Granting municipal rights
As the rural settlement began to take on a more urban character, an increasing number of inhabitants desired this. Friedrich Grundmann, General Director of Tiele-Winckler’s estate and Richard Holtze greatly contributed to the effort. Their pursuits were successful on 11 September 1865, when the king of Prussia signed a document granting municipal rights to Katowice.
When the Katowice charter became effective, the City Council and Hall were elected. Dr Richard Holtze became the Chairman of the Council and Louis Diebel was the first mayor.
As Katowice became more and more significant economically, socially and culturally, also developing demographically, pursuant to the act of 27 March 1873, it became the seat of landratura or poviat (county). It was headed by Poviat Starost or Landrat (Governor). In 1897, Katowice became a city with county rights. Apart from the city itself, the county included the suburban communes of Bogucice-Zawodzie, Dąb, Wełnowiec and Załęże.
Granting municipal rights to Katowice sped up its economic growth. Heavy industry – mining and metallurgy – developed particularly fast. Numerous workers came to the city, together with clerks, intelligentsia with technical education, merchants and artisans. The infrastructure of the young city also progressed swiftly. Many public utility buildings were erected, among others, the seat of the Poviat Starost (Governor), City Hall, District Court, railway station, post office and city baths, a theatre, a cinema, schools, banks, hospitals, and temples of three religions. In the early 20th century, Katowice was a centre with fully crystallised institutional structure. Such intense development within just half a century was only possible owing to the efficient management and planning of the city fathers.
Two unique miners’ estates grew near Katowice at the beginning of the 20th century – Giszowiec and Nikiszowiec, designed by Emil and Georg Zillmann, architects from Berlin. Georg von Giesche’s Erben concern built them for its employees. Today, the estates belong to the most interesting monuments of Upper Silesia. In the area of Nikiszowiec, in the building of the former laundry, a branch of the Museum of Katowice History is located.
The Uprisings and the Plebiscite
The imminent defeat of Germany in World War I caused the pro-Polish sentiments to rise. At the beginning of 1919, the Polish Military Organisation of the Upper Silesia was formed. Józef Grzegorzek became the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the PMO and Adam Postrach was the Commander of the Katowice Division. Tension escalated halfway through the year, when the countries of the victorious coalition signed a peace treaty with the Germans. It stipulated that a plebiscite would decide about the state affiliation of Upper Silesia. The situation exacerbated week to week. The PMO pushed for a military resolution. In the atmosphere of increased tension and terror on the part of the German side, the First Silesian Uprising broke out on 17 August 1919, triggered by Grenzschutz soldiers shooting ten persons near the ”Mysłowice” coal mine. Due to the advantage of German forces, poor organisation and shortage of arms, the commander of the PMO decided to stop military operations after a week of combat. As German troops were stationed in Katowice, the city in its administrative boundaries of the time was outside the reach of the insurgents’ operations. The combat took place in the suburban areas.
Despite the arrival of the Inter-Allied Governing and Plebiscite Commission of Upper Silesia and the preparations for the Plebiscite which were undertaken, the situation of the Polish population did not improve. The Polish did not dissolve the Polish Military Organisation of the Upper Silesia. Social unrest increased. After a powerful anti-Polish and anti-French manifestation, German militants murdered doctor Andrzej Mielęcki. After two hours of fighting, they got into and demolished the building of the Polish Poviat (County) Plebiscite Committee in Katowice. Next day, on the night from 18 to 19 August, the Second Silesian Uprising broke out. Just as it was a year ago, the combat took place in the suburban communities of Dąbrówka, Roździeń, Szopienice, Bogucice, Zawodzie, Janów and Giszowiec. Fierce battles continued in Załęże, Dąb and Wełnowiec. For the leaders of the Uprising, the main goal was the eradication of the hated German Security Police and the establishment of the Polish-German Plebiscite Police. The acceptance of this condition made the Commander of the PMO to issue the order disbanding the Uprising.
The Plebiscite was scheduled to take place on 20 March 1921. In the voting, in the entire area of the Plebiscite, 40,3% of voters cast their ballots for joining Poland. In the rural areas of Katowice county, 55,6% of the voters did so, while in the city itself it was only 14,6%.
The unfavourable result of the Plebiscite and the real threat of assigning the majority of the Plebiscite area to the German side led to the outbreak of the Third Uprising. Preceded by a strike, it started at 3 a.m. on the night from 3 to 4 May 1921. Wojciech Korfanty declared himself the dictator of the Uprising. Initially, the insurgents took over Katowice, but they abandoned it on demand of the allied forces, surrounding it with a tight cordon. The headquarters of the High Command of the Insurgent Forces was in Szopienice. Vigilantes watched over safety and order. A company from Katowice and Bogucice, formed of miners employed in the ”Ferdynand” coal mine, participated in the military operations, which soon moved to the region of Opole. The Uprising officially ended on 5 July 1921. In October, a decision was taken on the division of the plebiscite area. Its third part, the most industrialised one, was alloted to Poland.
