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- For the 1945 German film see Kolberg (film).
History
of Kołobrzeg
| 1940 | 36,800 | |
| 1945 | 3,000 | |
| 1950 | 6,800 | |
| 1960 | 16,700 | |
| 1970 | 26,000 | |
| 1975 | 31,800 | |
| 1980 | 38,200 | |
| 1990 | 45,400 | |
| 1995 | 47,000 | |
| 2000 | ~50,000 |
The settlement was founded in the 9th century, but earlier traces of settlement in the city territory are from the 6th century. In early history, Kołobrzeg was a major port on the Baltic Sea and produced a lot of salt, which was then one of the most expensive trading goods.
The city with the rest of Pomerania was conquered several times, and first included (or re-included, as new archaeological finds seem to indicate) into the Polish realm by Mieszko I of Poland in 972. After the Congress of Gniezno in 1000, the Holy Roman Emperor Otto III granted Poland the right to form a separate church hierarchy. One of the newly founded dioceses was located in Kołobrzeg, which was under the archdiocese of Gniezno. The first bishop of Kolberg was Reinbern from Hochseegau. The diocese and direct links with the Polish kingdom ended when Bolesław I Chrobry withdrew his troops from the area around 1013, chased out by pagan Pomeranians who were not willing to convert to Christianity.
A century later, Kołobrzeg was again taken over by Poland under Bolesław Krzywousty. A diocese was in existence in 1124 under Prince-Bishop Otto of Bamberg . In the late 12th century Pomerania gave homage to the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation and Denmark On May 23, 1255, the city was chartered under Lübeck law by duke Warcisław III, and settlers from the Holy Roman Empire started to arrive. From 1637 till 1721 Pomerania and Kolberg were part of the Swedish Kingdom (the king of Sweden being also duke of the German Empire), and after the Great Northern War they became part of the Kingdom of Prussia. In 1761 the city was captured by the Russian commander Peter Rumyantsev during the Seven Years' War, but at the end of the war it was returned to Prussia.
During Napoleon's invasion of Prussia, the city was besieged by French armies from April 26 to July 2, 1807. In a stubborn defense, led by then lieutenant-colonel Gneisenau, the city held out until the war was ended by the Treaty of Tilsit. This event was used shortly before the end of the Second World War by Joseph Goebbels for the last Nazi propaganda film Kolberg. The film was to inspire the Germans with its depiction of the heroic Prussian defence of the city in 1807 during the Napoleonic Wars. Tremendous resources were devoted to filming this epic, even diverting tens of thousands of troops from the front lines to have them serve as extras in battle scenes. The film was released in the final few weeks of Nazi Germany's existence, when most cinemas were destroyed.
In 1944 the city was designated a so-called stronghold Festung Kolberg, most of the inhabitants and ten thousands of refugees from surrounding areas (about 70,000 in the Kolberg pocket) and 40,000 german soldiers were evacuated from the city by german naval forces in Operation Hannibal.
Between 4 March and 18 March 1945, there were major battles between the Soviet, Polish armies and the German army. Because of a lack of anti-tank guns, German battleships were using their artillery to support the defenders of Kolberg until nearly all soldiers and civilians were evacuated. Only 2000 persons were left in Kolberg, because they could not be evacuted by time. Just after the capture of the city, the Polish army repeated the propaganda ceremony "engagement of Poland with the sea", that had been celebrated for the first time in 1920 by general Józef Haller.
The devastated city, along with the entire province of Pomerania east of the Odra river, was eventually assigned to Poland by the Potsdam Conference. The German population which was left in Kolberg was expelled or murdered by Soviet and Polish forces after the victory.
Tourist Destination
Kołobrzeg is a popular tourist destination, esp. for the Poles and the Germans. It provides a unique combination of a seaside resort, health resort, an old town full of historic monuments and tourist entertainment options (e.g. numerous "beer gardens").
On July 14, 2004, the longest seaside bike path in Poland was commissioned. The path extends from Kołobrzeg to Podczele. It provides unique views of woods, beaches, swamps, impenetrable thickets, bird nesting grounds, and more. The path has been financed by the European Union.
An international airport was to be built 7 kilometres away from Kołobrzeg. However, due to the protests of the local population, the project may never see the light of day.
People
- Paul Oestreich (1878 - 1959 ), German educator
External links
Kołobrzeg | Kołobrzeg | Kołobrzeg | Kołobrzeg | Kolberg | Kołobrzeg | Kołobrzeg | Kołobrzeg
"Kołobrzeg"