Otwock
Encyclopedia
Otwock AUD is a town in central Poland
, some 15 miles (24.1 km) southeast of Warsaw
, with 42,765 inhabitants (2004). It is situated on the right bank of Vistula
River below the mouth of Swider
River. Otwock is home to a unique architectural style called Swidermajer
.
Otwock is situated in the Masovian Voivodship since 1999; previously, it was in Warszawa Voivodship (1975–1998). It is the capital of Otwock County
. The town covers the area of 47 square kilometers. Forested areas make up 23% of the territory.
was opened, which ran from Mława via Warsaw
, to Lublin
and Chełm. Otwock, which is located along the line, became a popular suburb, with numerous spas and several notable guests, including Józef Piłsudski and Władysław Reymont who wrote there his Nobel prize
-winning novel Chłopi. In 1916 Otwock was incorporated as a town and became the seat of a powiat
. In 1936 railway connection Warsaw - Otwock was electrified as the first rail line in Poland.
euthanasia program was carried out by the Nazi Germans in a local psychiatric hospital. In December 1939, German authorities
established a Jewish ghetto in Otwock, in order to confine its Jewish population
for the purpose of persecution and exploitation. The Ghetto was liquidated between August and September 19, 1942, when 75% of its Jewish population of 12,000–15,000 numbering at around 8,000 were assembled by the Nazis at a layover yard in Otwock (pictured) and transported in cattle trucks to extermination camps in Treblinka
and Auschwitz. Jews who remained were summarily shot at Reymonta Street soon after.
Otwock is a hometown of Irena Sendler
(1910 – 2008), the Polish humanitarian who saved thousands of Jewish children during the Holocaust; as well as Krystyna Dańko
, both awarded the titles of Righteous among the Nations
by Yad Vashem
. Writer Calel Perechodnik
, a Jewish Ghetto Policeman
from Otwock also hailed from this town. Following the liberation, a children's home for Holocaust survivors was established in Otwock .
In 1958, Ewa
, the first Polish nuclear reactor
was activated in Swierk, a district of Otwock. A second research reactor, Maria
, was brought online in 1974.
Otwock is home to a sports club Start Otwock
(founded in 1924). The club is renowned for its weight-lifters such as Szymon Kolecki
and Marcin Dolega
. Also, the Start Club's own prodigy is football forward Janusz Zmijewski, who in the 1960s played for Legia Warszawa
and the national team of Poland.
with:
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...
, some 15 miles (24.1 km) southeast of Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, with 42,765 inhabitants (2004). It is situated on the right bank of Vistula
Vistula
The Vistula is the longest and the most important river in Poland, at 1,047 km in length. The watershed area of the Vistula is , of which lies within Poland ....
River below the mouth of Swider
Świder
Świder is a river in Masovia, Poland. It is a tributary to the Vistula....
River. Otwock is home to a unique architectural style called Swidermajer
Swidermajer
Świdermajer is a distinct Polish architectural style developed in late 19th and early 20th century in Masovia along the railroad linking Warsaw with Otwock. The style was applied almost exclusively to wooden villas of the middle classes...
.
Otwock is situated in the Masovian Voivodship since 1999; previously, it was in Warszawa Voivodship (1975–1998). It is the capital of Otwock County
Otwock County
Otwock County is a unit of territorial administration and local government in Masovian Voivodeship, east-central 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 Otwock, which lies ...
. The town covers the area of 47 square kilometers. Forested areas make up 23% of the territory.
History
Even though the first mention of a village called Otwosko comes from the early 15th century, Otwock did not fully develop until the second half of the 19th century, when in 1877 the Vistula River RailroadVistula River Railroad
Vistula River Railroad was a railroad system, opened on August 17, 1877. It ran from northwest to southeast, through the territory of the former Congress Poland, known after the November Uprising as Privislinsky Krai .Starting in Mława, which back then was located near the border with the German...
was opened, which ran from Mława via Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, to Lublin
Lublin
Lublin is the ninth largest city in Poland. It is the capital of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 350,392 . Lublin is also the largest Polish city east of the Vistula river...
and Chełm. Otwock, which is located along the line, became a popular suburb, with numerous spas and several notable guests, including Józef Piłsudski and Władysław Reymont who wrote there his Nobel prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
-winning novel Chłopi. In 1916 Otwock was incorporated as a town and became the seat of a powiat
Powiat
A powiat is the second-level unit of local government and administration in Poland, equivalent to a county, district or prefecture in other countries. The term powiat is most often translated into English as "county", although other terms are also sometimes used...
. In 1936 railway connection Warsaw - Otwock was electrified as the first rail line in Poland.
