Editing Koszalin (section)

== History ==
Human settlement in Koszalin dates back to prehistoric times. Various traces of human settlement of the [[Funnelbeaker culture|Funnelbeaker]], [[Globular Amphora culture|Globular Amphora]] and [[Lusatian culture|Lusatian]] cultures and from [[ancient Roman]] times and [[Early Middle Ages]] were discovered during [[archaeological excavation]]s.

=== Middle Ages ===
[[File:Pdsoki fragment murów miejskich przy ul Marii Ludwiki w Koszalinie 01.jpg|thumb|left|Medieval city walls]]
The territory became part of the emerging Polish state under [[Mieszko I]] around 967.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Labuda|first=Gerard|year=1993|title=Chrystianizacja Pomorza (X–XIII stulecie)|magazine=Studia Gdańskie|language=pl|location=Gdańsk-Oliwa|volume=IX|page=47}}</ref> According to the Medieval [[Wielkopolska Chronicle|Chronicle of Greater Poland]] (''Kronika Wielkopolska'') Koszalin was one of the [[Pomeranians (Slavic tribe)|Pomeranian]] cities captured and subjugated by Duke [[Bolesław III Wrymouth]] of Poland in 1107 (other towns included [[Kołobrzeg]], [[Kamień Pomorski|Kamień]] and [[Wolin (town)|Wolin]]).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.koszalin.pl/pl/page/historia-koszalina|title=Historia Koszalina, Serwis Urzędu Miejskiego w Koszalinie|access-date=June 8, 2019}}</ref> Afterwards, in the 12th century the area became part of the [[House of Griffin|Griffin]]-ruled [[Duchy of Pomerania]], a vassal state of [[Kingdom of Poland|Poland]], which separated from Poland after the fragmentation of Poland into smaller duchies, and became a vassal of [[Denmark]] in 1185 and a part of the [[Holy Roman Empire]] from 1227.

In 1214, [[Bogislaw II, Duke of Pomerania|Bogislaw II]], [[Dukes of Pomerania|Duke of Pomerania]], made a donation of a village known as Koszalice/Cossalitz by Chełmska Hill in Kołobrzeg Land to the [[Premonstratensian|Norbertine]] monastery in Białoboki near [[Trzebiatów]]. New, mostly [[German people|German]], settlers from outside of Pomerania were invited to settle the territory. In 1248, the eastern part of Kołobrzeg Land, including the village, was transferred by Duke [[Barnim I, Duke of Pomerania|Barnim I]] to the [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Kammin]].<ref name=Koebler>Gerhard Köbler, ''Historisches Lexikon der Deutschen Länder: die deutschen Territorien vom Mittelalter bis zur Gegenwart'', 7th edition, C.H. Beck, 2007, p. 113, {{ISBN|3-406-54986-1}}</ref>

On 23 May 1266, Kammin bishop [[Hermann von Gleichen]] granted a charter to the village, granting it [[Lübeck law]], local government, autonomy and multiple privileges to attract German settlers from the west.<ref>{{cite book|author=Charles Higounet|title=Die deutsche Ostsiedlung im Mittelalter|pages=149|language=de}}</ref> When in 1276 the bishops became the sovereign in neighboring [[Kołobrzeg]], they moved their residence there, while the administration of the diocese was done from Koszalin.<ref name=Koebler/> In 1278 a [[Cistercians|Cistercian]] monastery was established, which took care of the local parish church and St. Mary chapel on Chełmska Hill.<ref name=MUZ/>

