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62-794: In 1864, the plant was founded as part of the Royal Steelworks in Chorzów and in 1917, it was excluded from its structures as a separate enterprise. During World War II, the factory belonged to the Reichswerke Hermann Göring produced for the needs of the army of the Third Reich, while during the Communist Period, as the Chorzów Steel Structures Factory Konstal, it was the main supplier of trams for Poland. In 1995,

124-651: A steel mill , rail mill and workshops. In the vicinity of the Royal Coal Mine, Countess Laura Coal Mine was opened in 1870, and by 1913–1914 coal production increased to 1 million tons a year. In 1898, a thermal power plant was commissioned which was, until the 1930s, the biggest electricity producer in Poland with a power of 100 MW (electrical). Today, it operates as "ELCHO" . In 1915, nitrogen chemical works (Oberschlesische Stickstoffwerke) were built nearby to produce fertilizers and explosives by newly invented processes: from

186-578: A decision was taken to increase the share capital of Konstal to make room for the possibility of a GEC Alsthom takeover. Polish interior ministry approved this resolution on 21 February 1997. Seven days later, GEC Alsthom bought 60% of the shares from NFI. In June 1997, GEC Alsthom bought out state treasury and employee shares. On 22 June 1998, GEC Alsthom became simply Alstom, and the Chorzów plant rebranded as Alstom Konstal. Together with administrative changes, workshops received several structural upgrades. Towards

248-591: A division of Huta Piłsudski was separated into a company making rail cars, trams and bridges; today it operates as Alstom -Konstal. The State Factory of Nitrogen Compounds (Państwowa Fabryka Związków Azotowych) was in 1933 merged with a similar company (largely its copy) in Tarnów -Mościce. On the day of the outbreak of World War II in September 1939, Chorzów was taken by Nazi Germany . Polish irregulars, mainly Silesian uprising veterans and scouts , put up resistance to

310-625: A document of 1198 by the Patriarch of Jerusalem , who awarded this place to the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem . Chorzów is then mentioned as Chareu or Charev in 1257 and then Charzow in 1292. The last name may originate from the personal name Charz , short for Zachary and may mean Zachary's place . The a in the early names may have been later modified to the current pronunciation with o perhaps due to similarity to

372-458: A limited extent. The first to start its activity was the bridge construction department, which in the same month rebuilt the bridge in Chorzów Batory . Shortly after, the wagon construction department was reopened. Konstal, under the name of Processing Workshops obtained first orders from different regions of the country. A renovation team was sent to Warsaw , which was tasked with the removal of

434-401: A part of Germany. The name of the oldest settlement Chorzów was applied to the amalgamated city. The etymology of the name is not known. Chorzów is believed to be first mentioned as Zversov or Zuersov in a document of 1136 by Pope Innocent II as a village with peasants, silver miners, and two inns. Another place-name likely indicating Chorzów is Coccham or Coccha, which is mentioned in

496-563: A part of Upper Silesia was annexed by Poland, where most of the mines, smelters and factories belonging to the company of united steelworks were located. At that time, its name was polonized to the Upper Silesian United Royal Steelworks and Laura in Katowice, but nevertheless remained in the hands of German ownership. The unstable economic situation of the refounded Poland and the customs war with Germany, which in 1925 led to

558-502: A prison was operated in the city (see Intelligenzaktion ). Local Polish teachers were among Poles murdered in 1939 in Chorzów and Strzybnica (present-day district of Tarnowskie Góry ), and later in the Dachau concentration camp . There were several forced labour camps in Chorzów, including one Polenlager solely for Poles, two camps solely for Jews , the E246, E594 and E725 subcamps of

620-426: A prototype of an articulated tram type 102N was created, and in 1970, the first 102Na tramcar left the factory. At the beginning of the 90s, work was carried out on a tram with a partially lowered floor. Konstal's result was the production in 1995 of a prototype wagon type 112N, and then in 1997, the production of two 114Na trams. On 24 July 1995, the company was included in the list of state-owned companies listed in

682-514: Is twinned with: Chorz%C3%B3w Batory Chorzów Batory (formerly Bismarckhütte , Hajduki Wielkie , 1941–1945 Königshütte-Bismarck ) is a district of the Polish city of Chorzów , in Silesian Voivodeship . Until early 1939, it was a separate municipality. One of the most renowned football clubs in Poland, Ruch Chorzów , is based there. The settlement Hajduki was established in

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744-528: Is 7.9 °C (46.2 °F). The annual precipitation is 723 mm (28 in). Weak West winds (less than 2 m/s) prevail. Detailed data as of 31 December 2021: Chorzów used to be one of the most important cities in the largest Polish economic area (the Upper Silesian Industry Area ) with extensive industry in coal mining, steel, chemistry, manufacturing, and energy sectors. Many heavy-industry establishments were closed or scaled down in

