Ocieka
Encyclopedia
Ocieka o is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Ostrów
, within Ropczyce-Sędziszów County
, Subcarpathian Voivodeship
, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately 6 kilometres (4 mi) north of Ostrów
, 7 km (4 mi) north-west of Ropczyce
, and 33 km (21 mi) west of the regional capital Rzeszów
.
(Between 1975-1998 Ocieka was in the Rzeszów Voivodeship
). The village has a population of 1,233 and lies on the main road between Ropczyce
and Mielec
. It is situated in the Sandomierz Wilderness
, one of the biggest forests in southern Poland
, which covers large parts of the Sandomierz Basin
, an areas was once popular with Polish nobility
for hunting
and fishing
. Ocieka lies on the Tuszymka river
, a tributary of the Wisłoka river. In the past this area was known for iron
smelting
and iron goods.
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Since its formation in the late 15th century Ocieka has been known by several different names; although these appear to be phonetic
variations of the same name. Parish documents and chronicles show it as ‘Otsijeka’, ‘Odszycha’ and ‘Ucieka’. The village was named by Anna née Ocieska Mielecka and it is probably the ancestral seat of the ‘Ocieskis’, who also owned Rzemień
, a village to the north of Ocieka. In the 15th century the area was popular with Polish nobility
for hunting. The Polish king Władysław II Jagiełło
was said to be a frequent visitior to the area, listing it as one of his ‘favourite’ places for ‘hunting and recuperation’.
According to a local legend, in the region near Ocieka there occurred a battle against the Tatars
. The Polish
knight
s achieved a resounding victory. To commemorate this, a hill close by became known as ‘Góra Tatarska’ (Tatar Hill). In 1531 the Grand Crown Hetman
, Jan Amor Tarnowski
led a Polish army
against the Moldavia
n Prince
(‘Hospodar’) Petru IV Rareş
in the Battle of Obertyn
. Despite being outnumbered four to one, the battle ended with a Polish
victory, a complete Tatar
surrender
, and the reconquest of Pokuttya
or ‘Pokuttia’ . Tarnowski
brought his Tatar
prisoners-of-war
back to Ocieka. These prisoners
became the first occupants of a new settlement near Ocieka called ‘Sadykierz’
. The name ‘Sadykierz’
has distinct Tatar
origins, just as do today's inhabitants of the same village (The original settlement of ‘Sadykierz’
was located by a post-glacial
lake
, home to a rare species
of white water-lily
.)
Ocieka became an independent parish in 1610. At this time, Ocieka had a very industrial
character; tar
and wood charcoal
was manufactured here, as was iron
. In the 17th and 18th centuries there was a glass
foundry
nearby.
At this time the ownership
of the village
passed from the ‘Ocieski’ family to the ‘Romerów’ (or ‘Romer’) family.
, the church in Ocieka was converted into a warehouse, for the storage of specialist test-rocket construction materials. From 5 November 1943 until early July 1944, a team of German scientists, led by Wernher von Braun
, built and tested V-2 rockets in the nearby village of Blizna
.
Gmina Ostrów
Gmina Ostrów is a rural gmina in Ropczyce-Sędziszów County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. Its seat is the village of Ostrów, which lies approximately west of Ropczyce and west of the regional capital Rzeszów....
, within Ropczyce-Sędziszów County
Ropczyce-Sedziszów County
Ropczyce-Sędziszów County is a unit of territorial administration and local government in Subcarpathian Voivodeship, south-eastern Poland. It came into being on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Polish local government reforms passed in 1998. Its administrative seat and largest town is...
, Subcarpathian Voivodeship
Subcarpathian Voivodeship
Podkarpackie Voivodeship , or Subcarpathian Voivodeship, is a voivodeship, or province, in extreme-southeastern Poland. Its administrative capital and largest city is Rzeszów...
, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately 6 kilometres (4 mi) north of Ostrów
Ostrów, Ropczyce-Sedziszów County
Ostrów is a village in Ropczyce-Sędziszów County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It is the seat of the gmina called Gmina Ostrów. It lies approximately west of Ropczyce and west of the regional capital Rzeszów....
