Zbąszynek
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| Zbąszynek | |||
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 Zbąszynek
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| Coordinates: 52°15′N 15°49′E / 52.25°N 15.817°E | |||
| Country |  Poland |
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| Voivodeship | Lubusz | ||
| County | Świebodzin | ||
| Gmina | Zbąszynek | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 2.76 km2 (1.07 sq mi) | ||
| Population (2006) | |||
| • Total | 5,087 | ||
| • Density | 1,800/km2 (4,800/sq mi) | ||
| Postal code | 66-210 | ||
| Website | http://www.zbaszynek.pl | ||
Zbąszynek [zbɔ̃ˈʂɨnɛk] (German: Neu Bentschen) is a town in western Poland, in Lubusz Voivodeship, in Świebodzin County. It has 5,185 inhabitants (2004).
[edit] History
The town was founded in the 1920s, when, as a result of the Greater Poland Uprising (1918–1919) as well as the Treaty of Versailles, the railroad hub of Zbaszyn (Bentschen) became part of newly re-created Poland. In 1922, the government of Germany decided to create from scratch a new border station, a new rail hub (which replaced Zbaszyn) as well as a settlement for railroad workers. Within a few years, a large station was constructed, together with a modern garden-settlement, based on a project by architect Friedrich Veil. The town, named Neu Bentschen, was inhabited by ethnic Germans, railroad workers, who came there from different parts of the Weimar Republic. There were two churches, a printing shop, a house of culture (Deutsches Haus), a school, a mail office and a bank. The settlement belonged to the Meseritz county.
During World War II the Germans opened there a work camp for POWs, in which various soldiers were kept - from Soviet Union, France, Italy, as well as Jews from the Łódź Ghetto. Hundreds died of diseases and exhaustion, those who survived, worked on the rail infrastructure, which was necessary for transports to the eastern front.
In January 1945 German inhabitants of Neu Bentschen, fearing the advancing Red Army escaped behind the Oder, and the town was captured without fighting. As a result of the territorial changes of Poland immediately after World War II following the Potsdam Conference, it was part of the German territory annexed to Poland. It was briefly called Nowy Zbaszyn, some time in late 1940s, the name was changed.
[edit] People associated with Zbąszynek
Zbąszynek is the hometown of Paulina Papierska, the winner of the first Polish edition of Top Model.
[edit] External links
Coordinates: 52°15′N 15°50′E / 52.25°N 15.833°E
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