Kraśnik

Kraśnik [] is a town in eastern Poland with 37,989 inhabitants (2003), situated in the Lublin Voivodeship. It is the seat of Kraśnik County.

History

First settled in the 13th century, it received its city charter in 1377. Until the 19th century it belonged to the Zamoyski family. The town is centered on a hill, and expanded onto the flat land to the north and east. A busy highway still runs through the center of town, cutting diagonally through the town square itself.

The Kraśnik town museum, formerly housed in an old convent building near the Parish church, has been scheduled to move into a larger and newer building nearby.

In August 1914, the town and surrounding area were a focal point of Battle of Krasnik, an opening battle of the World War I struggle between Russia and Central Powers over control of Galicia.

As with much of the Lublin area, Kraśnik was a major center of Judaism, with 5,000 Jews (40% of the population) prior to World War II. Historical accounts place Jews in the area in 1531, but the official right to settle there was granted to Jews in 1584. In 1654, Jewish residence was officially limited to the area near the synagogue, but in practice this was not rigidly enforced. During the war, Kraśnik was the site of the Budzyn labor camp, where the prisoners worked for the Hermann Göring Werke on aircraft production. This camp, with around 3,000 Jews, became a subcamp of Majdanek; 300 workers who remained until July of 1944 survived. Virtually all left the area, and there are few if any Jews currently resident in the town.

Kraśnik is the site of the second SOS Children's Village in Poland, established in 1991.

Kraśnik is also the site of the Tsubaki - Hoover Polska Limited Liability Company, a subsidiary of Tsubaki Nakashima, which manufactures ball and roller bearings.

Local attractions

The ruin of the 17th century Zamoyski castle (built from wood; there is only a little known about it),
The 18th century baroque former Hospital Church of the Holy Spirit (1758-1761) and hospital,
The Lateran Canons, containing St Mary's Ascension church (ca 1469) with paintings by T. Dolabella, gravestones of the Teczynski family, and the monastery (15th-18th centuries),
An unusual double synagogue from the 17th century, partially renovated but now in disrepair