, 7 km (4 mi) north-west of Ropczyce
Ropczyce
Ropczyce is a town in Subcarpathian Voivodeship in south-eastern Poland, situated in the Valley the Wielopolka River and is inhabited by 15,098 people . It is the seat of Ropczyce-Sędziszów County.-Geography:...
, and 33 km (21 mi) west of the regional capital Rzeszów
Rzeszów
Rzeszów is a city in southeastern Poland with a population of 179,455 in 2010. It is located on both sides of the Wisłok River, in the heartland of the Sandomierska Valley...
.
(Between 1975-1998 Ocieka was in the Rzeszów Voivodeship
Rzeszów Voivodeship
Rzeszów Voivodeship can refer to one of two political entities in Poland:Rzeszów Voivodeship was a unit of administrative division and local government from 1975 to 1998, superseded by Podkarpackie Voivodeship...
). The village has a population of 1,233 and lies on the main road between Ropczyce
Ropczyce
Ropczyce is a town in Subcarpathian Voivodeship in south-eastern Poland, situated in the Valley the Wielopolka River and is inhabited by 15,098 people . It is the seat of Ropczyce-Sędziszów County.-Geography:...
and Mielec
Mielec
Mielec is a city in south-eastern Poland with a population of 60,979 inhabitants, as of June 2009. It is located in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship ; previously it was in Rzeszów Voivodeship...
. It is situated in the Sandomierz Wilderness
Sandomierz Wilderness
Sandomierz Wilderness is one of the biggest forests in southern Poland, which covers large parts of the Sandomierz Basin...
, one of the biggest forests in southern Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, which covers large parts of the Sandomierz Basin
Sandomierz Basin
Sandomierz Basin is a lowland, located in southeastern Poland, between the Lesser Poland Upland, Lublin Upland and the Western Carpathians. Its name comes from the historical city of Sandomierz and the basin has a triangular shape with the size of around It is drained by the Vistula River and its...
, an areas was once popular with Polish nobility
Szlachta
The szlachta was a legally privileged noble class with origins in the Kingdom of Poland. It gained considerable institutional privileges during the 1333-1370 reign of Casimir the Great. In 1413, following a series of tentative personal unions between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of...
for hunting
Hunting
Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...
and fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
. Ocieka lies on the Tuszymka river
Tuszymka
Tuszymka is a river in south-eastern Poland, a tributary of the Wisłoka river, with a length of . The source of the river is near the village of Bukowiec. The river runs near the village of Kamionka where there is a lake.-Towns and villages around Tuszymka:...
, a tributary of the Wisłoka river. In the past this area was known for iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
smelting
Smelting
Smelting is a form of extractive metallurgy; its main use is to produce a metal from its ore. This includes iron extraction from iron ore, and copper extraction and other base metals from their ores...
and iron goods.
History
Phonetics
Phonetics is a branch of linguistics that comprises the study of the sounds of human speech, or—in the case of sign languages—the equivalent aspects of sign. It is concerned with the physical properties of speech sounds or signs : their physiological production, acoustic properties, auditory...
variations of the same name. Parish documents and chronicles show it as ‘Otsijeka’, ‘Odszycha’ and ‘Ucieka’. The village was named by Anna née Ocieska Mielecka and it is probably the ancestral seat of the ‘Ocieskis’, who also owned Rzemień
Rzemien, Subcarpathian Voivodeship
Rzemień is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Przecław, within Mielec County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately north-east of Przecław, south-east of Mielec, and north-west of the regional capital Rzeszów.Rzemień is situated in the valley...
