Toruń ( , , , see also:
other
names) is a city in northern Poland
, on the
Vistula River, with population over 207,190
as of 2006, making it the second-largest city of Kujawy-Pomerania
Province
, after Bydgoszcz
. The medieval old town of Toruń is the
birthplace of
Nicolaus
Copernicus.
In 1997 it was added to UNESCO
's World Heritage List
as a World Heritage
Site.
Previously
it was the capital of the Toruń
Voivodeship (1975-98) and the Pomeranian Voivodeship
(1921-45). Since 1999, Toruń has been a seat of the
self-government of the Kujawy-Pomerania Province and, as such, is one of its two capitals (together
with Bydgoszcz). The cities and neighboring counties form
the
Bydgoszcz-Toruń bipolar
metropolitan area. In September 2004, Bydgoszcz Medical School
joined Toruń's
Nicolaus Copernicus
University as its
Collegium Medicum.
History
The first settlement in the vicinity is dated by archaeologists to
1100 BCE (
Lusatian culture). During
medieval times, in the 7th-13th centuries, it was the location of
an old Polish settlement, at a crossing point of the river.
The
Teutonic Knights built a castle
in the vicinity of the Polish settlement in the years 1230-31.
On 28
December 1233, the Teutonic Knights Hermann von Salza and Hermann Balk signed the foundation charters for
Thorn and Chełmno
.
Named after the city this took place, the original document (lost
in 1244) with the city rights was called
Kulmer Handfeste, the set of rights in
general is known as
Kulm law. In 1236, due
to frequent flooding,it was relocated to the present site of the
Old Town. In 1263
Franciscan monks
settled in the city, followed in 1239 by
Dominicans. In 1264 the nearby New Town was
founded. In 1280, the city (actually both cities) joined the
mercantile
Hanseatic League soon
turned into an important medieval trade centre.
The
First Peace of Thorn
ending the
Polish-Lithuanian-Teutonic
War was signed in the city in February 1411.
In 1440, the gentry of
Thorn formed the Prussian
Confederation, and in 1454 rose with the Confederation against
the Monastic state of the Teutonic
Knights
in the Thirteen
Years' War. After almost 200 years of coexistence, New
and Old Town amalgamated in 1454. The Teutonic castle was
destroyed. The Thirteen Years' War ended in 1466 with the
Second Peace of Thorn, in which
the Teutonic Order ceded their control over Eastern Pomerania
(
Royal Prussia). Toruń became part of
Kingdom of Poland.
The city adopted
Protestantism in 1557
during the
Protestant
Reformation, while most Polish cities remained
Roman Catholic. During the time of the
mayor
Heinrich Stroband
(1586-1609), the city became centralised and its administrative
power went into the hands of the city council. In 1595,
Jesuits arrived in order to promote the
Counter-Reformation, taking control of
the Church of St. John. Protestant city officials tried to limit
the influx of the Catholic population into the city, as Catholics
(Jesuits and
Dominican Order monks)
already controlled most churches, leaving only St. Mary to the
Protestant citizens.
In 1677, the Prussian historian and educator
Christoph Hartknoch was invited to be
director of the
Torun
Gymnasium, a post which he held until his death in 1687.
Hartknoch wrote histories of
Prussia,
including the cities of Royal Prussia.
In the second half of the 17th century, tensions between Catholics
and Protestants grew leading to events known as the
Tumult of Thorn.
In 1793, the city was
annexed by the Kingdom of
Prussia
following the Second Partition of Poland.
In 1807,
the city became part of the Duchy of Warsaw
created by Napoleon and ruled by King Frederick Augustus I of
Saxony
, although Prussia took control of it again after
Napoleon's defeat in 1814. In 1870,
French prisoners of
war taken during the
Franco-Prussian War built
a chain of forts surrounding the town.
In the
following year, the city, along with the rest of Prussia, became
part of the new German
Empire
. During this period it became one of centers
of resistance to
Germanisation and
Kulturkampf by Poles, who established a
Polish-language newspaper called "Gazeta Toruńska". In 1875, a
Polish Science Society was established and in 1884 a secret
organisation dedicated to restoration of Poland.
According
to the Treaty of Versailles
signed after World War I in 1919, it was
part of the Polish Corridor assigned
to Poland
. Toruń became the capital of the
then Pomeranian
Voivodeship. In 1925, the Baltic Institute was established in
the city, with the task of documenting Polish heritage in
Pomerania. In general, the interwar period was a time of
significant urban development in Toruń. Major investments were
completed in areas like transportation (new streets, tramway lines
and the Piłsudski Bridge), residential constructions (many new
houses, particularly in Bydgoskie Przedmieście) and public
buildings.
