Lublin

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Lublin is the biggest city in eastern Poland and the capital of Lublin_Voivodship with population of 361,400 (2001).

Lublin is an important industrial centre with chemical plants and machinery factories.
It has six schools of higher education ( including Maria Curie-Sklodowska University (UMCS) and Catholic University of Lublin (KUL) ).

History

The first permanent settlement on the site of Lublin was located in the present suburbs of Czwartek and Dziesiata between the 6th century and 7th century. In the 10th century and 11th century the Czwartek settlement developed into an important trade centre. In the 12th century a fortified settlement was established, to protect Polish lands from eastern invasions. It was at that time that the name Lublin first began to be used.

The city was a target of attacks by Tatars, Ruthenes, Yotvingians and Lithuanians and was destroyed a number of times. It received a city charter in 1317. Casimir the Great, appreciating the strategic importance of the site, built a masonry castle in 1341 and encircled the city with defensive walls.

In 1392 the city received an important trade privillege from Wladislaw Jagiello, and with the coming of the peace between Poland and Lithuania developed into a great trade centre carrying a large portion of commerce between the two countries.

In 1474 the area around Lublin was combined to form the Lublin_Voivodship. In the 15th century and 16th century the town grew rapidly. In Lublin the biggest trade fairs of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth were held. During the 16th century the noble parliaments (sejm) were held in Lublin a number of times. On June 26, 1569, one of them proclaimed the Polish-Lithuanian Union (Lublin Union)

Some of the artists and writers of the Polish renaissance lived and worked in Lublin, including Sebastian Klonowic and Jan Kochanowski, who died in the city in 1584. In 1578 the Crown Tribunal was established in the city, this being the highest court of the Little Poland (Malopolska) region.

Since the second half of the 16th century Reformation movements developed in Lublin, and a large congregation of Polish Brethren was present in the city.

One of Poland's most important Jewish communities was also established in Lublin around this time. It continued to be a vital part of the city's life until the community ceased to exist during the Nazi Holocaust. Between 1580 and 1764 the Jewish Council of Four Lands Arba Aracot (Sejm of 4 countries) was held in Lublin. 70 delegates of Jewish local kahals met to discuss issue of taxations and other important for Jewish communities issues.

In the 17th century, the town suffered a decline due to the Swedish invasion during the Northern War. After the Third of the Partitions of Poland in 1795 Lublin was located in Austrian Empire, then since 1809 in the Duchy of Warsaw, and then since 1815 in the Congress Poland under Russian rule.

At the beginning of the 19th century a number of modern urban developments took place, with new squares, streets, and public buildings coming into existence. In 1877 a railway connection to Warsaw and Kovel was built, which spurred industrial development in the city.

The Russian rule ended in 1915, when the city was occupied by German and Austro-Hungarian armies. After the defeat of the Central Powers in 1918, the first government of independent Poland operated in Lublin for a short time.

In the interwar years, the city continued to develop, its population grew, and important industrial enterprises were established, including the first aviation factory in Poland. The city contained a vibrant Jewish community which formed around 40% of Lublin's population.

After the 1939 German invasion of Poland the city was occupied by the Germans. It served as a German headquarters for Operation Reinhard . A large concentration camp Majdanek was established on the outskirts of the city. The Jewish population of the city was forced into the Lublin ghetto established around the area of Podzamcze. Most Jews were then murdered in Belzec death camp in 1942.

In 1944 the city was liberated by the Soviet Army and became the first postwar Polish capital, with the Soviet-sponsored Polish Committee of National Liberation (PKWN in polish) established in the city. The capital was moved to Warsaw once that city was liberated in January, 1945.

In the postwar years Lublin continued to grow, tripling its population and greatly expanding in area. A considerable scientific and research base was established around the newly founded Maria Curie Sklodowska University. A large automobile factory was established in the city.

In July, 1980, in Lublin and nearby Swidnik the first mass strikes of workers took place, which eventually led to the emergence of the Solidarity movement.