, a village to the north of Ocieka. In the 15th century the area was popular with Polish nobility
Szlachta
The szlachta was a legally privileged noble class with origins in the Kingdom of Poland. It gained considerable institutional privileges during the 1333-1370 reign of Casimir the Great. In 1413, following a series of tentative personal unions between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of...
for hunting. The Polish king Władysław II Jagiełło
Jogaila
Jogaila, later 'He is known under a number of names: ; ; . See also: Jogaila : names and titles. was Grand Duke of Lithuania , king consort of Kingdom of Poland , and sole King of Poland . He ruled in Lithuania from 1377, at first with his uncle Kęstutis...
was said to be a frequent visitior to the area, listing it as one of his ‘favourite’ places for ‘hunting and recuperation’.
According to a local legend, in the region near Ocieka there occurred a battle against the Tatars
Tatars
Tatars are a Turkic speaking ethnic group , numbering roughly 7 million.The majority of Tatars live in the Russian Federation, with a population of around 5.5 million, about 2 million of which in the republic of Tatarstan.Significant minority populations are found in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan,...
. The Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
s achieved a resounding victory. To commemorate this, a hill close by became known as ‘Góra Tatarska’ (Tatar Hill). In 1531 the Grand Crown Hetman
Hetman
Hetman was the title of the second-highest military commander in 15th- to 18th-century Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which together, from 1569 to 1795, comprised the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, or Rzeczpospolita....
, Jan Amor Tarnowski
Jan Tarnowski
Jan Amor Tarnowski was a Polish szlachcic . He was Grand Crown Hetman from 1527 and was the founder of the city of Tarnopol, where he built the Ternopil Castle and the Ternopil Lake....
led a Polish army
Polish Armed Forces
Siły Zbrojne Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej are the national defense forces of Poland...
against the Moldavia
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
n Prince
Prince
Prince is a general term for a ruler, monarch or member of a monarch's or former monarch's family, and is a hereditary title in the nobility of some European states. The feminine equivalent is a princess...
(‘Hospodar’) Petru IV Rareş
Petru Rares
Peter IV Rareș was twice voievod of Moldavia: 20 January 1527 to 18 September 1538 and 19 February 1541 to 3 September 1546. He was an illegitimate child born to Ștefan cel Mare...
in the Battle of Obertyn
Battle of Obertyn
The Battle of Obertyn was fought between Moldavian Prince Petru Rareş and Polish King Zygmunt Stary, in the town of Obertyn, north of the Dniester River, now in Ukraine. The battle ended with a Polish victory and the reconquest of Pokutia....
. Despite being outnumbered four to one, the battle ended with a Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
victory, a complete Tatar
Tatars
Tatars are a Turkic speaking ethnic group , numbering roughly 7 million.The majority of Tatars live in the Russian Federation, with a population of around 5.5 million, about 2 million of which in the republic of Tatarstan.Significant minority populations are found in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan,...
surrender
Surrender (military)
Surrender is when soldiers, nations or other combatants stop fighting and eventually become prisoners of war, either as individuals or when ordered to by their officers. A white flag is a common symbol of surrender, as is the gesture of raising one's hands empty and open above one's head.When the...
, and the reconquest of Pokuttya
Pokuttya
Pokuttya or Pokuttia is a historical area of East-Central Europe, between upper Prut and Cheremosh rivers, in modern Ukraine. Historically it was a culturally distinct area inhabitated by Ukrainians and Romanians on the previously unpopulated borderlands between the lands of Lviv and Halych...
or ‘Pokuttia’ . Tarnowski
Jan Tarnowski
Jan Amor Tarnowski was a Polish szlachcic . He was Grand Crown Hetman from 1527 and was the founder of the city of Tarnopol, where he built the Ternopil Castle and the Ternopil Lake....
brought his Tatar
Tatars
Tatars are a Turkic speaking ethnic group , numbering roughly 7 million.The majority of Tatars live in the Russian Federation, with a population of around 5.5 million, about 2 million of which in the republic of Tatarstan.Significant minority populations are found in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan,...
prisoners-of-war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
back to Ocieka. These prisoners
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
became the first occupants of a new settlement near Ocieka called ‘Sadykierz’
Sadykierz, Ropczyce-Sedziszów County
Sadykierz is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Ostrów, within Ropczyce-Sędziszów County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately north-west of Ostrów, north-west of Ropczyce, and west of the regional capital Rzeszów...
