Pyskowice

History

The name of the town comes from the Old Polish male name Pysk. The oldest known mention of Pyskowice comes from a document of Bishop of Wrocław Tomasz from 1256. It was granted town rights in 1260 by Duke Władysław Opolski. The town was part of fragmented Piast-ruled Poland. It remained part of various Polish-ruled duchies, including Bytom, Cieszyn, Oświęcim and Opole, until 1532 when it was incorporated to the Bohemian (Czech) Crown. In 1645, along with the Duchy of Opole, it came back under Polish rule under the House of Vasa. It was annexed by Prussia in the 18th century, and from 1871 it was also part of Germany until 1945. In 1842, the town had a population of 3,322, mostly Polish by nationality, and Catholic by confession. Despite Prussian rule, church services were still held mainly in Polish at the time, with German services held only every fourth Sunday. During the Second World War, the Germans established and operated the E578 and E749 forced labour subcamps of the Stalag VIII-B/344 prisoner-of-war camp in the town, and the E110 and E709 subcamps in the present-day district of Dzierżno. Canadian and British prisoners of war had to work there for their German captors. The Germans also operated an additional forced labour camp for Jewish men in 1942–1944. In January 1945, as the Soviet armies resumed their offensive, the prisoners based in Pyskowice were marched westward in the so-called Long March or Death March. Some died from the bitter cold and exhaustion. Eventually the survivors were liberated by American troops in April or May 1945. After the war, the town became again part of Poland under its restored historic name. In 1984, town limits were expanded by including Mikuszowina as a new district.