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Leżajsk

Coordinates:50°16′N22°26′E/ 50.267°N 22.433°E/50.267; 22.433
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Leżajsk
Free Royal City of Leżajsk
Town Hall and market square
Town Hall and market square
Coat of arms of Leżajsk
Coat of arms
Leżajsk is located in Poland
Leżajsk
Leżajsk
Coordinates:50°16′N22°26′E/ 50.267°N 22.433°E/50.267; 22.433
CountryPoland
VoivodeshipSubcarpathian
CountyLeżajsk
GminaLeżajsk(urban gmina)
Government
• MayorKrzysztof Trębacz
Area
• Total20.29 km2(7.83 sq mi)
Population
(June 2017)
• Total13,871[1]
Time zoneUTC+1(CET)
• Summer (DST)UTC+2(CEST)
Postal code
37–300
Car platesRLE
Websitewww.miastolezajsk.pl
Map

Leżajsk(Polish:[ˈlɛʐajsk];Yiddish:ליזשענסק-Lizhensk;Ukrainian:Лежа́йськ,romanized:Lezháysʹk), officially theFree Royal City of Leżajsk(Polish:Wolne Królewskie Miasto Leżajsk), is a town in southeasternPolandwith 13,871 inhabitants.[2]It has been situated in theSubcarpathian Voivodeshipsince 1999 and is the capital ofLeżajsk County.

Leżajsk is famed for itsBernadinebasilicaandmonastery,built by the architect Antonio Pellacini. The basilica contains a highly regardedpipe organfrom the second half of the 17th century and organ recitals take place there. It stands as one of Poland's official nationalHistoric Monuments(Pomnik historii), as designated April 20, 2005, and tracked by theNational Heritage Board of Poland.Leżajsk is also home of theLeżajsk brewery.The town is crossed by a forest creek‘Jagoda’.

History

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BaroqueBasilica of St. Mary and Bernardine Monastery

Leżajsk is an oldPolish royal town.The development of Leżajsk was slow, due to numerous and devastatingTatarandWallachianraids, which took place in 1498, 1500, 1509, 1519 and 1524. Following these raids, Polish kings granted severalprivilegesto the looted town, and finally, on September 23, 1524 inLwów,KingSigismund I the Olddecided to move Leżajsk to a new location, which was easier to defend. The town was moved some 5 kilometers south-west, and its new name wasLeżajsk Zygmuntowski.The old location is since known as the villageStare Miasto( "Old Town" ). During the reign ofSigismund II Augustus,Leżajsk prospered due to protection of itsstarosta(local governor),Krzysztof Szydłowiecki(Odrowaz coat of arms), who wasCrown Chancellor.In 1608, Bernadine monks from nearbyPrzeworskwere brought to Lezajsk by Bishop ofPrzemyśl,and two years later, the first brick church was built. In 1624 Lezajsk was looted and burned byCrimean Tatarsand the subsequentSwedish invasion of Poland(1655–1660) brought more destruction.

Following theFirst Partition of Poland(1772), Leżajsk was annexed by theHabsburg Empire,and remained in AustrianGaliciauntil November 1918. In 1809, the town was captured by theDuchy of Warsaw,but soon afterwards, it was retaken by the Austrians. In 1896–1900, a rail line connecting Lezajsk with Przeworsk andRozwadowwas completed. The town suffered duringWorld War I,as Austro-Hungarian and Russian armies fought there in 1914 and 1915. Lezajsk was occupied by Russians between November 1914 and May 1915.

In 1918 Poland regained independence and control of the town. In theSecond Polish Republic,Leżajsk belonged to Łańcut County of theLwów Voivodeship.In July 1929, the town was visited by PresidentIgnacy Mościcki.

During the Germaninvasion of Poland,which startedWorld War II,on September 13, 1939, Leżajsk was captured by theWehrmacht.Afterwards, the GermanEinsatzgruppe Ientered the town to commit variousatrocities against the population.[3]On November 3, 1939, the German security police carried out mass arrests of localPolesas part of theIntelligenzaktion.[4]The Poles were then either imprisoned in the local prison or massacred at the local cemetery.[4]Among the massacred Poles were teachers, school principals, priests and military officers.[4]Poles from Leżajsk were also among the victims of the largeKatyn massacre,committed by the Russians in April–May 1940.[5]During theGerman occupation,theHome Armywas very active in the area. Since May 1940, underground Polish newspaperOdwetwas distributed in Leżajsk by thePolish resistance movement.[6]On May 28, 1943, Germans shot 43 residents of the town. Leżajsk was captured by theHome Armyon July 27, 1944.

