Gdansk’s early history

The first permanent settlement in the area of ​​present-day Gdansk took place in the 600s when a number of small fishing communities were established. The dating comes from archaeological excavations, which furthermore set the starting point for the town to be where the Długa Square leads to the River Motława.

In 979, Pomerania and thereby Gdansk were conquered by the Polish prince Mieszko I, and he founded a fortress in the city. The very founding of Gdansk is officially considered to have taken place in the year 997, when Prague’s Bishop Adelbert came to the region and Christianized the citizens and the area, not least the tribe of Prussians. Gdansk was already an important trading town here because of its strategically good location close to several estuaries in the Baltic Sea.

In 1025, Gdansk, along with a number of other Polish territories, recognized Boleslav I as the first king. In the 1100s, Dominican monks from Krakow came to the city, which strengthened both the economic and cultural growth of the city. Politically, however, this time was marked by changing rulers, and at one point in the 12th century Poland was divided into several smaller dukes.

In 1221, King Valdemar II of Denmark conquered Gdansk, but four years later Swantopolk II regained the Polish hands. Gdansk continued to develop primarily through its trade, and in the 1220s came merchants from Lübeck, who, under Swantopolk II, introduced market town rights, which led to a further increase in trade. With many ship calls from England, Sweden and other maritime nations, Gdansk was becoming a significant regional port. During this time Gdansk had 8,000 inhabitants and its German population called the place of Stadt Danzig.

The Teutonic Order and the Hanseatic League

From 1226 the influence of the Teutonic Order began with their first entry into the Gdansk region. Poland was then weakened, and from the east came an attack by Tatars in 1241. In 1308, Brandenburg besieged Gdansk, and Władysław Łokietek was assisted by the Teutonic Order. In the aftermath of the ensuing battles, the order occupied Gdansk, thereby conquering power in the city. Order began the construction of the colossal castle in Malbork, which they made to their administrative center; their capital.

The Germans markedly strengthened Gdansk’s trading position, and especially after the membership of the Hanseatic League in 1361, the port and trade with other cities in the Baltic Sea area flourished. However, there were ongoing conflicts with Poland, and Polish-Lithuanian forces overcame the German Order in 1410, and it stopped the order’s expansion to the east. After the victory, the Germans were challenged in the Polish territories, and in 1454 Gdansk’s citizens revolted and joined New Poland.

The 16th to 17th centuries

The 16th century became a long boom period for Gdansk, which had previously achieved a monopoly on the important grain trade. There was now political stability and marked freedom under King Sigismund II. The grain trade created a large export and many warehouse buildings in the port areas, which became known as Europe’s grain chamber.

Gdansk became Poland’s largest city and flourished culturally. Science thrived, and results came, for example, Nikolaj Copernicus discovered in Gdansk Earth’s rotation about the Sun. The city had also undergone the Reformation as early as 1523.

In the 1570s, however, it came to an end when Stephan Báthory became the new Polish king. Gdansk would not recognize him and instead targeted the German-Roman Empire, which could provide the city with significant commercial benefits. Báthory died in 1576, but Gdansk still did not recognize the following Polish king, and it came to a siege in 1577. The city defended itself so strongly that the Polish king merely received an apology and a fine of 200,000 florins.

In the 1600s, Swedish armies ravaged the Polish territory. As one of the only cities, Gdansk expanded exponentially through time, reaching 77,000 inhabitants. However, the long acts of war eventually had an effect; the money box was emptied and the city indebted.

Stagnation and decline

The 18th century became a period of decline for the Polish-Lithuanian Empire. Russia’s czar, Peter the Great, besieged Gdansk in 1734, and 30 years later Stanislav was crowned the king to become the last in the kingdom. In 1772-1773 the first division of Poland between Russia, Prussia and Austria took place, and here Gdansk was surrounded by Prussia.