The city was annexed by
Nazi Germany
after the
Invasion of
Poland in 1939 and administered as part of
Danzig-West Prussia. During
World War II, the chain of forts were used by
the Germans as POW camps, collectively known as
Stalag XX-A.
The city, escaped significant destruction
during the war, and was liberated from the Nazis in 1945 by the
Soviet
Red Army and, as before the war, became part of
Poland. The remaining German population was expelled primarily
to East
Germany
between 1945 and 1947.
After World War II, the population increased more than twofold and
industry developed significantly. However, one of the most
important events of the post-war era was the founding of the
Nicolaus
Copernicus University in 1945. Over the years, it has become
one of the better universities in Poland. Its existence has
influenced the life of the city enormously, as well as its
perception by non-locals.
The University itself was founded by Polish
professors of the University of Wilno
, who were forced to abandon their native city and
move to post-1945 Poland.
Since 1989, when local and regional self-government was gradually
reintroduced and the market economy set in, Toruń, like other
cities in Poland, has undergone deep social and econonomic
transformation.
There is some debate among locals as to
whether this time has been really spent as successfully as it
should have been, but the fact is that Toruń has recently reclaimed
its strong position as a regional leader, together with Bydgoszcz.
Etymology
Early documents record the city's name as
Thorun (1226,
1466),
Turon,
Turun,
Toron,
Thoron and
Thorn.
Toruń was a royal city, subject to the kings of Poland,
Latin documents and coins usually spelled it
Thorun,
Thorunium,
civitas Thorunensis,
or
civitas Torunensis, and after the 15th century, the
current
Polish name
Toruń.
Polish
- It may come from the Polish word tor, which means
"track (of the Vistula river)". Toruń would therefore mean "town on
the track".
- It may have been originally Tarnów, based on the
Polish word tarnina, a kind of river plant. There are many cities
in Poland with a similar
derivation
.
Other
- Some people, such as Jan Miodek,
claim that "Toruń" does not have any etymological meaning.
- It
may come from the personal name Toron
and
mean "Toron's town".
- from the Teutonic Castle of Toron in the Lebanon mountains
Main sights
Panorama of Toruń.
Gothic St George Guildhall in
Toruń.
Listed on the UNESCO list of
World
Heritage Sites since 1997, Toruń has many monuments of
architecture beginning from the
Middle
Ages, including 200 military structures. The city is famous for
having preserved almost intact its medieval spatial layout and many
Gothic buildings, all built from
brick,
including monumental churches, the Town Hall and many burgher
houses. The most interesting monuments are:
- Gothic churches:
- The
Cathedral of Ss.
John the Evangelist and John the
Baptist, an aisled hall church built in the 14th century
and extended in the 15th century; outstanding Gothic sculptures and
paintings inside (Moses, St. Mary Magdalene, gravestone of Johann
von Soest), Renaissance and Baroque epitaphs and altars (amongst
them the epitaph of Copernicus from 1580)
- St. Mary's church, a formerly Franciscan aisled hall built in
the 14th century
- St. Jacob's church, a basilica from the 14th century, with
monumental wall paintings and Gothic stalls
- The Old Town Hall, begun in 1274, extended and rebuilt between
1391 and 1399, and extended at the end of the 16th century; one of
the most monumental town halls in Central Europe
- City fortifications, begun in the 13th century, extended
between the 14th and 15th centuries, mostly demolished in the 19th
century, but partially preserved with a few city gates and
watchtowers (among them the so-called Leaning Tower) from the
Vistula side. See also: Toruń
Fortress
- A Gothic house from the 15th century, where Copernicus was
allegedly born (now a museum)
- Ruins of the Teutonic Knights' castle from the 13th
century
- The House Under the Star ( ), previously Gothic, briefly owned
by Filip Callimachus, then rebuilt
in the 16th century and in 1697, with a richly decorated stucco
facade and wooden spiral stairs
- Toruń has the largest number of preserved Gothic houses in
Poland, many with Gothic wall paintings or wooden beam ceilings
from the 16th to the 18th centuries
Toruń, unlike many other historic cities in Poland, avoided
significant destruction during World War II. In particular, the Old
Town was left intact, so all its important monuments of
architecture are original, not reconstructions.
Major renovation projects have been undertaken in recent years to
improve the condition and external presentation of the Old Town.