806-666: Is a city in the Silesia region of southern Poland , near Katowice . Chorzów is one of the central cities of the Metropolis GZM – a metropolis with a population of 2 million. It is located in the Silesian Highlands , on the Rawa River (a tributary of the Vistula ). Administratively, Chorzów is in the Silesian Voivodeship since 1999, previously Katowice Voivodeship , and before then,

868-521: The "fall of communism" in 1989, the area was in decline. Since 1989, the region has been transitioning from heavy industry to a more diverse economy. In 1954 as many as 103 miners have died in the "Barbara-Wyzwolenie" coal mine disaster  [ pl ] . On 28 January 2006, a roof collapsed at an exhibition hall , killing 65 people. In 2007, Chorzów became a part of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union (predecessor to

930-475: The Bismarck Iron Works Bismarckhütte . When the international borders shifted, the name of Bismarck was replaced with the name of the Polish king Batory (so-chosen to preserve that initial "B", which appeared on an economically important local trademark). Today this city subdivision is called Chorzów IV or Chorzów-Batory . In the 12th century, the castellany of Bytom , including

992-421: The Metropolis GZM ), a voluntary union of a continuous chain of cities aimed at increasing the poor visibility of the area, improving its competitiveness, and modernizing the infrastructure. The region experienced several waves of migrations, including those commencing in 1945 (to Germany and from Poland and Ukraine), in 1971–1976 (to Germany), in 1982 (to Western countries ), and from 2003 (to other countries of

1054-506: The Silesian Voivodeship . Chorzów is one of the cities of the 2.7 million conurbation – the Katowice urban area and within a greater Katowice-Ostrava metropolitan area with the population of about 5,294,000 people. The population within the city limits is 105,628 as of December 2021. The city of Chorzów was formed in 1934–1939 by a merger of 4 adjacent cities: Chorzów, Królewska Huta, Nowe Hajduki and Hajduki Wielkie. These cities were

1116-569: The Stalag VIII-B/344 prisoner-of-war camp , and, in years 1944–1945, a subcamp of the Auschwitz concentration camp , in which approximately 200 Jews from German-occupied France , Belgium and Czechoslovakia were imprisoned. In January 1945, the prisoners of the subcamp of Auschwitz were evacuated on foot to Gliwice, and then deported to the Nordhausen-Dora concentration camp. Chorzów

1178-557: The city area and features: Chorzów also features other notable nature areas, including: Clubs: Historically notable is the former club AKS Chorzów . Stadion Śląski is a former home stadium for the Poland national football team , and used for international football games and other events (for example, it has held the Speedway World Championships four times, with the 1973 World Final attracting over 120,000 spectators,

1240-526: The common adjective chory = ill and a presence of a hospital (which was moved in 1299 to Rozbark at the gates of Bytom ). Today, the place of the old village is a subdivision called Chorzów III or Chorzów Stary = the Old Chorzów . The industrial and residential settlement south-west of Chorzów constructed since 1797 around the Royal Coal Mine and Royal Iron Works was named Królewska Huta by

1302-460: The scorched earth policy. This intact industry now played a critical role in the post-war reconstruction and industrialization of Poland. After the war, businesses were nationalized and operated, with minor changes, until 1989. Some were used as Soviet labour and concentration camps. Some industrial hardware and at least 100,000 Polish Silesians were deported to the Ukrainian Donbass region. At

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1364-578: The 1800s the modern Lidognia Zinc Works was added in the area. Settlements grew near the new coal and ironworks. Since 1797, one group of settlements was called Königshütte ( Królewska Huta in Polish) after the ironworks. In 1846 Królewska Huta received a railway track to Świętochłowice and Mysłowice , in 1857 to Bytom and until 1872 to all major cities in the Silesian region. Królewska Huta received city status in 1868 as part of Bytom County, and in 1898 it

1426-560: The Chorzów area, belonged to the Seniorate Province (Kraków Duchy) of Poland. In 1179 it was awarded by Duke Casimir the Just to the Duke of Opole , and since that time the history of Chorzów has been connected to the history of Upper Silesia ( Duchy of Opole ). The oldest part of the city, the village of Chorzów, today called Chorzów Stary , belonged since 1257 to the Equestrian Order of

1488-587: The Chorzów area. In the years 1791–1797 the Prussian state-owned Royal Coal Mine was constructed ( Kopalnia Król , Königsgrube , later renamed several times with the changing political winds). In 1799, first pig iron was made in the Royal Iron Works ( Królewska Huta , Königshütte ). At the time, it was a pioneering industrial establishment of its kind in continental Europe . In 1819 the ironworks consisted of 4 blast furnaces , producing 1,400 tons of pig-iron. In

