West Prussia

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West Prussia (German: Westpreußen (help·info); Polish: Prusy Zachodnie) was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1773-1824 and 1878-1918.

Contents 1 History 2 Historical population 3 Subdivisions 4 Office Holders 5 See also 6 External links

[edit] History

In the Thirteen Years' War (1454-1466), the towns of Pomerelia and western Prussia rebelled against the Teutonic Knights and sought the assistance of King Casimir IV Jagiellon of Poland. In the Peace of Toruń in 1466, Pomerelia and western Prussia became the Polish province of Royal Prussia, which received several special rights, especially in Danzig (Gdańsk). Royal Prussia became part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1569. Eastern Prussia, on the other hand, remained with the Teutonic Knights, who were reduced to vassals of Poland by the Peace of Toruń. This territory became the Duchy of Prussia in 1525.

Most of Royal Prussia was annexed by the Kingdom of Prussia in the First Partition of Poland in 1772, and became the Province of West Prussia the following year, with the exception of Warmia which was joined with eastern Prussia to form the Province of East Prussia. In the Second Partition of Poland in 1793, the Hanseatic city of Danzig, no longer able to rely on its own strength, was annexed into the Kingdom of Prussia and added to West Prussia. Some of the areas of Greater Poland annexed in 1772 that formed the Netze District were added to West Prussia in 1793 as well.

During the Napoleonic Wars in 1806, southern parts of West Prussia were moved to the Duchy of Warsaw. From 1824-1878 West Prussia was combined with East Prussia to form the Province of Prussia, after which they were reestablished as separate provinces. The region became part of the German Empire in 1871.

After the Treaty of Versailles in 1919, most of West Prussia was granted to the Second Polish Republic, while small parts of the west and east of the former province remained in Weimar Germany. The western remainder formed Posen-West Prussia in 1922, while the eastern remainder became part of the District of West Prussia within East Prussia.

In the Potsdam Conference of 1945 after World War II, all of former West Prussia was placed under the administration of Poland and was later recognized as part of Poland by East and West Germany in ensuing decades. The remaining German population of the region was expelled westward and replaced with Poles. Some of these refugees established the non-profit Territorial Association of West Prussia to represent German West Prussians.

[edit] Historical population

Population of Prussia and its Provinces in 1890

	Inhabitants	non-German citizens
West Prussia	1,433,681	1,976

From 1885 to 1890 West Prussia's population decreased by 1%.

• 1875 - 1,343,057
• 1880 - 1,405,898
• 1890 - 1,433,681 (717,532 Catholics, 681,195 Protestants, 21,750 Jews, others)
• 1900 - 1,563,658 (800,395 Catholics, 730,685 Protestants, 18,226 Jews, others)

[edit] Subdivisions

Note: Prussian provinces were subdivided into units called "Kreise" (singular "Kreis", abbreviated "Kr.", English circle), which were similar to large counties in Anglo-American terms. Cities would have their own "Stadtkreis" (English: municipal county) and the surrounding rural area would be named for the city, but referred to as a "Landkreis" (English: rural county).

Kreis ("County")	Polish spelling	1905 Pop	Poles	Germans	Jewish	Origin
Kreis Danzig (northern)
Danzig Stadtkreis	Gdańsk
Elbing Stadtkreis	Elbląg
Berent	Kościerzyna		49.4%
Danziger-Höhe	Gdańsk-Wyżyny		9.7%
Danziger-Niederung	Gdańsk-Niziny
Dirschau	Tczew		39.9%
Elbing	Elbląg
Karthaus	Kartuzy		68.7%
Marienburg	Malbork
Neustadt	Wejherowo		52.2%
Preußisch Stargard	Starogard Gdański		72.6%
Putzig	Puck		68.6%
Kreis Marienwerder (southern)
Graudenz Stadtkreis	Grudziądz		10.9%
Thorn, Stadtkreis	Toruń		22.7%
Briesen	Wąbrzeźno		57.4%
Culm (Kulm)	Chełmno		53.0%
Deutsch Krone	Wałcz
Flatow	Złotów		25.4%
Graudenz, Landkreis	Grudziądz		40.5%
Konitz	Chojnice		53.7%
Löbau	Lubawa		80.1%
Marienwerder	Kwidzyn		35.7%
Rosenberg	Susz		6.9%
Schlochau	Człuchów		11.2%
Schwetz	Świecie		53.6%
Strasburg	Brodnica		65.2%
Stuhm	Sztum		36.4%
Thorn, Landkreis	Toruń		51.6%
Tuchel	Tuchola		63.8%

[edit] Office Holders

• Administration of West Prussia before 1919

[edit] See also

• East Prussia
• Pomerelia
• Pomerania
• Province of Prussia
• Royal Prussia

[edit] External links

• www.westpreussen-online.de (German)
• Administrative subdivision of the province in 1910 (German)
• Westpreussenlied (midi) (German)
• West Prussia FAQ
• East and West Prussia Gazetteer