. The name ‘Sadykierz’
Sadykierz, Ropczyce-Sedziszów County
Sadykierz is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Ostrów, within Ropczyce-Sędziszów County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately north-west of Ostrów, north-west of Ropczyce, and west of the regional capital Rzeszów...
has distinct Tatar
Tatars
Tatars are a Turkic speaking ethnic group , numbering roughly 7 million.The majority of Tatars live in the Russian Federation, with a population of around 5.5 million, about 2 million of which in the republic of Tatarstan.Significant minority populations are found in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan,...
origins, just as do today's inhabitants of the same village (The original settlement of ‘Sadykierz’
Sadykierz, Ropczyce-Sedziszów County
Sadykierz is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Ostrów, within Ropczyce-Sędziszów County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately north-west of Ostrów, north-west of Ropczyce, and west of the regional capital Rzeszów...
was located by a post-glacial
Glacial period
A glacial period is an interval of time within an ice age that is marked by colder temperatures and glacier advances. Interglacials, on the other hand, are periods of warmer climate within an ice age...
lake
Lake
A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...
, home to a rare species
Rare species
A rare species is a group of organisms that are very uncommon or scarce. This designation may be applied to either a plant or animal taxon, and may be distinct from the term "endangered" or "threatened species" but not "extinct"....
of white water-lily
Nymphaeaceae
Nymphaeaceae is a family of flowering plants. Members of this family are commonly called water lilies and live in freshwater areas in temperate and tropical climates around the world. The family contains eight genera. There are about 70 species of water lilies around the world. The genus...
.)
Ocieka became an independent parish in 1610. At this time, Ocieka had a very industrial
Industry
Industry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.-Industrial sectors:There are four key industrial economic sectors: the primary sector, largely raw material extraction industries such as mining and farming; the secondary sector, involving refining, construction,...
character; tar
Tar
Tar is modified pitch produced primarily from the wood and roots of pine by destructive distillation under pyrolysis. Production and trade in tar was a major contributor in the economies of Northern Europe and Colonial America. Its main use was in preserving wooden vessels against rot. The largest...
and wood charcoal
Charcoal
Charcoal is the dark grey residue consisting of carbon, and any remaining ash, obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances. Charcoal is usually produced by slow pyrolysis, the heating of wood or other substances in the absence of oxygen...
was manufactured here, as was iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
. In the 17th and 18th centuries there was a glass
Glass
Glass is an amorphous solid material. Glasses are typically brittle and optically transparent.The most familiar type of glass, used for centuries in windows and drinking vessels, is soda-lime glass, composed of about 75% silica plus Na2O, CaO, and several minor additives...
foundry
Foundry
A foundry is a factory that produces metal castings. Metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal in a mold, and removing the mold material or casting after the metal has solidified as it cools. The most common metals processed are aluminum and cast iron...
nearby.
At this time the ownership
Ownership
Ownership is the state or fact of exclusive rights and control over property, which may be an object, land/real estate or intellectual property. Ownership involves multiple rights, collectively referred to as title, which may be separated and held by different parties. The concept of ownership has...
of the village
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
passed from the ‘Ocieski’ family to the ‘Romerów’ (or ‘Romer’) family.
World War II
During the Second World WarWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the church in Ocieka was converted into a warehouse, for the storage of specialist test-rocket construction materials. From 5 November 1943 until early July 1944, a team of German scientists, led by Wernher von Braun
Wernher von Braun
Wernher Magnus Maximilian, Freiherr von Braun was a German rocket scientist, aerospace engineer, space architect, and one of the leading figures in the development of rocket technology in Nazi Germany during World War II and in the United States after that.A former member of the Nazi party,...
, built and tested V-2 rockets in the nearby village of Blizna
Blizna
Blizna is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Ostrów, within Ropczyce-Sędziszów County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It lies approximately north of Ostrów, north of Ropczyce, and north-west of the regional capital Rzeszów...
.