.de/ Braunsberg/Ostpreussen Kreisgemeinschaft] de icon
* [http://www.people.freenet.de/braunsberg/buchholz.htm "Braunsberg im Wandel der Jahrhunderte"] de icon
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