The city obtained direct access to the [[Baltic Sea]] when it gained the village of Jamno (1331), parts of [[Jamno (lake)|Lake Jamno]], a spit between the lake and the sea and the castle of [[Unieście]] in 1353. Thence, it participated in the Baltic Sea trade as a member of the [[Hanseatic League]] (from 1386),<ref name=MUZ/> which led to several conflicts with the competing seaports of at Kołobrzeg and [[Darłowo]]. From 1356 until 1417/1422, the city was part of the Duchy of [[Pomerania-Wolgast]]. In 1446 Koszalin fought a victorious battle against the nearby rival city of [[Kołobrzeg]].<ref name=MUZ>{{cite web|url=http://muzeum.koszalin.pl/?q=node/1699|title=Kalendarium 750 lat Koszalina, Muzeum w Koszalinie|access-date=June 9, 2019|language=pl}}</ref> In 1475 a conflict between the city of Koszalin and the Pomeranian duke [[Bogislaw X, Duke of Pomerania|Bogislaw X]] broke out, resulting in the kidnapping and temporary imprisonment of the duke in Koszalin.<ref name=MUZ/>

===Early Modern Age===
{{multiple image |align=left |caption_align=center |total_width=200
| image1 = Wappen Köslin1.png
| image2 = Koszalin CoA 3.gif
| footer = Coats of arms from ca. 1400–1800 and from 1800–1939
}}As a result of [[Ostsiedlung|German colonization]], the town became mostly German-speaking, putting indigenous Slavic speakers at disadvantage.<ref name=MUZ/> In 1516 local Germans enforced a ban on buying goods from Slavic speakers.<ref>Hieronim Kroczyński, ''Kołobrzeg zarys dziejów'', Wyd. Poznańskie, Poznań, 1979, p. 27 (in Polish)</ref> It was also forbidden to accept native Slavs to craft guilds, which indicates ethnic discrimination.<ref name=MUZ/>

In 1531 riots took place between supporters and opponents of the [[Protestant Reformation]].<ref name=MUZ/> In 1534 the city became mostly [[Lutheranism|Lutheran]] under the influence of [[Johannes Bugenhagen]]. In 1568, [[John Frederick, Duke of Pomerania]] and [[Bishopric of Cammin|bishop of Cammin]], started constructing a residence, finished by his successor [[Casimir VI, Duke of Pomerania|Casimir VI of Pomerania]] in 1582.<ref name=MUZ/> After the 1637 death of the last Pomeranian duke, [[Bogislaw XIV, Duke of Pomerania|Bogislaw XIV]], the city passed to his cousin, Bishop [[Ernst Bogislaw von Croÿ]] of Kammin. Occupied by [[Swedish Empire|Swedish]] troops during the [[Thirty Years' War]] in 1637, some of the city's inhabitants sought refuge in nearby Poland.<ref name=MUZ/> The city was granted to [[Brandenburg-Prussia]] after the [[Treaty of Westphalia]] (1648) and the [[Treaty of Stettin (1653)]], and with all of [[Farther Pomerania]] became part of the [[Province of Pomerania (1653-1815)|Brandenburgian Pomerania]].

Now renamed Cöslin as part of the [[Kingdom of Prussia]], the city was heavily damaged by a fire in 1718, but was rebuilt in the following years. In 1764 on the Chełmska Hill, now located within the city limits, a Pole Jan Gelczewski founded a paper mill that supplied numerous city offices.<ref name=MUZ/>

===Late Modern Age===
[[File:Koszalin - Góra Chełmska Żołnierzom Polskim.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Monument to [[November Uprising|Polish insurgents]] from 1831 on Chełmska Hill]]
The city was occupied by [[First French Empire|French]] troops in 1807 after the [[War of the Fourth Coalition]]. Following the [[Napoleonic wars]], it became the capital of [[Fürstenthum (district)|Fürstenthum District]] ([[Districts of Prussia|county]]) and [[Köslin (region)|Regierungsbezirk Cöslin]] ([[Regierungsbezirk|government region]]) within the [[Province of Pomerania (1815–1945)|Province of Pomerania]]. The Fürstenthum District was dissolved on 1 September 1872 and replaced with the [[Köslin (district)|Cöslin District]] on December 13. Between 1829 and 1845, a road connecting Cöslin (Koszalin) with [[Szczecin|Stettin (Szczecin)]] and [[Gdańsk|Danzig (Gdańsk)]] was built.<ref name=MUZ/> Part of this road, from Cöslin (Koszalin) to the nearby town of [[Sianów]], was built in 1833 by around one hundred former [[November Uprising|Polish insurgents]].<ref name=MUZ/> In 1869, the Saint Joseph church was built by local [[Polish people|Poles]].