The interwar period
Taking over the part of Upper Silesia granted to Poland was a celebratory event. On 19 June 1922, the official handing over of the city and the poviat (county) took place in Katowice. The very next day, Polish troops marched in, under the command of general Stanisław Szeptycki. The ceremonial taking of power in Upper Silesia by the Polish government transpired on 16 July 1922. The central government was represented by: Antoni Kamieński, Minister of Internal Affairs and Wojciech Trąmpczyński, the Marshal of the Sejm (Parliament). Voivode Józef Rymer acted on behalf of the local authorities. An act of the Sejm (Parliament) of 15 July 1920 on the autonomy of the region (Organic Statute) was in force on the whole territory of Upper Silesia joined to Poland. Katowice became the capital of the new autonomous Silesian Voivodeship (Province). Silesian Sejm (Parliament) and Silesian Voivodship Council also resided there. Konstanty Wolny performed the function of the marshal for the first three terms of the Silesian Sejm, succeeded by Karol Grzesik. The executive powers of the Silesian self-government were the voivode (governor) and the Voivodship Council. Józef Rymer became the first voivode. The establishment of autonomous Silesian Voivodhip exemplified a unique phenomenon in the Poland of the time – autonomy of the land within the borders of the Polish Republic.
Even before power was taken over by the Polish administration, Alfons Górnik, PhD, was chosen for a mayor of Katowice. He performed this function until 1928, when he was succeeded by Adam Kocur., PhD. Jan Piechulek was the chairman of the City Council for many years.
Being chosen for the capital of the voivodship, raised the status of Katowice and became a major growth factor. The expansion of state administration and economic institutions brought about an influx of clerical staff. The new position of the city also contributed to the construction of many public utility buildings, such as the representational seat of the Silesian Sejm in Jagiellońska Street. Katowice also became the seat of other administrative bodies of the voivodship level: District and Appellate Court, Voivodhip Police Headquarters, Tax Office and Armed Forces High Command for Upper Silesia.
Until 1922, Katowice belonged to Wrocław diocese. After the city was taken over by Polish administration, an Apostolic Administration was created there, subjected directly to the Pope. In 1925, the city became a bishop’s curia. August Hlond, a Silesian, became the first bishop of Katowice.
In the interwar period, industry developed rapidly in Katowice, together with trade and services, which made it gain importance. Subsequent head offices of economic organisations and banks were located here, the Katowice Fair was initiated, for which a representative hall was constructed. An airfield was established here, as well. Katowice became a major cultural centre. A permanent theatre company was formed at the local theatre. A library of the People’s Libraries Society was set up, together with the Silesia Institute, a research facility. A modern building was erected for the Silesian Museum and one for the Polish Radio broadcasting station. The Music Conservatory, Śląskie Techniczne Zakłady Naukowe (Silesian School of Technical Sciences) and the School of Commerce were established then.
Political parties, societies and associations representing the interests of Polish, German and Jewish inhabitants, which operated in the region, also determined the form of social and political life. Most of them, for example, the Christian Democratic Party, National Worker’s Party, Polish Socialist Party, Polish People’s Party, Deutsche Katholische Volkspartei, Deutsche Partei and the Jewish Party, had their representation in the Silesian Sejm (Parliament).
In the late 1930s, in view of the rising threat of war, preparations for civil defence of Katowice began. Frequent paramilitary trainings were a form of such activities, such as fire drills organised for boy and girl scouts at the shooting range in Kochłowicka Street. Some the young people were also trained in military communications at the 73rd Infantry Regiment stationed in Katowice. Moreover, the professional fire service ran courses in fire fighting and prevention (for example, for the Brothers Hospitallers of Saint John of God from Bogucice). In August 1939, the fire service organised a course of territorial air defence for women. Members of OPWK, Female Military Training organisation, participated in it. Additionally, they were trained in chemical defence and assistance in blood donation campaigns. The Poviat Command of OPWK in Katowice organised a sanitary and medical emergency course combined with a hospital practice. The Catholic Women’s Association operating within OPWK organised a state defence preparatory course in Panewniki between 12 and 16 June 1939.