1550-665: The Dutch national carrier Nederlandse Spoorwegen . In 2023, Alstom’s operations in Poland were consolidated under a single company, Alstom Polska S.A. Since then, the plant has operated as the Chorzów branch of this company. This article incorporates information from the corresponding article in Polish Misplaced Pages Chorz%C3%B3w Chorzów ( / ˈ x ɒ ʒ uː f / KHOZH -oof ; Polish: [ˈxɔʐuf] ; German: Königshütte [ˈkøːnɪçsˌhʏtə] ; Silesian : Chorzōw )

1612-504: The EU). Chorzów is in the middle of the largest urban center in Poland. The Metropolis GZM is the largest legally recognized urban entity in Poland with a population of 2 million. Nine million people live within 100 kilometres (62 miles) of Stadion Śląski in Chorzów. Six European capitals are located within 600 km (373 mi): Berlin , Vienna , Prague , Bratislava , Budapest and Warsaw . The average annual temperature in Chorzów

1674-510: The German/Polish/Silesian term for hajduk (s) (Polish (plural): Hajduki; German (singular): Heiduck), which locally meant bandits. The place was first mentioned in 1627 as Hejduk and shown on 18th century maps as "Ober Heiduk" and "Nieder Heiduk" (i.e., Upper and Lower Heiduk). The later names Hajduki Wielkie and Nowe Hajduki mean Great Hajduks and New Hajduks , respectively. The two settlements were merged in 1903 and named after

1736-549: The Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem . Already at that time silver and lead ores were mined nearby, later also the ores of iron. There is more documentation for 16th century developments. From 1327, the Upper Silesian duchies were ruled by the dukes of the Piast dynasty and were subject to Bohemian overlordship. The Crown of Bohemia elected Polish-Lithuanian Jagiellons kings from 1471 and Austrian Habsburgs kings after 1526. In 1742,

1798-549: The Poles or Königshütte by the Germans, both names meaning Royal Iron Works . As it was growing quickly this settlement was granted city status in 1868. Today this neighbourhood is called Chorzów I or Chorzów-Miasto meaning Chorzów Centre . The etymology of Hajduki is ambiguous and is interpreted as either related to the German word for moorland (German: die Heide), or adopted from

1860-594: The Prime Minister's Regulation, whose shares will be transferred to the National Investment Funds. On 23 October 1995, the general meeting of shareholders of Konstal adopted a resolution on the transfer of the company's shares to the NFI, and on 31 October 1995, the resolution was registered by the court. Of the total 1,360,000 shares, 60% were transferred to the NFI, 25% were held by the state treasury and 15% were in

1922-517: The Roman Catholic Saint Mary's church was built, a seat of a separate parish since 1908. In 1903 the two municipalities Hajduki Dolne (Nieder-Heiduk) i Hajduki Górne (Ober-Heiduk) were joined to form the municipality of Bismarckhütte. After World War I the territory became disputed between Germany and Poland and witnessed the three Silesian Uprisings and the plebiscite after which the settlement became part of Poland. The official change of

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1984-400: The air, water and coal (see Haber-Bosch process ). Today, it operates as "Zakłady Azotowe SA". Another ironworks, Bismarck Iron Works ( Bismarckhütte ), later called Bathory Iron Works ( Huta Batory ), was opened in 1872 in the village of Hajduki Wielkie, just south of Chorzów and Królewska Huta. A large carbochemical plant was started nearby in 1889, the first such chemical plant in what

2046-581: The area was conquered by the Prussian Hohenzollerns in Silesian Wars , setting the stage for the Prussian industrial might. The Prussian and then German period lasted for about 180 years and overlapped with the time of rapid industrialization. With the discovery of bituminous coal deposits at the end of the 18th century by the Polish local priest Ludwik Bojarski , new industrial sectors developed in

2108-428: The beginning of 1946, 2812 people worked in the factory. In the first post-war years, the basic production of the factory consisted of bridge spans, steel structures, freight and tram cars, as well as railway and tram turnouts. On 1 May 1946, Mostowagon delivered the first 100 post-war coal mines to Polish State Railways (PKP). In 1946, a new trolley construction department was launched. Poland, rebuilding itself from

2170-462: The change of the current production of the plant, to production for the needs of the Third Reich, the bridge construction department was adapted to the production of guns, and a galvanizing plant was erected in the place of the railway turnout department. The wagon department, on the other hand, produced segments of submarine hulls, dry docks and gun chassis. Apart from Polish workers, prisoners of war and concentration camp prisoners were also employed. In

