Lwówek

For the town in Silesia, see Lwówek Śląski. For the village in Gmina Sanniki, see Lwówek, Masovian Voivodeship.

Lwówek [ˈlvuvɛk] is a town in Nowy Tomyśl County, Greater Poland Voivodeship, in western Poland,^[2] with 2,961 inhabitants (2010).^[1]

Lwówek
Market Square in Lwówek
Coat of arms
Lwówek
Coordinates: 52°27′N 16°11′E
Country	Poland
Voivodeship	Greater Poland
County	Nowy Tomyśl
Gmina	Lwówek
Area
• Total	3.15 km2 (1.22 sq mi)
Elevation	100 m (300 ft)
Population  (2010)[1]
• Total	2,961
• Density	940/km2 (2,400/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	64-310
Vehicle registration	PNT
National roads
Website	www.lwowek.com.pl

History

Early 20th-century view of the palace

Town rights were granted by King Władysław II Jagiełło. The town was known as Lwów, before the name was changed to the current Lwówek in the mid-15th century for distinction from the larger city of Lwów. Lwówek was a private town, administratively located in the Poznań County in the Poznań Voivodeship in the Greater Poland Province of the Kingdom of Poland.^[3]

540 Jews lived in the town in 1871.^[4]

Following the joint German-Soviet invasion of Poland, which started World War II in September 1939, Lwówek was occupied by Germany until 1945. The first expulsions of Poles were carried out in December 1939.^[5] The Poles were sent to a transit camp in Młyniewo, and afterwards deported to the General Government in the more-eastern part of German-occupied Poland, while their houses, workshops, etc. were handed over to German colonists as part of the Lebensraum policy.^[5] The Polish resistance was active in Lwówek. The commander of the Lwówek-Pniewy unit of the Union of Armed Struggle, was arrested by the Gestapo on 14 October 1942 and subjected to brutal interrogations during which he died a week later.^[6] Under German occupation, the town was renamed to Neustadt bei Pinne in 1939 and then to Kirschneustadt in 1943.

Sights

Landmarks of Lwówek include the Baroque palace, the Gothic Church of the Assumption, the Baroque Holy Cross church and the Rynek (Market Square) filled with colourful historic townhouses.

Demographics

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% 1843 2,648 —     1871 2,456 −7.3% 1880 2,466 +0.4% 1890 2,331 −5.5% 1900 2,644 +13.4% 1910 2,666 +0.8%	Year Pop. ±% 1921 2,552 −4.3% 1931 2,542 −0.4% 1939 2,750 +8.2% 1950 2,180 −20.7% 1960 2,337 +7.2% 2010 2,961 +26.7%
Source: [7][8][1]

Twin towns – sister cities

• Kazlų Rūda, Lithuania^[9]