The dark years of Work War II
In the last days of August 1939, a planned evacuation of offices, institutions and some employment establishments started. On the night from the 1st and 2nd of September, 73 Infantry Regiment marched out to the front near Mikołów. Police units also left the city. The defence of Katowice was organised by volunteers manning, insofar as possible, more important and conducive structures, such as the parachute tower and the House of the Insurgent. Faced with an immense advantage of the Nazi army, the defence of Katowice did not last long. Immediately after the Nazis entered the city, the repressions started. 200 defendants of Katowice were shot or otherwise killed.
As the city lay in the front-line zone, its administration was taken over by military authorities. Later, Julius Friedrich, PhD, became Oberbürgermeister (Lord Mayor), a forced administrator. Since the beginning of 1940 until the end of war, Hans Tiessler was the Oberbürgermeister. On 1 November 1939, Katowice Regierungsbezirk (government district) was established, headed by Fritz Bracht. On 20 December 1940, the Katowice Regierungsbezirk was combined with the Opole one, creating the Upper Silesian Province (Gau Oberschlesien) with its capital in Katowice.
Since early September 1939, the Police Praesidium operated in the city. It was composed of Schutzpolizei and gendarmerie. The edifice of the Non-combined Administration Offices was the headquarters of the Katowice security Police – the Gestapo. The most infamous chief of the local Gestapo, Johann Thümmler, was responsible for many death sentences and public executions, also in the area of Katowice.
Although during World War II Katowice became the main administrative centre of the Silesian Province, the occupation authorities were primarily interested in the exploitation of the local industry for military needs. Consequently, all investments were postponed until „the end of the war”
One of the major goals of the German administration was to eradicate the Polish traits of the city and to break the Polish spirit within the inhabitants. To this end, Poles were resettled to the General Government, forced to register in the German National List and forbidden to conduct religious services in Polish. In all types of schools, teaching in German language was made compulsory. At the very beginning of the occupation Polish book collections and libraries were destroyed, together with the most expressive symbols: the image of the eagle on the building of the Non-combined Administration Offices, Stanisław Moniuszo’s monument, insurgent monuments and the building of the Silesian Museum. The synagogue was burned, as well. Members of underground organisations founded by various political groups were ruthlessly persecuted.
Participation in resistance movement and non-observance of the regulations resulted in arrests and repressions. Breaking the occupation law resulted in capital punishment – death sentence. Special courts (Sondegerichte) operated in Katowice, including a summary court (Standgericht), presided by Johann Thümmler, since 1942. The sentences were carried out by means of a guillotine, in the Katowice prison in Mikołowska Street. Over 700 were put to death there during the whole occupation period. Among others, priest Jan Macha and Karol Kornas, who conducted underground activities. In order to intimidate the population, public executions were carried out. Many inhabitants were sent to concentration camps. Among the Katowice dwellers who were murdered there were priest Emil Szramek, priest Józef Kania, priest Karol Żmij, Tadeusz Prejzner, Józef Biniszkiewicz, Henryk Sławik and Józef Pukowiec.
In the period of the Peoples’ Republic
When the Red Army entered Katowice on 27 January 1945, a new stage started in the history of the city. When the combat operations in Silesian Voivodeship and in the city itself had ceased, new administrative bodies were established. Jerzy Ziętek became the first voivode, followed by Aleksander Zawadzki. Józef Wesołowski was the first post-war mayor of the city.
In the first years which came after the war, a few forced labour camps operated in Katowice, at the coal mines ”Eminencja”, “Kleofas”, ”Janów”, ”Wujek” and ”Katowice”.
After Joseph Stalin’s death in 1953, Polish authorities hurriedly decided to celebrate the memory of the “leader of the nations” by naming the capital of Upper Silesia after him. For the three subsequent years, Katowice turned into Stalinogród.
The directions for the spatial development of the city were implemented until the end of the 1970s. In the place of the buildings which had been burned down, new edifices of the Silesian Press House and ”Zenit” Cooperative Department Store were constructed. In the 1960s, the western side of Korfantego Alley was totally rebuilt. The houses standing there were replaced by huge residential buildings, among them the so-called ”Superjednostka”, commercial pavilions, the Art Exhibitions Buerau, the Wedding Palace and ”Silesia” Hotel. On the eastern side of Korfantego Alley, apart from residential and university buildings, ”Katowice” Hotel was erected. as well as one of the hallmarks of the city, a sports and entertainment arena called ”Spodek” (Saucer). In the years 1965-1972, fragments of Młyńska, Stawowa and 3 Maja Streets were demolished and a new railway station was built there. In 1972, following further demolitions, “Skarbek” Department Store was put into operation, located on the corner of 3 Maja and A. Mickiewicza Streets.
