Bełchatów - a city in the Łódź Voivodeship, the seat of the
Bełchatów poviat. Located on the South Mazowieckie Hills, in the
Bełchatów Upland mesoregion on the Rakówka River, approx. 50 km
south of Łódź and approx. 25 km west of Piotrków Trybunalski.
Bełchatów is located in the historical Sieradz region. It was
granted a city location in 1737, demoted in 1870, re-granted with
city rights in 1925. A private city of the Congress Kingdom, it was
located in 1827 in the Piotrków district, the Piotrków district of
the Kalisz province. Bełchatów is one of the 312 cities belonging to
the Association of Polish Cities. In the years 1975–1998, the city
administratively belonged to the Piotrków Voivodeship.
According to Central Statistical Office data from December 31, 2019,
the city had 56,973 inhabitants. The fifth most populous city in the
Łódź Voivodeship.
Bełchatów is a possessive name created from the Old Polish name Bełchat (bełch - whirlpool), the founder and owner of the settlement. The name Belchatow was first mentioned in historical sources in 1391
Marketplace
Baroque Olszewski Palace
late baroque Marienkirche
neo-Gothic Church of All Saints
old jewish cemetery
new Jewish
cemetery
town houses and villas
Quarry ponds, created in the
course of the recultivation of the opencast mine
Góra Kamieńska
dredging dump, the highest hill in the voivodeship with a ski lift
By plane
The nearest international airport is near Łódź on the
Autostrada A2. Other nearby international airports are Kraków Airport
and Warsaw Airport.
By train
The place has a train station
that can be reached via Łódź.
By bus
Intercity buses to Łódź
and long-distance buses to other cities in the region run regularly.
In the street
The road network is very well developed.
From Germany, the A4, which is also called Autostrada A4 in Poland,
leads to the border. Leave the A4 motorway at Gliwice and take the
Autostrada A1 in the direction of Gdańsk. The place is on the A1.
Alternatively, from northern Germany you can take the Autostrada A2
and then the A1.
Alternatively, you can drive via Prague from
southern Germany and Switzerland.
From Austria you drive via Brno
and then from the Polish-Czech border the Autostrada A1.
The place was first mentioned in 1391. Bełchatów
received its town charter in 1737. Prussia received the place in
1793 under his rule. 14 years later the place belonged to the Duchy
of Warsaw and in 1815 to the Kingdom of Poland, which was linked in
personal union with the Russian Empire and thus actually belonged to
Russia. In the course of the 19th century, the textile industry grew
into an important branch of the economy, not least due to its
proximity to Łódź.
After the
re-establishment of the Polish state, the place became Polish again
in 1919 and in 1925 received its city charter, which had been lost
in the meantime.
The city was occupied by the Wehrmacht
during the German invasion of Poland on September 6, 1939. A ghetto
was established in which about 5,000 Jews had to live. This was
"liquidated" in August 1942; Most of the residents were taken to the
Kulmhof extermination camp and murdered there.
In 1943 the
city was renamed Belchental (according to the order of the Reich
Governor in Warthegau from May 18, 1943). On January 19, 1945, the
Red Army marched into the town. At the end of the war, Bełchatów was
50% destroyed. In 1965 the place became the seat of its own powiat.
He lost this status again in 1975 during a regional reform. Due to
the territorial reform in Poland in 1999, Bełchatow became a
district town again. The place developed well due to the newly
discovered brown coal deposits. Measured by its 5,420 megawatts of
output, the Bełchatów power plant is the largest lignite and second
largest coal-fired power plant in the world.
Population
development
In 1860, 1,899 people lived in the city, including
1,139 Jews, 352 Polish Christians and 35 German Christians. In 1931
a different picture emerged. Here the Christians were most strongly
represented with 4,160 people, but closely followed by the Jews with
3,970. 800 people were represented among German Christians.
Bełchatów is located in central Poland, south of Łódź, in the Bełchatów Upland, on the Rakówka river (the right tributary of the Widawka river).
In the area of Bełchatów, many parks, green areas and places of everyday rest and recreation have been created. There are 7 parks, including one historic park, 5 squares, 3 recreational facilities and 27 playgrounds.
