Poddębice
Poddębice is a town in central Poland, in Łódź Voivodeship. It is the capital of Poddębice County. It lies approximately northwest of Łódź. Population is 7,245. It is located within the historic Łęczyca Land.
History
Poddębice was a private town, administratively located in the Łęczyca County in the Łęczyca Voivodeship in the Greater [Poland Province, Crown of the Kingdom of Poland|Greater Poland Province] of the Kingdom of Poland. Zygmunt Grudziński built a Renaissance palace in the town.
In the interwar period, it was administratively located in the Łódź Voivodeship of Poland. According to the 1921 census, the population was 61.4% Polish and 37.0% Jewish.
During the German occupation of Poland, in 1940, the occupiers carried out expulsions of Poles, mostly owners of shops, workshops and better houses, which were then handed over to German colonists as part of the Lebensraum policy. The local Jewish population, which numbered around 1,400 at the start of the war, was confined to a ghetto and subject to German rule during [World War">Germans">German rule during [World War II|forced labor]. In 1942, five were hung publicly and in April, 1,800 Jews, including several hundred forcibly resettled from Łęczyca, were confined in a church for ten days without any essentials, including food until a bribe was paid. Ten died there. After a few days, the sick and the elderly were then murdered nearby. After ten days, some skilled workers were sent to the Łódź Ghetto. All the remainder were sent to the Chełmno extermination camp where they were immediately gassed. Few of Poddębice's Jews survived the war. The German administrator of Poddębice kept a secret diary published after the war. His diary was critical of the anti-Jewish policies. He had tried to help the Jewish population when he could. He was removed from his post during the war.
Sports
The local football club is Ner Poddębice. It competes in the lower leagues.