Flatow (district)

The Flatow district was a district that existed in Prussia from 1818 to 1945. It belonged to the province of West Prussia until 1920. After World War I, the eastern portion of the district was ceded to Poland. The western portion of the district remained in Germany and became part of the Frontier March of Posen-West Prussia until 1938. The district then became part of the Province of Pomerania from 1938 to 1945. Today the territory of the Flatow district lies in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship and the Greater Poland Voivodeship in Poland.

Kreis Flatow (1818 to 1920)
Province of West Prussia
  Regierungsbezirk Danzig
  Regierungsbezirk Marienwerder
Province of Posen-West Prussia (1938)

History

The area of the Flatow district originally belonged to the Netze District, which was annexed by Prussia in the First Partition of Poland in 1772.[1]  In 1815, the area around Flatow became part of Regierungsbezirk Marienwerder in the province of West Prussia. The Flatow district was founded on 1 April 1818. It consisted of the five towns Flatow, Kamin, Krojanke, Vandsburg and Zempelburg.[2] The capital of the district was the town of Flatow. From 1829 to 1878, West Prussia and East Prussia were united to form the Province of Prussia, which belonged to the German Empire from 1871.

After World War I, when the Treaty of Versailles came into force on 10 January 1920, the eastern part of the Flatow district with the towns of Vandsburg, Zempelburg and Kamin was ceded to Poland without a referendum for the purpose of establishing the Polish Corridor. 30,516 people lived there, of whom 8,600 were Poles.

On 1 July 1922 the new Prussian province of Grenzmark Posen-West Prussia was formed, which included the Flatow district. In the same year, the Flatow district was enlarged with the inclusion of the rural community of Schönfeld, which was earlier part of the Kolmar district. On 1 October 1938 the Flatow district was incorporated into the Province of Pomerania after the Posen-West Prussia province was dissolved.

Flatow district in the Province of Pomerania (1939)

In the spring of 1945, the Flatow district was occupied by the Red Army. After the end of World War II, the district became part of Poland under the terms of the Potsdam Agreement.

Demographics

The district had a German majority population, with a significant Polish minority. After 1920, with the loss of the eastern part of the district, the remainder of the district in Germany had a Polish minority of 16.8% (including bilinguals) according to the census of 1925.[3]

Population of the Flatow district [4]
1834 1852 1910
German 25,792 70.2% 38,139 72.3% 50,648 73.2%
Polish / Bilingual / Other 10,954 29.8% 14,622 27.7% 18,538 26.8%
Total 36,746 52,761 69,186

Elections

In the German Empire, the Flatow district together with the Schlochau district formed the Marienwerder 7 Reichstag constituency. This constituency was usually won by conservative candidates:[5]

Municipalities

Municipalities ceded to Poland in 1920

The eastern part of the district, which was ceded to Poland in 1920 included the following towns and communities:

  • Damerau
  • Eichfelde
  • Groß Loßburg
  • Groß Lutau
  • Groß Wisniewke
  • Groß Wöllwitz
  • Groß Zirkwitz
  • Grünlinde
  • Hohenfelde
  • Illowo
  • Jasdrowo
  • Jastrzembke
  • Kamin in Westpreußen, town
  • Klein Lutau
  • Klein Wisniewke
  • Klein Wöllwitz
  • Klein Zirkwitz
  • Klotzbuden
  • Komierowo
  • Lilienhecke
  • Lindebuden
  • Lubcza
  • Neu Waldau
  • Nichors
  • Obendorf
  • Obkaß
  • Pempersin
  • Petznick
  • Plötzig
  • Radonsk
  • Rogalin
  • Salesch
  • Schmilowo
  • Schönhorst
  • Schönwalde
  • Sechau
  • Seemark
  • Sittnow
  • Soßnow
  • Suchoronczek
  • Sypniewo
  • Vandsburg, town
  • Waldau
  • Waldowke
  • Wilkowo
  • Wittkau
  • Wittun
  • Wordel
  • Zempelburg, town
  • Zempelkowo

Municipalities in 1945

At the end of its existence in 1945, the district comprised two towns and 66 other municipalities [6]

  • Adlig Landeck
  • Aspenau
  • Augustendorf
  • Battrow
  • Blankwitt
  • Böck
  • Buschdorf
  • Conradsfelde
  • Deutsch Fier
  • Dobrin
  • Espenhagen
  • Flatow, town
  • Friedrichsbruch
  • Glumen
  • Gresonse
  • Groß Butzig
  • Groß Friedrichsberg
  • Grunau
  • Gursen
  • Hammer
  • Hohenfier
  • Kappe
  • Karlsdorf
  • Kietz
  • Kirschdorf
  • Klein Butzig
  • Klein Friedrichsberg
  • Kleschin
  • Kölpin
  • Königsdorf
  • Krojanke, town
  • Krummenfließ
  • Kujan
  • Lanken
  • Lessendorf
  • Linde
  • Lugetal
  • Mittel Friedrichsberg
  • Neu Battrow
  • Neu Butzig
  • Neu Grunau
  • Neuhof
  • Petzin
  • Posenberg
  • Pottlitz
  • Preußenfeld
  • Proch
  • Radawnitz
  • Ruden
  • Sakollnow
  • Schmirdau
  • Schmirtenau
  • Schwente
  • Schönfeld
  • Seedorf (Grenzmark)
  • Seefelde
  • Steinau
  • Steinmark
  • Stewnitz
  • Straßfurt
  • Tarnowke
  • Treuenheide
  • Wengerz
  • Wilhelmsbruch
  • Wilhelmssee
  • Wittenburg
  • Wonzow
  • Ziskau

Place names

In the course of the 20th century, many place names in the district which were considered "not German" enough were given a phonetic alignment or translation:

References
  1. Herzberg, Friedrich (1790). Kurzer abriss der geographie der königlich-preussischen staaten: besonders zum gebrauch in vaterländischen schulen (in German).
  2. Töppen, Max (1858). Historisch-comparative Geographie von Preussen: Nach den Quellen, Namentlich auch Archivalischen (in German). J. Perthes.
  3. "De Gruyter". De Gruyter. Retrieved 2022-02-21.
  4. Belzyt, Leszek (1998). Sprachliche Minderheiten im preussischen Staat: 1815 - 1914 ; die preußische Sprachenstatistik in Bearbeitung und Kommentar. Marburg: Herder-Inst. ISBN 978-3-87969-267-5.
  5. "Parlamentarierportal biorab Kaiserreich". 2015-01-06. Archived from the original on 2015-01-06. Retrieved 2021-05-23.
  6. "Deutsche Verwaltungsgeschichte Pommern, Kreis Flatow". treemagic.org. Retrieved 2021-05-23.

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