The Rakówka River (the right tributary of the Widawka River) and four
watercourses flow through the town. Two rivers flow into Rakówka, one
stream and one stream:
stream A – small river; the course starts
between Myszaki and Dobrzelów, then towards Józefa Piłsudskiego Street,
crosses Pabianicka Street, and just after the bridge, turning left
before the Aleja Włókniarzy bridge, you will reach Rakówka,
stream B
- a small river flowing into Rakówka between the Okrzei housing estate
and the Słoneczne housing estate, right next to the Z.O.S.I.A square and
Tęczowa street. It heads from the village of Dobiecin through the
Politanice estate just off Stanisława Staszica Street. Two watercourses
join the B watercourse, then it leads along the square to Rakówka,
watercourse C - a small stream flowing from Zdzieszulice flows into the
river near the industrial zone located at Przemysłowa Street,
watercourse D - a small stream that starts its course right under the
railway tracks at the Przytorze housing estate, then heads towards
Wojska Polskiego Street, where along the fences it reaches Rakówka.
There are ponds, ponds and small water reservoirs in the city. These
include a small pond in the Budowlanych estate at Dworek Olszewskich,
and on the other side of the park, behind Mielczarskiego Street, there
is a square with a natural pond. In the Lipy estate there is Uroczysko
Ługi with two ponds; There are also small water reservoirs in the city.
The city is exposed to local flooding. Bełchatów has experienced
severe flooding several times, such as in 2010. There are several zones
of local flooding in the city, divided into sixteen flooding zones.
According to data from January 1, 2010, the area of the city was
34.64 km². The city constitutes 3.58% of the area of the Bełchatów
poviat.
According to data from 2007, Bełchatów has an area of
34.64 km², including: agricultural land: 51%, forest land: 15%.
President: Mariola Czechowska
Vice Presidents: Dariusz
Matyśkiewicz, Łukasz Politanski
Secretary of the City: Artur Kurzeja
Chairman of the City Council: Piotr Wysocki
Deputy Chairman of the
City Council: Grzegorz Muskała, Ewa Skorupa
Important communication routes run through Bełchatów: Kielce-Wrocław,
Wrocław-Lublin, national road and provincial roads. The planned
motorways will also be close to the city. 37.8 km of national and
provincial roads and 85 km of municipal and housing estate roads run
through Bełchatów.
Roads leading through Bełchatów:
national
road no. 74: S8–Wieluń–Bełchatów–A1–Piotrków
Trybunalski–Kielce–Zamość–state border (UA)
provincial road No. 476:
DK74 - Bełchatów - DK74
provincial road No. 484:
Buczek-Bełchatów-Kamieńsk
provincial road No. 485:
Bełchatów-Wadlew-Pabianice route
Bełchatów is crossed by a
railway line from Rogowiec ("Bełchatów" coal mine and power plant) to
Piotrków Trybunalski (currently only freight traffic). From January 1987
to April 2000 Bełchatów had a passenger railway connection with Piotrków
Trybunalski. In the near future - 30 km from the city - the military
airport in Łask, where there is a modern air base and F-16 stations,
will be transformed into a cargo airport.
Transport services are
provided by MZK, which has 25 passenger buses, including one sightseeing
bus (data from 1995). From July 1, 2015, public transport in Bełchatów
is free of charge. There are bus connections from the station, thanks to
which you can get from Bełchatów directly, e.g. to Warsaw, Lublin,
Wrocław, Kudowa-Zdrój, Kłodzko, Częstochowa, Łódź, Sieradz, Radom,
Kalisz, Kielce, Kraków and Szklarska Poręba.
June 4, 2007 at the
Wojewódzki Szpital im. John Paul II, a sanitary landing pad was opened.
Not far from the city (10 km) there is the largest fuel and energy
hub in Poland, which includes the Bełchatów Brown Coal Mine and the
Bełchatów Power Plant. Bełchatów is one of the two most important cities
of PBOP.
On May 8, 2013, in Bełchatów, the new headquarters of
the PGE Górnictwo i Energetyka Conventional S.A. concern was
commissioned. The facility was built at the cost of approx. PLN 50
million, in the Binków estate at ul. Węglowa 5. Its architecture refers
to the appearance of a cross-section of a power cable. It is the largest
and most modern office building in Bełchatów.