In the first period which followed the entry of the Russian army to Katowice many cultural institutions were reactivated or called into being. The theatre, philharmonic and the Katowice branch of Polish Radio. Starting from 1945, Polish Writers’ Union and the Association of Polish Artists and Designers operated in Katowice. Silesian Puppet and Actor Theatre “Ateneum” was founded in the same year.
Immediately after the war, the academic life started to develop. In 1945, the Society of Friends of Science in Upper Silesia resumed its activity (it was to be dissolved in 1949), as well as the School of Social and Economic Sciences, which was transformed into the Academy of Economics in Katowice (in 1974) and Silesian Music Conservatory (named State Higher School of Music on 1 September 1945), which later became the Academy of Music. State Higher School of Art was established in the year the war ended. The Silesian Institute operated in the years 1945–1949, then, after an 8 years’ interval, the Silesian Science Institute was founded on its basis.
Silesian Public Library resumed operation in 1945 and the State Archives in 1946. At the turn of the 1950s, the largest extracurricular education facility in Poland, the Youth Palace, was created in Katowice.
Teachers were educated by Pedagogical Institute, transformed into the Higher School of Pedagogy in 1948. Starting from 1963, there was a branch of Jagiellonian University in Katowice. These two academic facilities were combined to form the University of Silesia in 1968. In the same year, a branch of the Silesian University of Technology inaugurated its activity in the city. Three years later, in 1971, some departments of the Medical Academy were moved to Katowice. For its purposes, a clinical buildings complex and dormitories were erected in the district of Ligota. In 1972, another school of higher education was founded, the Academy of Physical Education in Katowice. A year later, Katowice became the seat of a branch of the Polish Academy of Sciences. In 1957, the Katowice branch of Polish Television broadcasted its first program. In the 1980s, three museums started operating: the Museum of Katowice History (1984) and the Museum of Katowice Diocese (1983). Katowice were also an important centre of publishing newspapers and periodicals –
”Trybuna Robotnicza”, ”Dziennik Zachodni”, ”Sport”, ”Wieczór”, weeklies: ”Odra” (1945–1950) ”Panorama” (starting from 1954), ”Przemiany” (1956–1957), ”Poglądy” (1962–1980), ”Tak i Nie” (1983–1990) and ”Katolik” (starting from 1982).
At the end of the 1970s, the economic situation in Poland significantly deteriorated. The reparatory attempts in the form of price increases further exacerbated the sentiments of the public. In the summer of 1980, the first strikes broke out, which swiftly spread over the country. The demands of the strikers, initially limited to economy, became political in character. Under great pressure, state authorities conceded, consenting to the establishment of self-governing trade unions and then giving permission to the registration of the Solidarity Trade Union on 10 November 1980). For over a dozen subsequent months, the union strove for survival and free operation, demanding economic and political reforms. The imposition of marshal law on 13 December 1981 brought its legal operation to an end. Attempts at undertaking a strike action were thwarted by the Motorized Reserves of the Citizens’ Militia (ZOMO) and the Security Service. Workers in Upper Silesia put a particularly strong resistance. In Katowice, the staff of ”Baildon” Steelworks and of the ”Staszic”, ”Wieczorek” and ”Wujek” coal mines joined the strike. The occupational strike in the ”Wujek” coal mine ended in the most tragic way. On 16 December 1981, as a result of the ZOMO fire, 7 miners died on the spot. Two more died of wounds in hospital. Years later, the place of their death became one of the symbols of martyrdom, known all over the country.
The darkness of the martial law was dispersed by the arrival of Pope John II, coming to Poland on pilgrimage. He visited Katowice on 20 June 1983. The meeting, in which 1.5 mln people participated, took place in the Muchowiec Airfield.
In the afternoon, the Pope prayed with the sick and the disabled in the Katowice cathedral. During this visit, the Holy Father handed a commemorative medal to the mayor Edward Mecha. As a result of social and political transformations in the Soviet Union, and the deterioration of public sentiment in the Polish society, the government decided to enter upon the discussions of the so-called ”round table”. Pursuant to the agreements reached between the communist authorities and the opposition, parliamentary elections were held for the Parliament – Sejm and Senate. The first round took place on the 4 June 1989. In the Katowice Voivodeship, for both chambers of the Parliament, all the candidates representing the Solidarity Citizens’ Committee were elected. The candidates on the governmental list were totally defeated.
On 19 June 1990, democratic elections for the local self-government were held, the first ones since World War II. In Katowice, the newly elected city authorities entrusted the position of the mayor to Jerzy Śmiałek.
