Private town explained
Private towns in Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth were privately owned towns within the lands owned by magnates, bishops, knights, princes, etc.Amongst the most well-known former private magnate towns are Białystok, Zamość, Rzeszów, Puławy, Tarnów, Siedlce, Biała Podlaska, Ivano-Frankivsk, Ternopil and Uman. Magnate palaces and castles can be often found in former private magnate towns. Examples include the Branicki Palace in Białystok, the Czartoryski Palace in Puławy, the Zamoyski Palace in Zamość, the Lubomirski Castle in Rzeszów, the Radziwiłł Palace in Biała Podlaska, the Ogiński Palace in Siedlce, the Potocki Palaces in Międzyrzec Podlaski, Tulchyn and Vysokaye, the Wiśniowiecki Palace in Vyshnivets, the Zbaraski Castle in Zbarazh.
Also various other landmarks were often founded by the owners, including town halls, churches, monasteries, schools, theatres, etc., some rather unique, like the Mannerist Kalwaria Zebrzydowska Park and Baroque fortified Berdychiv Carmelite Monastery.
Some of the most known former private bishop towns include Łódź, Kielce, Łowicz, Pabianice and Skierniewice.
List of private towns
| City | Population
(2015)[1] [2] | Former owners | Country | Administrative division |
|---|
| 1. | Białystok | 295,282 | House of Branicki (Gryf) |  | Podlaskie Voivodeship |
| 2. | Poltava (Połtawa) | 294,962 | House of Wiśniowiecki,
House of Koniecpolski |  | Poltava Oblast |
| 3. | Rivne (Równe) | 249,639 | House of Ostrogski,
House of Lubomirski | | Rivne Oblast |
| 4. | Ivano-Frankivsk (Stanisławów) | 228,575 | House of Potocki | | Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast |
| 5. | Ternopil (Tarnopol) | 217,773 | House of Tarnowski,
House of Ostrogski,
House of Zamoyski | | Ternopil Oblast |
| 6. | Rzeszów | 183,108 | House of Lubomirski | | Podkarpackie Voivodeship |
| 7. | Tarnów | 112,120 | House of Tarnowski | | Lesser Poland Voivodeship |
| 8. | Maladzyechna (Mołodeczno) | 94,686 | House of Sapieha,
House of Gosiewski,
House of Ogiński |  | Minsk Region |
| 9. | Uman (Humań) | 86,451 | House of Potocki | | Cherkasy Oblast |
| 10. | Berdychiv (Berdyczów) | 77,788 | House of Tyszkiewicz,
House of Zawisza,
House of Radziwiłł | | Zhytomyr Oblast |
| 11. | Siedlce | 76,347 | House of Ogiński | | Masovian Voivodeship |
| 12. | Zhlobin (Żłobin) | 75,700 | House of Chodkiewicz
Bona Sforza | | Gomel Region |
| 13. | Ostrów Wielkopolski | 72,890 | House of Przebendowski | | Greater Poland Voivodeship |
| 14. | Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski | 72,277 | House of Tarnowski | | Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship |
| 15. | Smila (Smiła) | 68,618 | House of Lubomirski | | Cherkasy Oblast |
| 16. | Chervonohrad (Krystynopol) | 67,863 | House of Potocki | | Lviv Oblast |
| 17. | Kalush (Kałusz) | 67,631 | House of Sieniawski | | Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast |
| 18. | Zamość | 65,255 | House of Zamoyski | | Lublin Voivodeship |
| 19. | Leszno | 64,589 | House of Leszczyński,[3]
House of Sułkowski | | Greater Poland Voivodeship |
| 20. | Zhodzina (Żodzino) | 63,722 | House of Radziwiłł | | Minsk Region | |
Private clergy towns
Former private clergy towns by population as of 2015:
| City | Population
(2015) | Former owners | Country
(2023) | Administrative division (2023) |
|---|
| 1. | Łódź | 711,332 | Diocese of Kujawy[4] | | Łódź Voivodeship |
| 2. | Kielce | 199,870 | Diocese of Kraków | | Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship |
| 3. | Olsztyn | 174,675 | Diocese of Warmia | | Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship |
| 4. | Włocławek | 114,885 | Diocese of Kujawy | | Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship |
| 5. | Suwałki | 69,317 | Camaldolese | | Podlaskie Voivodeship |
| 6. | Pabianice | 67,688 | Diocese of Kraków[5] | | Łódź Voivodeship |
| 7. | Skierniewice | 48,634 | Archdiocese of Gniezno | | Łódź Voivodeship |
| 8. | Fastiv (Fastów) | 47,869 | Diocese of Kyiv | | Kyiv Oblast |
| 9. | Marijampolė (Mariampol) | 38,345 | Marians |  | Marijampolė County |
| 10. | Czeladź | 32,940 | Diocese of Kraków | | Silesian Voivodeship | |
See also
Notes and References
- Web site: Lista miast w Polsce (spis miast, mapa miast, liczba ludności, powierzchnia, wyszukiwarka) . Polska w liczbach.
- Web site: zb_chnnu2016pdf ZIP file .
- Book: . Atlas historyczny Polski. Wielkopolska w drugiej połowie XVI wieku. Część II. Komentarz, indeksy. 2017. pl. Warszawa. Instytut Historii Polskiej Akademii Nauk. 254.
- Book: . Atlas historyczny Polski. Województwo sieradzkie i województwo łęczyckie w drugiej połowie XVI wieku. Część II. Komentarz, indeksy. 1998. pl. Warszawa. Instytut Historii Polskiej Akademii Nauk. 67.
- Book: . Atlas historyczny Polski. Województwo sieradzkie i województwo łęczyckie w drugiej połowie XVI wieku. Część II. Komentarz, indeksy. 1998. pl. Warszawa. Instytut Historii Polskiej Akademii Nauk. 68.
