Węgrów (; ) is a town in eastern Poland with 12,796 inhabitants (2013),

After the Third Partition of Poland it was annexed by Austria in 1795. It was regained by Poles following the Austro–Polish War of 1809, and included within the short-lived Duchy of Warsaw. After the duchy's dissolution, in 1815, it passed to so-called Congress Poland in the Russian Partition of Poland. It was the site of four battles between Polish insurgents and Russian troops during the Polish November Uprising of 1830–1831. During the January Uprising, on February 3, 1863, it was the site of the Battle of Węgrów, in which Polish insurgents defeated Russian troops and captured the town. From 1867 to 1912, Węgrów was part of Siedlce Governorate and from 1912 to 1915 of Łomża Governorate.

It became part of independent Poland again when the country regained its independence in 1918. From 1919 to 1938, Węgrów was part of Lublin Voivodeship and from 1938 to 1939 of Warsaw Voivodeship. During the Polish–Soviet War, on August 19, 1920, it was the site of a battle between Poles and the retreating Russian 16th Army.

Throughout most of its history, the town had a thriving Jewish community, present at least since the 16th century. It numbered about 6,000 in 1939. The entire community was exterminated during the Holocaust by the occupying forces of Nazi Germany, during which time the Nazis also created the Węgrów Ghetto.

The town was liberated from German occupation by the Polish underground Home Army in August 1944 during the Operation Tempest.

Demographics

Economy

Węgrów is home to Odlewnia dzwonów Braci Kruszewskich (Kruszewski Brothers Bell Foundry), founded in the 19th century, which has cast more than 2,500 bells that have been installed in Poland and other countries, even as distant as Rwanda and Papua New Guinea.

Transport

Węgrów lies on national 62 which connects it to Sokołów Podlaski and Łochów.

The nearest railway station is in the town of Łochów to the west.

People from Węgrów

  • Krzysztof Filipek (born 1961), politician
  • Piotr z Goniądza (–1573), religious leader and writer
  • Stanisław Kosior (1889–1939), Soviet politician
  • Samuel Rajzman (1902–1979), Holocaust survivor and court witness

References

  • Official homepage of Węgrów
  • Jewish Community in Węgrów on Virtual Shtetl
  • Górczyk Wojciech Jerzy, BRIEF HISTORY OF THE CHURCH AND FORMER REFORMATI ORDER'S MONASTERY IN WĘGRÓW, Węgrów 2020.
  • Górczyk Wojciech Jerzy, The Former Reformati Order's Monasteries Route, Węgrów 2020.