Besides the renovation of various buildings, projects such as the
reconstruction of the pavement of the streets and squares
(reversing them to their historical appearance), and the
introduction of new plants, trees and objects of 'small
architecture', are underway.
Numerous buildings and other constructions, including the city
walls along the boulevard, are illuminated at night, creating an
impressive effect - probably unique among Polish cities with
respect to the size of Toruń's Old Town and the scale of the
illumination project itself.
Population
View of Toruń Old Town Square at dusk.
The most recent statistics show a decrease in the population of the
city, to 208,007 at the end of 2006. This is mainly because quite a
large number of citizens have been moving to nearby communities,
adjacent to the formal administrative area of Toruń, but still
outside it. As a result Toruń is surrounded by a belt of
densely-populated settlements, whose inhabitants work, shop and
entertain in the city proper, but do not officially live
there.
In recent years, a discussion has been taking place as to whether
or not these surrounding communities should be incorporated into
the city's administrative area. This seems rather inevitable in the
longer term, though many say Toruń has almost reached the limit of
its development within the city's boundary.
Inside the city itself, most of the population is concentrated on
the right (northern) bank of the Vistula river. Two of the most
densely populated areas are Rubinkowo and Na Skarpie, housing
projects built mostly in the 1970s and 80s, located between the
central and easternmost districts; their total population is about
70,000.
Toruń and
Bydgoszcz together make up a bipolar metroplex which,
including those cities' counties and a number of smaller towns, may
have a population of as much as 800,000. Thus the area
contains about one third of the population of the Kuyavia-Pomerania
region (which has about 2.1 million inhabitants).
Some groups of Japanese, Ukrainian and Vietnamese people live in
Toruń now. The Japanese diaspora is the largest visible minority in
the city, it stems from the management of businesses opened in
recent years by Japanese companies such as
Sharp. In additional to Japanese managers,
engineers, translators and their families there are Japanese
language teachers working at the local university and language
schools, and people who have married locals and stayed in
Toruń.
Transport
The transportation network in the city itself has been a subject of
much criticism for years. Although the city proper is not very
large, the underdeveloped street and road network is a source of
problems. It has to deal not only with a traffic generated by Toruń
itself, but also with heavy transit and metropolitan traffic. Even
the construction of new wide avenues, both by reconstructing
existing streets and by construction of others from scratch, has
not been enough. The most serious problem, however, is that only a
single car traffic bridge crosses the Vistula river inside the
city's boundaries. The construction of beltways, and thus the
reduction of the inflow of vehicles into the city, has helped
significantly, but still the existence of only one downtown bridge
causes serious transportation difficulties, especially traffic
jams. A construction of another bridge, located 4 km east of
the existing one, has been prepared and will start in 2009; as of
December 2008, most of the necessary funds have been already
secured.
The mass transit system is composed of 5 tram lines and about 40
bus lines, covering the city and some of the neighbouring
communities.
Toruń is situated at a major road junction, one of the most
important in Poland. The A1
highway reaches
Toruń, and a southern
beltway surrounds the
city. Besides these, the
European
route E75 and a number of domestic roads (numbered 10, 15, and
80) run through the city.
With
three main railway stations (Toruń
Główny
, Toruń Miasto and Toruń Wschodni), the city is a
major rail junction, with two important lines crossing there
(Warszawa
–Bydgoszcz and Wrocław
–Olsztyn
). Two other lines stem from Toruń, toward
Malbork
and Sierpc
.
The rail
connection with Bydgoszcz is run under a name "BiT City" as a "metropolitan
rail". Its main purpose is to allow traveling between and
within these cities using one ticket.
A joint venture of
Toruń, Bydgoszcz, Solec
Kujawski
and the
voivodeship, it is considered as important in integrating Bydgoszcz-Toruń metropolitan
area. A major modernization of BiT City railroute, as well
as a purchase of completely new vehicles to serve the line, is
planned for 2008 and 2009. Technically, it will allow to travel
between Toruń-East and Bydgoszcz-Airport stations at a speed of
120 km/h in a time of approximately half an hour. In a few
years' time "BiT City" will be integrated with local transportation
systems of Toruń and Bydgoszcz, thus creating a uniform
metropolitan transportation network - with all necessary funds
having been secured in 2008.
Since
September 2008, the "one-ticket" solution has been introduced also
as regards a rail connection with Włocławek
, as a "regional ticket". The same is planned
for connection with Grudziądz
.
Two bus depots serve to connect the city with other towns and
cities in Poland.
