02.03.2009 |
The area of today's Ełk region belonged to the land of the mysterious tribe of Jatvingians in the early Middle Ages. They established the first watchtower on the island on the lake. In the same place the Teutonic Knights built a small castle in the years 1398 to 1406. It was strategically placed and provided local people who were settling near the castle with good protection.
Unfortunately, the castle was knocked down a few years after the Battle of Tannenberg (Grunwald). Bartosz Bratomil was the founder of Ełk and the first village administrator. Thanks to its advantageous location Ełk was growing quickly and soon was given a town status from the grand master Paul von Russdorf. The dating of Ełk's original township status is unclear. It could have been in 1435 or 1445. Often the date of the establishment of the village is accepted, which is 1425. After the 13-year-long war settlement of the areas began. In 1499 Ełk numbered 600 inhabitants. The first parish was started in 1469.
The 16th century was the period of the greatest development of Ełk. Jan of Sącz, who later accepted the surname Małecki, came to Ełk in 1536. He published books in Polish. The existing school became the prince's school in 1599. In the years 1547 to 1551 St. Katherine Church was rebuilt. At the same time a hospital was established. Duke Albrecht allowed the establishment of a weekly market in 1560 which fostered further development. Ełk was struck by many disasters: the plague in 1625, the great fire of 1651; and Tartar Invasions of 1655(which figure into the famous novel "Potop" (En. flooding)), which resulted in burning of the town and the slaughter of townspeople. Raising the town from ruin was even made more difficult after the Great Fire of 1688. The years to follow were a period of growing stagnation.
Important events of the 18th century:
- 1720 - the opening of a town school
- 1754 - the opening of the first chemist's
- In 1800 a Polish Teachers' Seminary was opened whose organiser and manager was Ełk archpresbyter Tymoteusz Gizewiusz, an expert on the Polish language.
The first half of the 19th century brought about more tragedies. Numerous fires made Ełk seem like a 19th century town. There are not monuments here that date back to the 18th century or earlier. In 1868 a railway line from Ełk to Królewiec was opened. The years of World War I brought more disasters to the town, which was on the front line. It was taken by the Russians three times. Due to bombardments the whole town centre was destroyed.
In the years between the wars Ełk's economy was booming. Its new town centre originates from this period. Further development of Ełk took place after World War II. The town's population grew very quickly, mainly due to newcomers from the nearby areas. The inhabitants of the borderland regions from Grodno and Vilnius greatly contributed to the development of Ełk, and they still do. In 1992 the Ełk Diocese was established and as a result the town regained its historic role as the spiritual capital of Masuria.