Kraków Voivodeship (1919–1939) Explained

Native Name:Województwo krakowskie
Conventional Long Name:Kraków Voivodeship
Common Name:Kraków Voivodeship
Subdivision:Voivodeship
Nation:Poland
Year Start:1920
Year End:1939
Date Start:23 December
Event End:Annexed by Germany
Date End:September
P1:Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria
Flag P1:Flag of Hesse.svg
S1:Province of Upper Silesia
Flag S1:Flagge Preußen - Provinz Oberschlesien.svg
S2:Kraków District
Flag S2:Flag_of_German_Reich_(1935–1945).svg
Image Map Caption:Location of the Kraków Voivodeship (red)
within the Second Polish Republic, 1938.
Capital:Kraków
Government Type:Voivodeship
Title Deputy:Voivode
Deputy1:Kazimierz Junosza-Gałecki
Year Deputy1:1921–1923
Deputy2:Józef Tymiński
Year Deputy2:1937–1939
Stat Area1:17448
Stat Pop1:1992810
Stat Year1:1921
Stat Pop2:2300100
Stat Year2:1931
Stat Area3:17560
Stat Year3:1939
Political Subdiv:18 powiats

Kraków Voivodeship (Polish: województwo krakowskie) was a unit of administrative division and local government in Poland in years 1919–1939. It occupied a large area of the southern part of the country, including such cities as Kraków, Jaworzno and Tarnów. Its capital city was Kraków.

Location and area

In early 1939, Voivodeship's area was 17,560 square kilometers. It was located in southern Poland, bordering Autonomous Silesian Voivodeship to the west, Kielce Voivodeship to the north, Lublin Voivodeship, Lwów Voivodeship to the east and Slovakia to the south. Landscape was hilly in the northern part and mountainous in south, with the Tatra Mountains located in the very south of the area. Forests covered 20.9%, with the national average 22.2% (as for January 1, 1937).

Population

According to the 1931 Polish census, the population was 2,300,100, with approximately 25% living in towns and cities. Poles were 91.3% of the population, Jews were 5.6%, and Ukrainians were 2.5%. The Jews preferred to live in the cities and towns; in 1931 they made 19.2% of Voivodeship's city inhabitants. Illiteracy (in 1931) was 13.7%, lower than the national average of 23.1%. In early 1939, population density of the province was 130 people per sq. kilometer, which was much higher than Poland's average of 83.

Industry

Kraków Voivodeship was very divided in industrial terms. Its western part, with such cities as Jaworzno, Chrzanów or Trzebinia, was to a large degree industrialized and urbanized, with some coalmines. Also Kraków and Tarnów were big industrial centers. The eastern part, on the other hand, was backward, with little industry and underdeveloped agriculture. In mid-1930s Polish government started a huge public works program, called Centralny Okręg Przemysłowy (COP), which was a great boost to overpopulated and poor central and eastern counties.

The province was unofficially divided into three regions: southern (tourist), western (industrial), and eastern, with its developing industry of the COP. In 1938, the voivodeship was visited by 217,000 tourists. In early 1939, local government began a program of creation of three model tourist villages: Sol in Zywiec County, Tymbark in Limanowa County, and Szymbark in Gorlice County. Furthermore, regulation of the Vistula began in 1938, with levees built along its shores. The road connecting Kraków with Zakopane was to be completed by the end of 1939, after which funds were to be assigned to modernization of the main road from Kraków to Lwow. Due to the outbreak of World War II, none of the projects were finished.

Cities and administrative divisions

In 1938, the Kraków Voivodeship consisted of 18 powiats (counties). These were as follows:

According to the 1931 census, biggest cities within the Voivodeship's boundaries were:

Voivodes

See also

References

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