As of 2008, a small sport airfield exists in Toruń; however, a
modernization of the airport is seriously considered with a number
of investors interested in it. Independently of this,
Bydgoszcz-Szwederowo airport, located about 50 km from Toruń
city center, serves the whole
Bydgoszcz-Toruń metropolitan area, with
a number of regular flights to European cities.
Economy
Although a medium-sized city, Toruń is the site of headquarters of
some of the largest and most influential companies in Poland, or at
least of their subsidiaries. The official unemployment rate, as of
September 2008, is 5.4%.
In 2006,
a construction of new plants owned by Sharp Corporation and other
companies of mainly Japanese origin has started in a neighboring
community of Łysomice
(about 10 km from city center). The
facilities under construction are located in a newly-created
special economical area. As a result of cooperation of the
companies mentioned above, a vast high-tech complex is to be
constructed in the next few years' time, providing as many as
10,000 jobs (a prediction for 2010) at the cost of about 450
million euros. As of 2008, the creation of another special economic
area is being considered, this time inside city limits.
Thanks to its architectural heritage Toruń is visited by more than
1.5 million tourists a year (1.6 million in 2007). This makes
tourism an important branch of the local economy, although time
spent in the city by individual tourists or the number of hotels
which can serve them are still not considered satisfactory. Major
investments in renovation of the city's monuments, building new
hotels (including high standard ones), improvement in promotion, as
well as launching new cultural and scientific events and
facilities, give very good prospects for Toruń's tourism.
In recent years Toruń has been a site of intense building
construction investments, mainly residential and in its
transportation network. The latter has been possible partly due to
the use of European Union funds assigned for new member states.
Toruń city county generates by far the highest number of new
dwellings built each year among all Kuyavian-Pomeranian counties,
both relative to its population as well as in absolute values. It
has led to almost complete rebuilding of some districts. As of
2008, many major constructions are either under development or are
to be launched soon - the value of some of them exceeding 100
million euros. They include a new speedway stadium, major shopping
and entertainment centers, a commercial complex popularly called a
"New Center of Toruń", a music theater, a center of contemporary
art, hotels, office buildings, facilities for the Nicolaus
Copernicus University, roads and tram routes, sewage and fresh
water delivery systems, residential projects, the possibility of a
new bridge over the Vistula, and more. Construction of the A1
motorway and the BiT City fast metropolitan railway also directly
effects the city.
About 25,000 local firms are registered in Toruń.
Culture
Toruń has two drama theatres (
Teatr im. Wilama
Horzycy with three stages and
Teatr Wiczy), two
children's theatres (
Baj Pomorski and
Zaczarowany
Świat), two music theatres (
Mała Rewia,
Studencki
Teatr Tańca), and numerous other theatre groups. The city
hosts, among others events, the international theatre festival,
"Kontakt", annually in May
A building called
Baj Pomorski has recently been
completely reconstructed. It is now one of the most modern cultural
facilities in the city, with its front elevation in the shape of a
gigantic chest of drawers. It is located at the south-east edge of
the Old Town.
Toruń has a number of cinemas including a
Cinema City, which has over 2,000
seats.
Over ten major museums document the history of Toruń and the
region. Among others, the "House of Kopernik" and the accompanying
museum commemorate
Nicolaus
Copernicus and his revolutionary work, the university museum
reveals the history of the city's academic past.
The
Center of
Contemporary Art (
Centrum Sztuki Współczesnej -
CSW) opened in June 2008 and is one of the most important
cultural facilities of this kind in Poland. The modern building is
located in the very center of the city, adjacent to the Old
Town.
The Toruń Symphonic Orchestra (formerly the Toruń Chamber
Orchestra) is well-rooted in the Toruń cultural landscape.
Toruń is equipped with a
planetarium
(located downtown) and an
astronomical observatory (located
in nearby community of Piwnice).
The latter boasts the largest radio telescope in the Eastern part of
Central Europe with a diameter of 32m, second only to the Effelsberg
100m radio telescope.
Toruń is well-known for
Toruń
gingerbread, a type of
pierniki often
made in elaborate moulds.
Education
Over thirty elementary and primary schools and over ten high
schools make up the educational base of Toruń. Besides these,
students can also attend a handful of private schools.
The
largest institution of higher education in Toruń, Nicolaus Copernicus
University in Toruń serves over 40 thousand students and was
founded in 1945, based on the Toruń Scientific Society,
Stefan
Batory University in Wilno
, and Jan Kazimierz University in
Lvov. The existence of a high-ranked and high-profiled
university with so many students plays a great role the city's
position and importance in general, as well as in creating an image
of Toruń's streets and clubs filled with crowds of young people. It
also has a serious influence on local economy.