Jewish community

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The Jewishcemeteryin Leżajsk is a place ofpilgrimageforJewsfrom all over the world, who come to visit thetombofElimelech,the great 18th centuryHasidicRebbe.[7]From the early 1500s until the advent of World War II and the Holocaust, there was a major Jewish presence in Leżajsk. After theJewish expulsionsfrom Spain in 1492, many Jews ended up in Leżajsk. According to the census of 1764, the community numbered 909 people,[8]and by the turn of the 20th century, there were 1,700 Jews in the community. Between the two world wars, 4,500 Jews were living in Lezajsk.[9]

When Nazi Germany invaded Leżajsk in September 1939, almost all Jews in the town were brought to the Soviet-Occupied zone, where they were later massacred by theEinsatzgruppen.[10]

Mayors and heads of the city after World War II

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  • Leopold Zawilski
  • Felix Mallard
  • Aleksander Schmidt
  • Franciszek Urbański
  • Kazimierz Gdula
  • Jan Płaza
  • Eugeniusz Mendyk
  • Kazimierz Kuźniar
  • Roman Baj
  • Józef Samojezdny
  • Zbigniew Ząbczyk
  • Andrzej Janas
  • Tadeusz Trębacz
  • Janusz Wylaź
  • Tadeusz Trębacz
  • Piotr Urban
  • Ireneusz Stefański (now)

Location

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According to data from January 1, 2011, the city's area was 20.58 km².

According to data from 2006, Leżajsk has an area of 20.6 km², including:

farmland: 51% Forested area: 23% The city is 3.48% of the county's area

Landmarks

[edit]
Famous baroque organs in the Basilica of St. Mary
Old starost manor, which houses the regional museum
  • BaroqueBernardine Order Monastery and Church Complex, with the famous pipe organs by Stanisław Studziński and Jan Głowiński, accomplished in 1693, and the Museum of the Franciscan Friars Province
  • Old manor of localstarosts,housing the regional museum
  • Holy Trinity and All Saints' Parish Church
  • Town Hall at theRynek(Market Square)
  • Mier Palace, 4 Furgalskiego Street
  • Former Greek Catholic Parish Church under the invocation of Holy Virgin's Rest, currently known as the Succursal Roman Catholic Church
  • Jewish Cemetery at Górna Street, established in the 18th century. In the cemetery is the tomb of RabbiElimelech Weissblum.
  • Arsenal, Furgalskiego Street, the 19th century
  • Municipal Public Library. The library was erected before 1914 as a social and cultural club of the "Proświta" Ukrainian Association and has functioned as the library since 1956.

Sports

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The localfootballclub isPogoń Leżajsk[pl].It competes in the lower leagues.

Notable residents

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[edit]
  • The façade of the Basilica of St. Mary
    The façade of the Basilica of St. Mary
  • Entrance to the basilica
    Entrance to the basilica
  • Church of the Dormition
    Church of the Dormition
  • Railway station
    Railway station
  • Baroque statue of Saint John of Nepomuk
    Baroque statue of SaintJohn of Nepomuk

References

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  • "Leżajsk Official Website"(in Polish). Urząd Miejski w Leżajsku. Archived fromthe originalon December 3, 1998.Retrieved2008-10-22.
Notes
  1. ^BIP Leżajska
  2. ^Demographic Yearbook of Poland 2012
  3. ^Wardzyńska, Maria (2009).Był rok 1939. Operacja niemieckiej policji bezpieczeństwa w Polsce. Intelligenzaktion(in Polish). Warszawa:IPN.pp. 58–59.
  4. ^abcWardzyńska, p. 258
  5. ^"Geneza i wzniesienie obelisku".Lezajsk4u.pl(in Polish).Retrieved2 April2021.
  6. ^Gruszczyński, Włodzimierz (2011).Odwet i Jędrusie(in Polish).Zagnańsk.p. 21.{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  7. ^"Jewish Cemeteries in Poland".©2004–2008, translated by Joanna Kołdras, Andrzej Fister-Stoga.Retrieved2008-11-01.
  8. ^"YIVO | Leżajsk".www.yivoencyclopedia.org.Retrieved2017-03-22.
  9. ^150 Jewish tombstones taken by Nazis in Polish town to be restored,Haaretz
  10. ^Maurycy Horn, Żydzi na Rusi Czerwonej w XVI i pierwszej połowie XVII w. (Warsaw, 1975);.
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