World War II
Following the Nazi–Soviet Invasion of Poland, a murderous Action T4Action T4
Action T4 was the name used after World War II for Nazi Germany's eugenics-based "euthanasia" program during which physicians killed thousands of people who were "judged incurably sick, by critical medical examination"...
euthanasia program was carried out by the Nazi Germans in a local psychiatric hospital. In December 1939, German authorities
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
established a Jewish ghetto in Otwock, in order to confine its Jewish population
History of the Jews in Poland
The history of the Jews in Poland dates back over a millennium. For centuries, Poland was home to the largest and most significant Jewish community in the world. Poland was the centre of Jewish culture thanks to a long period of statutory religious tolerance and social autonomy. This ended with the...
for the purpose of persecution and exploitation. The Ghetto was liquidated between August and September 19, 1942, when 75% of its Jewish population of 12,000–15,000 numbering at around 8,000 were assembled by the Nazis at a layover yard in Otwock (pictured) and transported in cattle trucks to extermination camps in Treblinka
Treblinka extermination camp
Treblinka was a Nazi extermination camp in occupied Poland during World War II near the village of Treblinka in the modern-day Masovian Voivodeship of Poland. The camp, which was constructed as part of Operation Reinhard, operated between and ,. During this time, approximately 850,000 men, women...
and Auschwitz. Jews who remained were summarily shot at Reymonta Street soon after.
Otwock is a hometown of Irena Sendler
Irena Sendler
Irena Sendler was a Polish Catholic social worker who served in the Polish Underground and the Żegota resistance organization in German-occupied Warsaw during World War II...
(1910 – 2008), the Polish humanitarian who saved thousands of Jewish children during the Holocaust; as well as Krystyna Dańko
Krystyna Dańko
Krystyna Dańko , a Polish orphan from the town of Otwock, daughter of Karol Chłond – a respected city official in prewar Poland – was awarded the title of Righteous among the Nations by Yad Vashem in 1998, for saving the lives of Polish Jews during the Holocaust, at the time of Nazi German...
, both awarded the titles of Righteous among the Nations
Polish Righteous among the Nations
Polish citizens have the world's highest count of individuals awarded medals of Righteous among the Nations, given by the State of Israel to non-Jews who saved Jews from extermination during the Holocaust...
by Yad Vashem
Yad Vashem
Yad Vashem is Israel's official memorial to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust, established in 1953 through the Yad Vashem Law passed by the Knesset, Israel's parliament....
. Writer Calel Perechodnik
Calel Perechodnik
Calel Perechodnik was a Polish Jew who joined the Jewish Ghetto Police in the Otwock Ghetto during the Nazi German occupation of Poland...
, a Jewish Ghetto Policeman
Jewish Ghetto Police
Jewish Ghetto Police , also known as the Jewish Police Service and referred to by the Jews as the Jewish Police, were the auxiliary police units organized in the Jewish ghettos of Europe by local Judenrat councils under orders of occupying German Nazis.Members of the did not have official...
from Otwock also hailed from this town. Following the liberation, a children's home for Holocaust survivors was established in Otwock .
In 1958, Ewa
Ewa reactor
The Ewa Reactor was Poland's first research nuclear reactor. Its name is derived from the first letters of the Polish words: Eksperymentalny , Wodny , and Atomowy as a reference to the Eve Curie....
, the first Polish nuclear reactor
Nuclear reactor
A nuclear reactor is a device to initiate and control a sustained nuclear chain reaction. Most commonly they are used for generating electricity and for the propulsion of ships. Usually heat from nuclear fission is passed to a working fluid , which runs through turbines that power either ship's...
was activated in Swierk, a district of Otwock. A second research reactor, Maria
Maria reactor
The Maria reactor is Poland's second research nuclear reactor and the only one still in use. It is located at Świerk-Otwock, near Warsaw and named in honor of Maria Skłodowska-Curie...
, was brought online in 1974.
Otwock is home to a sports club Start Otwock
Start Otwock
OKS "Start" Otwock is an Polish football club located in Otwock, Poland. It currently plays in Polish Second League east division. The team's colors are yellow and black.-External links:*...
(founded in 1924). The club is renowned for its weight-lifters such as Szymon Kolecki
Szymon Kolecki
Szymon Kołecki is a Polish weightlifter, silver medallist at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney and 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. He is around 6'1" ....
and Marcin Dolega
Marcin Dolega
Marcin Dołęga is a Polish weightlifter in the 105 kg weight division. He broke the snatch world record in 2002 with 198 kg, and in 2006 with 199 kg....
. Also, the Start Club's own prodigy is football forward Janusz Zmijewski, who in the 1960s played for Legia Warszawa
Legia Warszawa
Legia Warszawa is a professional football club based in Warsaw, Poland. It was founded in March 1916 in the area of Maniewicze in Volhynia as the football club of the Polish Legions...
and the national team of Poland.
Twin towns — Sister cities
Otwock is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with:
- LennestadtLennestadtLennestadt lies in the Sauerland in southeast North Rhine-Westphalia and is a community in Olpe district. It is the district’s most populous municipality....
- Saint-Amand-MontrondSaint-Amand-MontrondSaint-Amand-Montrond is a commune in the Cher department in the Centre region of France.-Geography:A small town of farming and a little light industry situated some southeast of Bourges, at the junction of the D951 with the D300 and D2144 roads....