Other public institutions of higher education:
- Wyższe Seminarium Duchowne (a section of the
Theological Faculty of the Nicolaus Copernicus University)
- College of English - Nauczycielskie Kolegium Języków Obcych
(affiliated to the Nicolaus Copernicus University)
- College of Fashion (Kolegium Mody)
There are also a number of private higher education facilities:
Healthcare
Five hospitals of various specializations provide medical service
for Toruń itself, its surrounding area and to the region in
general. The two largest of these hospitals, recently run by the
voivodeship, are to be taken over by Nicolaus Copernicus University
and run as its clinical units. At least one of them is to change
its status in 2008, with the formal procedures being very
advanced.
In addition, there are a number of other healthcare facilities in
the city.
Media
- TV Stations: TVN/TVN24 - oddział Regionalny w Toruniu, TVP Info - Oddział w Bydgoszczy, Redakcja Terenowa
w Toruniu , Telewizja Trwam,
Telewizja Podróże TV, Telewizja Kablowa Toruń
[5432], Telewizja
TAT Studio Region. [5433], Telewizja Petrus
- Radio Stations: Polskie Radio
Pomorza i Kujaw, Radio ESKA, Radio GRA, Radio
Maryja , Radio Plus [5434], Radio Sfera,
Radio WAWA
- Press: Rzeczpospolita, Gazeta Wyborcza Toruń, Gazeta Pomorska, Nowości, Niedziela,
Undergrunt, Immuniet, Ilustrator
Sports clubs
Notable residents
International relations
The twin cities of Torun
Twin towns — Sister cities
Toruń is
twinned with:
- Philadelphia
 , United
States , since 1977
- Göttingen
 , Germany , since 1978
- Leiden
 , Netherlands , since 1988
- Hämeenlinna
 , Finland , since 1989
- Kaliningrad
 , Russian
Federation , since 1995
|
- Čadca
 , Slovakia , since 1996
- Swindon
 , United
Kingdom , since 2003
- Novo
Mesto
 , Slovenia , since 2005
- Lutsk
 , Ukraine , since 2008
- Odense
 , Denmark , since 2009
|
Bulwar
Filadelfijski (Philadelphia Boulevard), both a 2 km
long street running mostly between Vistula River and walls of the
Old Town, and the boulevard itself (bearing the same name), honours
sister relationship with Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
.
Ślimak Getyński (
Goettingen Helix, German:
Goettingen
Schnecke) is one of the lanes connecting Piłsudski Bridge /
John Paul II Avenue with Philadelphia Boulevard at their downtown
interchange. It honours the relationship with Göttingen, its name
derived from the street's half-circular shape (Polish word
ślimak meaning "snail").
National parliament deputies
European Parliament deputies (recent)
MEPs elected from Kuyavian-Pomeranian constituency
Miscellanea
Gallery
File:Torun sw Janow from Zeglarska
Str.jpg|Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist
and St. John the EvangelistFile:Torun ratusz corr.jpg|City HallFile:Im
dorozkaszeroka.jpg|Old TownFile:Torun Katedra Janow2.JPG|View from
Pilsudski bridgeFile:Kosciol sw. Jakuba w Toruniu.jpg|St. Jacob's
ChurchFile:Dachy zsamolotu4.jpg|Bridge over the VistulaFile:Torun
NMP witraz prezbiterium wsch 01.jpg|St. Mary's
ChurchFile:Torun07ViewOfTown.jpg|New Town, Królowej Jadwigi
St.
Notes
- Hypothetical reconstruction of a Lusatian culture
settlement, built using bronze age tools: Wola Radziszowska,
Poland, part of study by scientists from the Jagiellonian University’s Institute
Of Archaeology.
- Encyklopedia Powszechna PWN Warsaw 1976
- The Teutonic Knights - the founders of Thorn - The
foundation charter for Thorn was signed on 28th December 1233 by
the Grand Master of the Teutonic Order Herman von Salza and the
National Master for Prussia and the Slavonic Lands Herman Balka. In
that way Thorn was founded by the Teutonic Order and managed by the
Knights until 1454 - torun.pl
- Max Töppen Historisch-comparative Geographie von Preussen:
Nach den Quellen, namentlich auch archivalischen, Published by
J. Perthes, 1858 [1] PDF
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