Kietrz
Kietrz is a town in Głubczyce County, Opole Voivodeship, in southern Poland, near the border with the Czech Republic. As of 2019, it has a population of 6,005.
History
It was granted town rights in 1321.During World War II, in 1941, Nazi Germany established the Stalag 338 and Stalag 348 prisoner-of-war camps in [World War">German prisoner-of-war camps in World War II">prisoner-of-war camps in [World War II|prisoner-of-war camps] for Polish and French [prisoners of war in World War II|French] POWs, which, however, were soon relocated to Kryvyi Rih and Rzeszów, respectively. From 1942 to 1945, the Germans operated a Polenlager forced labour camp for Poles in the town. In January 1945, a German-conducted death march of prisoners of the Auschwitz concentration camp and its subcamps of Auschwitz|subcamps] passed through the town.
Sights
Kietrz contains several Baroque structures, including the Saint Thomas church, the Holy Cross chapel and several religious statues at the central square and park.Notable people
- Alfons Luczny, Luftwaffe general
- Olga Tokarczuk, Polish writer, Nobel laureate