About 10 km south of the center of Bełchatów, by an artificial water
reservoir, there are two sports and recreation centers popular in the
summer: Ośrodek "Słok" (owner of Elektrownia Bełchatów) and Ośrodek
"Wawrzkowizna" (owner of Kopalnia Węgla Brunatnego "Bełchatów"). Each of
the centers has its own accommodation base (hotels, cottages, lodgings),
as well as a number of attractions, including: a horse farm, pedal
boats, sailboats, kayaks, sports fields, a swimming pool with a water
slide and a beach, go-cart bicycles, indoor swimming pool, saunas,
solarium, jacuzzi, tartan tennis courts, gym and much more. In addition,
during the holiday season, various types of concerts with the
participation of stars of the Polish stage are often organized.
hotel base
The hotel base in Bełchatów is mainly related to the
city's location on important communication routes: national road No. 74
and provincial roads 484 and 485, as well as the "Słok" and
"Wawrzkowizna" sports and recreation centers located in the vicinity of
Bełchatów.
3-star hotels (***):
Hotel Sport located at the KWB
Bełchatów sports and entertainment hall,
Santin Hotel,
Hotel
Wodnik Bełchatów (at the Training and Recreation Center "Słok" near
Bełchatów). Located 15 km from the city center, 40 km from the main
railway station and 15 km from the main bus station. The nearest airport
is 50 km away. In 2006, Hotel Wodnik received the SKKP certificate and
became a supporting member of the Association "Conferences and
Congresses in Poland"
The following clubs operate in Bełchatów:
Skra Bełchatów –
volleyball and swimming
EKS Skra Bełchatów – volleyball
GKS
Bełchatów – football, wrestling and sports bridge
KSSP - baseball
GLKS United Bełchatów – football
KS Grocholice Bełchatów – football
and rugby
LSKK Lityński Fazbud World Bełchatów – cycling
LKS
Stomil Bełchatów – cycling and table tennis
BKL Bełchatów – athletics
LZS Belchatow
KS "EBE" Bełchatów Football Section - football
BKC
Bełchatów – curling
Aquarius - underwater hockey
BTS AS Feniks
Bełchatów – basketball
Bełchatów is best known for the men's
volleyball club Skra Bełchatów. The Bełchatów sports base consists of
e.g. from the GKS Bełchatów football stadium at ul. Sportowa 3, hall
"Energy" them. Edward Najgebauer at ul. Dąbrowskiego, sports and
entertainment hall at ul. 1 Maja (near the stadium), Squash Club
Bełchatów located at ul.Transportowa 3, several training pitches, 4
swimming pools, tennis courts, gymnasiums and school pitches at almost
every educational institution , athletic fields, gym, ice rink. The
local sports clubs offer a variety of sports not only for adults, but
also run schools training future athletes. In June 1995, the Municipal
Sports Olympics was organized for the first time, in which over 6,000
students competed for medals in several Olympic disciplines.
Municipal and District Public Library named after Józef Ignacy
Kraszewski
The oldest cultural institution in the city, existing
since 1935, is the Municipal and District Public Library (MiPBP). Apart
from the main office in Bełchatów, there are 4 branches of MiPBP:
Branch No. 1 in Grocholice. Branch profile: historical
Branch No. 2
in Osiedle Dolnośląskie. Branch profile: literary.
Branch No. 3 in
the Okrzei Estate. Branch profile: tourist.
Branch No. 4 in the
Binków Estate. Branch profile: ecological
The main institution
also supervises 15 libraries in the Bełchatów poviat in: Drużbice,
Kleszczów (and branches in Łękińsk and Żłobnica), Kluki, Kurnos, Łękawa,
Rusiec (and a branch in Wola Wiązowa), Commune of Szczerców, Zelów (and
branches in Kociszewo and Wygiełzów).
On January 15, 2002, a
modern MiPBP building built in the city center was commissioned, fully
adapted to the needs of the disabled, along with a parking lot in front
of the building. The building also housed a branch of the children's
library, moved from the given building of the Shooting Association
"Strzelec" (built in 1938, located at 1 Maja 45 Street).
