Działdowo

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Działdowo (German: Soldau) is a town in north-central Poland with 20,830 inhabitants (2004).

Situated in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship (since 1999), Działdowo was previously in Ciechanów Voivodeship (1975-1998). It is the capital of Działdowo County.

1 History
2 Notable residents
3 References
4 External link

[edit] History

The first settlement in the vicinity of Działdowo was by a tribe of Old Prussians known in German as the Sassen and in Polish as the Sasinowie. The Teutonic Knights conquered the region and built a castle at Soldau, a wing of which still remains. Grand Master Ludolf König granted the settlement near the castle town privileges as Soldau in 1344.

The town converted to Lutheranism during the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century. To the evangelical parish of Soldau were included the following communes: Amalienhof, Borowo, Bursch, Cämmersdorf, Gajowken, Hohendorf, Kyschienen, Königshagen, Kurkau, Niederhof, Pierlawken, Pruschinowo, and Rudolfsfelde.

As part of the Kingdom of Prussia, Soldau developed into an important railway junction in the second half of the 19th century. It was part of Neidenburg District in East Prussia; Soldau was the southernmost city in the province. It became part of the Prussian-led German Empire in 1871.

Resulting from the Treaty of Versailles following World War I, Soldau and a few neighboring villages were transferred without referenda from Germany to the Second Polish Republic on January 17 1920; the town was officially renamed from the German Soldau to the Polish Działdowo. This transfer had strategic purposes, as it placed the majority of the Mława-Iława rail line, part of the important Danzig-Warsaw line, in Polish control. Działdowo's rail connections to Iława, Osterode (Ostróda), and Neidenburg (Nidzica) were broken by the border changes.

During the Polish-Soviet War, Działdowo was briefly occupied by the Red Army before being relieved by the Polish Army. After the invasion of Poland beginning World War II in 1939, the town was annexed by Nazi Germany back into Neidenburg District. The Soldau concentration camp was built nearby, at which thousands of prisoners died. Działdowo was heavily damaged during fighting on the Eastern Front. The town was restored to Poland after the war.