Braniewo

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Braniewo (until 1945 Polish: ; German: [] ([Media helphelp]·[info]); Prussian: Brausebergue) is a city in northeastern Poland, in Warmia-Mazury voivodship, with a population of 18,068 (2004). It is the capital of Braniewo County. Located on the Pasłęka river, about five km from the Vistula Lagoon, it lies about halfway between Gdańsk and Kaliningrad.

History

During their conquest of Prussia, the Teutonic Knights conquered an Old Prussian settlement named Brusebergue in 1240 and built a new town atop it. The German name of this new city was Braunsberg (literally "Brown's Mountain"), although it was probably derived from the older Prussian name or possibly named after Saint Bruno of Querfurt. In 1243 the city, together with the surrounding region of Warmia, was given by the Order to the newly created bishop of Warmia, who build his cathedral in the city and made it his chief residence. Soon after Bishop Anselm of Meißen advised Johannes Fleming, son of a Lübeck Ratsherr (councilman), to grant the settlement town privileges, and this was accomplished in 1254 on the basis of Lübeck law.

In 1261 during the second uprising of native Prussians, the city was destroyed. In 1273 it was rebuilt and moved to a new location. The city was settled by newcomers from Lübeck and in 1284 given a new city charter, again based on the city charter of Lübeck. However, the next bishop, Heinrich I Fleming (1278-1300) transferred the chapter from Braunsberg to Frauenburg (Frombork) where it remained until the 20th century.

In 1296 a Franciscan abbey was built in Braunsberg, and in 1342 a "new city" (still called Neustadt or Nowe Miasto) was added. The city became a prosperous member of the Hanseatic League.

The city was a part of the Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights until 1466, when as a consequence of the Second Peace of Toruń ending the Thirteen Years' War, it passed to the Kingdom of Poland as part of the new autonomous province of Royal Prussia. Braunsberg withstood a siege by Polish troops in 1478 during the War of the Priests.

In 1564 the Jesuit Collegium Hosianum was founded by Stanisław Hozjusz. Regina Protmann, a native of Braunsberg, founded the Saint Catherine Order of Sisters in the town, recognized by the church in 1583.

The ethnically German and politically Polish city was annexed by the Kingdom of Prussia in 1772 in the First Partition of Poland. The city obtained its first railway connection in 1852. In 1871 it became part of the newly established German Empire.

Next to Königsberg, Braunsberg was the leading academic center of Prussia. In 1912 the Jesuit college became the State Academy of Braunsberg (German: ).

During World War II Braunsberg was captured by the Red Army in 1945 and suffered heavy destruction due to fighting and subsequent looting. The German inhabitants of the city were either evacuated before the Soviet army arrived, killed during the fighting, or expelled to Germany after the war.

The city, previously known as Brunsberga in Polish, became part of Poland again after 1945 and was given the current name Braniewo.

Military events

The city was subject of several sieges by different forces throughout its history:

• 1455 Teutonic Knights
• 1478 Poland
• 1520 Teutonic Knights
• 1626-35 Sweden
• 1655-63 Brandenburg
• 1703 Swedish
• 1713 Saxon
• 1734-36 Russian
• 1807 French

External links