Deutsch Westphalen (Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland)
Deutsch Westphalen (also known as Smoln, Gros Smollen, Stwolno majus, Niemieckie Stwolno/Stwolno Niemieckie, Deutsch-Westphalen, Deutschwestfalen, Westwalen, and Klein Westphalen; now known as Wielkie Stwolno; coordinates: 53.44078, 18.647918 [53° 26' 26" N, 18° 38' 52" E]; population in 1905, 281) is located approximately 9 kilometers (5.5 miles) south-west of Grudziądz (Graudenz), 13 km. (8 miles) north-east of Świecie (Schwetz), and 17 km. (11 miles) north-east of Chełmno (Culm).
In 1320 the Teutonic Knights owned a farm in Deutsch Westphalen. In 1593 Mennonites settled in Deutsch Westphalen under a contract issued by John Dulskiego, governor of Rogoźno. In exchange for a long-term lease and other freedoms, the settlers agreed to preserve the dykes along the Vistula River and drain the land, which was susceptible to annual flooding.
Until 1772 Deutsch Westphalen was located in what was known as Royal Prussia (also known as Polish Prussia) in the Kingdom of Poland. The First Partition of Poland in 1772 resulted in the creation of a new province on 31 January 1773, called West Prussia, in which Deutsch Westphalen was located. Deutsch Westphalen was situated in the district (Kreis) of Schwetz in Regierungsbezirk Marienwerder until the end of World War I, when it came under the jurisdiction of the Pomeranian Voivodeship of the Second Polish Republic. Deutsch Westphalen came under the control of Nazi Germany during World War II until March 1945, when it was occupied by Soviet forces and returned to Poland. In 2013 Wielkie Stwolno was a village in the administrative district of Gmina Dragacz, within Świecie County, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship.
The 1776 Prussian census does not list any Mennonite families living in Deutsch Westphalen. In 1810 there were two Mennonite families living in Deutsch Westphalen named Gaeddert and Goerz.
Mennonites who were residents of Deutsch Westphalen were members of the Montau Mennonite Church.
Bibliography
Wikipedia. "Wielkie Stwolno." Web. 29 March 2013. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wielkie_Stwolno.
Wolf, Hans-Jürgen. "Familienforschung in Westpreußen." Web. 29 March 2013. http://www.westpreussen.de/cms/ct/ortsverzeichnis/details.php?ID=1156.
Maps
Map:Wielkie Stwolno, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland
| Author(s) | Richard D Thiessen |
|---|---|
| Date Published | March 2013 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Thiessen, Richard D. "Deutsch Westphalen (Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. March 2013. Web. 24 Nov 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Deutsch_Westphalen_(Kuyavian-Pomeranian_Voivodeship,_Poland)&oldid=80116.
APA style
Thiessen, Richard D. (March 2013). Deutsch Westphalen (Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 24 November 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Deutsch_Westphalen_(Kuyavian-Pomeranian_Voivodeship,_Poland)&oldid=80116.
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