The town became part of the [[German Empire]] in 1871 during the [[unification of Germany]]. The railroad from Stettin through Cöslin and [[Słupsk|Stolp (Słupsk)]] to Danzig was constructed from 1858 to 1878. A military cadet school created by [[Frederick the Great]] in 1776 was moved from [[Chełmno|Kulm (Chełmno)]] to the city in 1890. The ''Kösliner Zeitung'' was as a local newspaper published in Köslin.

After the [[Nazi Party]] took power in Germany in 1933, a [[Gestapo]] station was established in the city and mass arrests of Nazi opponents were carried out.<ref name=MUZ/> After the [[Nazi]]s had closed down [[Dietrich Bonhoeffer]]'s seminar in [[Zdroje, Szczecin|Finkenwalde (Zdroje)]] in 1937, Bonhoeffer chose the town as one of the sites where he illegally continued to educate [[vicar]]s of the [[Confessing Church]].<ref name=Zimmerling>Peter Zimmerling, ''Bonhoeffer als praktischer Theologe'', Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2006, p.59, {{ISBN|3-525-55451-6}}</ref>

[[File:Koszalin, katedra Niepokalanego Poczęcia Najświętszej Maryi Panny, tablica pamiątkowa - DSC08796.jpg|thumb|upright|Memorial to Polish women of the [[Polish resistance movement in World War II|resistance movement]] imprisoned in the city by the Germans during World War II]]
During the [[Second World War]] Köslin was the site of the first school for the "rocket troops" created on orders of [[Walter Dornberger]], the [[Wehrmacht]]'s head of the [[V-2 rocket|V-2]] design and development program.<ref>p.37, Dornberger</ref> The [[Polish resistance movement in World War II|Polish resistance]] conducted espionage of German activity and distributed [[Polish underground press]] in the city.<ref>{{cite book|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Encyklopedia konspiracji Wielkopolskiej 1939–1945|year=1998|location=Poznań|language=pl|publisher=Instytut Zachodni|page=625|isbn=83-85003-97-5}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Chrzanowski|first=Bogdan|year=2022|title=Polskie Państwo Podziemne na Pomorzu w latach 1939–1945|language=pl|location=Gdańsk|publisher=[[Institute of National Remembrance|IPN]]|page=57|isbn=978-83-8229-411-8}}</ref> The Nazis brought many [[prisoners of war]] and [[Forced labour under German rule during World War II|forced labourers]] to the city, mainly Poles, but also [[Italian military internees|Italians]] and [[French prisoners of war in World War II|French]].<ref name=MUZ/> The Germans operated several forced labour camps in the city,<ref name=gk>{{cite web|url=https://gk24.pl/czas-wojny-w-koszalinie-ilu-polakow-tu-wtedy-bylo/ar/4531125|title=Czas wojny w Koszalinie. Ilu Polaków tu wtedy było?|website=Głos Koszaliński|author=Piotr Polechoński|date=15 December 2012 |accessdate=26 June 2021|language=pl}}</ref> including a subcamp of the [[Stalag II-B]] [[German prisoner-of-war camps in World War II|POW camp]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://stalag2b.free.fr/leskommandos.htm|title=Les Kommandos|website=Stalag IIB Hammerstein, Czarne en Pologne|access-date=20 March 2020|language=fr}}</ref> Polish forced labourers constituted up to 10% of the city's population during the war.<ref name=gk/> Germany also operated a prison in the city, with forced labour subcamps in the region.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bundesarchiv.de/zwangsarbeit/haftstaetten/index.php?action=2.2&tab=7&id=2310|title=Gefängnis Köslin|website=Bundesarchiv.de|accessdate=26 June 2021|language=de}}</ref> After crushing the [[Warsaw Uprising]], the Germans brought several transports of Poles from [[Warsaw]] to the city, mainly women and children.<ref>Leszek Laskowski, ''Pomniki Koszalina'', Koszalin 2009, p. 104 (in Polish)</ref>

