Zamosc
Zamość is a town in southeastern Poland with 67,600 inhabitants (1998), situated in the Lublin Voivodship (since 1999), previously capital of Zamość Voivodship (1975-1998). About 20 kilometres from the town is the Roztocze National Park.
Zamość was founded in the 16th century by the hetman (head of the army) Jan Zamoyski on the trade route linking western and northern Europe with the Black Sea. Modelled on the Italian trading cities and built during the Baroque period by the architect Bernardo Morando, a native of Padua, Zamość remains a perfect example of a Renaissance town of the late 16th century which retains its original layout and fortifications and a large number of buildings blending Italian and central European architectural traditions. The Old City quater of Zamość has been placed on the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites.
In 1943, Zamość County, due to its fertile black soil, was chosen for further German colonisation in General Government as part of Generalplan Ost. Polish farmers were expropriated and forcibly removed from the farms, Polish population expelled amid great brutality, farms were handed over to German settlers, but few Germans were settled in the area before 1944. Children were taken separately and after racial scrutiny send over to Germany to be raised in German families.