With the split, Gdansk lost its commercial hinterland and thus its central location on the Polish trade routes. This quickly led to a decline in Gdansk’s economy and development. In 1793, the second division of Poland was completed, and this time Gdansk came to Prussia as the city of Danzig.

Napoleonic time and onwards

Prussia occupied Hanover in 1806, and it issued a declaration of war from Sweden and Britain. It went beyond Danzig as a Prussian city; the country’s navy was destroyed and the city’s port blocked. This happened during the Napoleonic Wars, which brought Danzig and Prussia into several battles.

During the Napoleonic period, Gdansk was set up as a sanctuary, and French troops were stationed here. Following Napoleon’s subsequent defeat, a new division of the Polish territories took place. It was at the Vienna Congress in 1815, and Danzig became part of East Prussia, where the capital was Königsberg; the present Kaliningrad. In a new division the following year, Poland ceased to exist as a country.

Despite the fact that Danzig was now cut off from former Poland as well as covered with high Prussian taxes, Danzig was an important city and in 1878 it was made the capital of West Prussia. It was a region that had arisen after the division of East Prussia into two areas, which was not least due to military reasons.

However, the number of citizens increased steadily during these decades; from about 65,000 in 1850 to more than 140,000 in 1900. The trams ran in the streets marked by increasing bustle. The municipal administration also started several major civil engineering works from the 1860s such as sewerage and new waterworks.

On September 21, 1903, a monument to Emperor Wilhelm was inaugurated in Danzig, and the Emperor was himself present. The monument was seen as a manifest symbol of Danzig being part of the Prussian and thereby German state, which however changed in the following years.

20th Century World Wars

Germany was a significant part of World War I, and after the German defeat in the war, Prussian Danzig was established as the Free State Danzig by the League of Nations in 1920. The inhabitants were largely German, and around the city lay the so-called Polish corridor leading up to Gdynia as Poland’s only possible major port city. The new Polish Republic built the port of Gdynia in the 1920s, and with the country’s limited access to the Baltic Sea, significant growth took place here.

For Danzig, the city was booming as a free state in the beginning, but the economy was quickly facing severe tariff barriers, a lack of industrialization and a general weakening of the international economy.

During this time, Poland handled part of Danzig’s operations, such as the city’s port and international rail links. Poland also had a post office in the city, and the Polish presence created ever-greater opposition at the same time as some were seeking approximations to the neighboring country.

In 1933 the Nazis came to power, but due in part to international control and governance, their political power was reduced until 1936-1937. After that, Danzig became more dependent on Germany, where Adolf Hitler was the leader.

Danzig soon re-entered the history books. The Polish military post at Westerplatte near the city was the site where World War II officially started in 1939, and on September 20 of that year, Adolf Hitler could be cheered after his entry into the streets of Danzig.

Throughout the war and especially in 1945, when there were battles in connection with the Red Army’s advance against Berlin, large parts of Danzig were destroyed. World War II also caused a sharp decline in the city’s population. In 1939, there were approximately 250,000 living there, and in 1946 the figure was 118,000. Only about 5% of the pre-war population remained in the city after the war.

Postwar to today

A large-scale reconstruction of the ruined city center took place after the end of World War II, and the modern Polish metropolis grew around the city core. Even before 1960, the population had exceeded the pre-World War II level, and the number was around 450,000 in 1980. In the decades, many suburbs had been expanded with large residential areas and Polish Gdansk was growing.

Gdansk became a Polish metropolis, and it again became the center of the world’s media and on the political front through the 1970s and 1980s, when the trade union Solidarity with Lech Walesa was formed at the head of the Lenin Shipyard. Walesa and Solidarity were one of the factors that brought about a fall in communist rule over a decade.

After the system change in Poland around 1990, Gdansk has re-established itself as an attractive place for tourists. Hotels, cultural institutions and other activities have been launched both in the city and throughout Trojmiasto, as the economically important area of ​​Gdansk, Gdynia and Sopot is called. Among the many international events in the city in recent years were the European Championships in football in 2012, where Gdansk hosted four matches.