Połczyn-Zdrój


Połczyn-Zdrój is a town in Świdwin County, Pomeranian Voivodeship">Pomeranians (Slavic tribe)">Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland, with 8,372 inhabitants. It is situated on the Wogra River in the historic region of Pomerania.

History

Połczyn-Zdrój dates back to an early medieval Pomeranian settlement. The territory became part of the emerging Polish state under Mieszko I around 967. Following the fragmentation of Poland, it formed part of the Duchy of Pomerania. Połczyn was a defensive stronghold located in the Białogard castellany. The town and its castle are mentioned in historical records from 1321 and 1331, respectively, which state that they belonged to a fief that the powerful noble Wedel family had obtained from the Pomeranian dukes. In the 15th century other families were in possession of the town. It had three mineral springs of enhanced iron content and with a temperature between, which were exploited in sanatoriums in order to cure rheumatism. In 1905 the town had a population of 5,046 which in the year of 1925 had grown to 5,960 persons.
Before World War I, the town was known as Polzin. It acquired the name Bad Polzin between the two World Wars. During World War II the Germans established a camp for kidnapped Polish children intended for Germanisation. On 5 March 1945, the town was captured by the Poles and after the end of the war it became again part of Poland, although with a Soviet-installed communist regime.
In the summer of 1945, the communist authorities announced that the population has to leave their home after harvest. However, after the Potsdam Conference evictions were officially postponed to spring 1946. In-officially, the administration was mandated to continue expulsions. According to German witness reports, starting end of October 1945, each night 100-150 Germans to be expelled were forced out of their homes, plundered and sometimes raped.
The town's first post-war mayor was Benedykt Polak, former prisoner of the Oflag II-C German prisoner-of-war camps in [World War II|German prisoner-of-war camp]. In July 1996, after heavy rainfall, the town suffered a flood, after which a new retention reservoir was built between 2000 and 2003.

Demographics

Notable residents