=== After World War II ===
On 4 March 1945, the city was captured by the [[Red Army]]. Under the border changes forced by the [[Soviet Union]] in the post-war [[Potsdam Agreement]], Koszalin became part of Poland as part of the so-called [[Recovered Territories]]. The city's German population that had not yet fled was [[Flight and expulsion of Germans from Poland during and after World War II|expelled]] to the remainder of post-war Germany in accordance to the Potsdam Agreement. The city was resettled by Poles and [[Kashubians]], many of whom had been expelled from [[Territories of Poland annexed by the Soviet Union|Polish territory annexed by the Soviets]].<ref>W. Seidel: Das Land und Volk der Kassuben. In: Preußische Provinzialblätter N.F. 2 (1852), p. 104.</ref>

As early as March 1945 a Polish police unit was established, consisting of former [[Forced labour under German rule during World War II|forced labourers]] and [[prisoners of war]], however, the Soviets, still present in the city, plundered local industrial factories in April.<ref name=KAL>{{cite web|url=http://muzeum.koszalin.pl/?q=node/529|title=Kalendarium Koszalina z lat 1945-1950, Muzeum w Koszalinie|access-date=June 8, 2019|language=pl}}</ref> From May 1945, life in the destroyed city was being organized, the first post-war schools, shops and service premises were established.<ref name=KAL/> In 1946, the first public library was opened, whose director was later Maria Pilecka, the sister of Polish national hero [[Witold Pilecki]].<ref>Laskowski, p. 114</ref> In March 1946, the [[Anti-communist resistance in Poland (1944–1946)|anti-communist]] [[Home Army 5th Wilno Brigade]] was active in Koszalin.<ref name=KAL/> In July 1947, the last units of the [[Soviet Army]] left Koszalin, and from that time only Polish troops were stationed in the city.<ref name=KAL/> In 1953 a local radio station was founded in Koszalin.<ref name=MUZ/>
[[File:Koszalin plac Zwyciestwa.jpg|thumb|The Victory Square with the statue of [[Józef Piłsudski]] and the former [[Koszalin Voivodeship (disambiguation)|Koszalin Voivodeship]] Office in the background]]

Initially, Koszalin was the first post-war regional capital of Polish Western Pomerania, before the administration finally moved to [[Szczecin]] in February 1946, after which the region was named the [[Szczecin Voivodeship (1946–1975)|Szczecin Voivodeship]].<ref name=MUZ/> In 1950 this voivodeship was divided into a truncated [[Szczecin Voivodeship (1946–1975)|Szczecin Voivodeship]] and [[Koszalin Voivodeship (1950–1975)|Koszalin Voivodeship]]. In years 1950-75 Koszalin was the capital of the enlarged [[Koszalin Voivodeship (1950–1975)|Koszalin Voivodeship]] sometimes called [[Middle Pomerania]] due to becoming the fastest growing city in Poland. In years 1975-98 it was the capital of the smaller [[Koszalin Voivodeship (1975–1998)|Koszalin Voivodeship]]. As a result of the Local Government Reorganization Act (1998) Koszalin became part of the [[West Pomeranian Voivodeship]] (effective 1 January 1999) regardless of an earlier proposal for a new Middle Pomeranian Voivodeship covering approximately the area of former Koszalin Voivodeship (1950–75).

In 1991, Koszalin was visited by [[Pope John Paul II]].<ref name=LL>Laskowski, p. 7</ref> On the fifth anniversary of his visit, his monument was unveiled in the city center.<ref name=LL/>