In
addition to typical library activities, MiPBP conducts a number of
cultural projects:
National Poetry Competition named after Wacław
Olszewski (since 1994),
Cheap Book Fairs (since 1994),
Competition
about the region "Between paradise and coal" (since 1996),
County
Competition "Books for a medal" (since 1999),
District Competition
"Book - Art Object" (since 2002),
The library is involved in the
promotion of reading by organizing local campaigns (Holidays with the
Library, Holidays with the Library, Mom - sign me up to the library,
Bełchatów Reading Week, Meeting with the Book), as well as participates
in nationwide campaigns (All of Poland reads to children) and promoting
the broadly understood culture in the region. He cooperates with local
media as well as with educational and educational institutions in the
Bełchatów region. Representatives of MiPBP from Bełchatów, as
representatives of the only library in Poland, were (apart from the
National Library) invited to the Presidential Palace for the annual
meeting of Creators of Culture. Thanks to the collection of "regionalia"
(works and materials about Bełchatów and the surrounding area), as well
as by publishing collections of literary works, the library is an
important center influencing the promotion of knowledge about the
history and cultural life of the region. The Association of Polish
Librarians operates at the library.
The Regional Museum in
Bełchatów
The idea of creating a museum was born in the early 1990s,
and on July 16, 1993, the first meeting of the Founding Committee of the
Regional Museum took place. Members of the Committee appealed to the
city authorities to create a museum in Bełchatów. The museum formally
began its activity in 1995, and its seat was a historic, late-baroque
manor house in the city center (ul. Hellwigów 11), which was the seat of
the city's families. Until 1987, he was looked after by the Olszewski
family. After the death of Wacław Olszewski - junior, the building was
bought by the City Hall, its very bad condition did not allow to locate
the seat of the museum in it. In 1998, the Regional Museum was moved to
the renovated building from its former, temporary seat, which was the
building of the Shooting Association "Strzelec" (ul. 1 Maja 45). On
October 7-8, 2005, the Regional Museum hosted an attempt to break the
record for the Guinness Book of Records by Eugeniusz Geno Małkowski, who
painted pictures (80 cm x 100 cm) for 24 hours, based on sketches
previously made by the artist.
There are two gospel choirs in
Bełchatów, Schola Cantorum Gospel Choir and Gospel Singers, which are
very successful at gospel music festivals in Poland and abroad.
Artistic events on a nationwide scale
Festival of Non-serious Films
"NAKRĘCENI" (first edition October 2007)
Autumn Theater Meetings with
BAT
National Sailing Song Review in Bełchatów (organized since 1998)
Festival of Young(j) Art (organized since 2006)
Alternative culture
is also developed in Bełchatów. One of its most active centers is the
Association of Alternative Culture "Zgrzyt", together with its member
Bicycle Crew 'Zgrzyt' Bełchatów.
Bełchatów has a well-developed network of educational institutions,
from nursery schools to university branches.
city nursery
8
kindergartens
9 primary schools
special primary school
6
general high schools
2 high schools for adults
social high school
for adults
extramural general secondary school for adults
a branch
of the University of Lodz, which offers the following faculties:
economics, sociology
branch of the Lodz University of Technology,
which offers the following faculties: electrical engineering,
electronics and telecommunications, management, environmental
engineering, construction, computer science, mechanics and mechanical
engineering
AHE branch in Łódź, which offers the following faculties:
Polish philology, computer science, pedagogy, political science,
transport, management
university of the 3rd century (in the building
of one of the gymnasiums)
The following churches and religious associations conduct religious
activities in the city:
Roman Catholic Church (Bełchatów deanery):
Divine Mercy Parish
parish of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the
Church and Saint Barbara
Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish
Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary parish
parish of st. Stanislaus
Bishop and Martyr
parish of All Saints in Bełchatów-Grocholice
Holy Spirit Parish
Evangelical-Augsburg Church in Poland:
parish
in Zelów-Bełchatów
Evangelical Reformed Church in Poland
parish in
Bełchatów
Church of God in Christ
Seventh-day Adventist Church
(congregation in Bełchatów)
Jehovah's Witnesses:
Belchatow-Centrum
Belchatow-South
Bełchatów North (Kingdom Hall, Ludwikowska 100)
Until 1942, there was also a Jewish community in Bełchatów.