2232-652: The company's shares were transferred to the National Investment Funds, after which the plant began cooperation with the Linke-Hofmann-Busch factory belonging to the French Alstom concern. In 1997, the company was bought out by Alstom , and a year later, simultaneously with the change of its name to Alstom, the Polish factory adopted its current name. In 1864, the Processing Workshops ( German : Verarbeitungswerkstätte ) were established in connection with

2294-425: The destruction of World War II , needed serial production of trams. On 17 October 1946, a conference on this issue was held in Katowice and it was decided that the construction of the new type of wagon would be modeled on the German two-axle KSW wagon. Between 1946 and 1947, a specially appointed commission developed a complete technical documentation of the standard-gauge motor tram type N and trailer type ND, and at

2356-487: The eastern part of Silesia, including Chorzów and Królewska Huta, was separated from Germany and awarded to Poland in 1922. Migrations of people followed. Because of its strategic value, the case of the nitrogen factory Oberschlesische Stickstoffwerke was argued for years before the Permanent Court of International Justice , finally setting some new legal precedents on what is "just" in international relations. In 1934,

2418-443: The end of 1990s, Alstom Konstal employed close to 900 workers. At the beginning of its activity as an international holding company, Alstom Konstal started producing new types of freight wagons, however the production of trams was still key to the factory. Between 1998 and 2001, the company supplied Polish cities with low-floor wagons of types 116N, NGd99 as well as 116Nd and high-floor 105N2k/2000 trams. A lack of further orders paused

2480-579: The hands of employees. Shortly after the transfer of Konstal's shares to NFI, the Linke-Hofmann-Busch plant in Salzgitter (part of the GEC Alsthom Group) was looking for a partner in Central Europe. After considering various companies, the Chorzów plant was selected, which was commissioned to produce 580 chassis for freight wagons. In December 1996, a general meeting of shareholders was held, in which

2542-461: The industrial area. The Unemployment rate is high (12.6% on 2007-12-31) but decreasing; the workforce is generally highly technically skilled. Major industrial establishments are: Car: Three railway stations on two major routes: Air: Public transport: Within the city limits of Chorzów: The nearby cities of Katowice and Gliwice are far larger academic centers than Chorzów. The nationally known Silesian Central Park covers about 30% of

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2604-498: The industrial communities of Chorzów, Królewska Huta and Nowe Hajduki were merged into one municipality with 81,000 inhabitants. The name of the oldest settlement Chorzów was given to the whole city. In April 1939, the settlement of Hajduki Wielkie with 30,000 inhabitants was added to Chorzów. In part due to the German-Polish trade war in the 1920s, the industry of Chorzów, a border city at that time, stagnated until 1933. In 1927,

2666-502: The intensive development of railways in Upper Silesia in the 1860s. These workshops were created as a production department of the Royal Steelworks in Chorzów ( German : Königshütte ) and placed on the site of a former steel rolling mill. Their first iteration included processing of steel produced in the steelworks into various accessories for tracks and rolling stock. In 1901, the production department of stamped sheet metal products

2728-441: The last days of the occupation, the Germans planned to destroy the factory, but eventually managed to take away 120 machine tools and other equipment, destroying the boiler room, the power plant, air compressors and means of transport. On 27 January 1945, Chorzów was occupied by Soviet troops. On the premises of the plant, which was the site of the fighting, there were corpses and buildings were damaged. The administrative building at

2790-399: The last two decades because of environmental issues in the center of a highly urbanized area, and also because of decades-long lack of investment. Others were restructured and modernized. Wedged between a dozen of other cities, the population has been decreasing. The city character has been evolving towards the service economy as new industrial development takes mostly place at the border of

2852-609: The late 16th or early 17th century when the local area belonged to the Habsburg monarchy . In the War of the Austrian Succession most of Silesia was conquered by the Kingdom of Prussia , including the village. In 1873 the steel mill „Bismarckhütte” was opened (in 1933 renamed to „Huta Batory”) and other industrial establishment, as well as the population growth, followed. In the years 1898-1901

2914-431: The main gate was destroyed. Severe frosts caused damage to the water supply and central heating and compressed air pipes. Renovation works and cleaning of the factory area have commenced shortly thereafter. On 5 February 1945, the first boiler was put into operation, which supplied steam for central heating. Four days later, the compressed air system was repaired, which allowed the jackhammer to start and start production to

2976-431: The name Górnośląskie Zakłady Metalowe Spółka Akcyjna Huty Królewskiej/Górny Śląsk ( German : Oberschlesische Metallwerke Aktien-Gesellschaft Königshütte/Oberschlesien , abbreviated as Osmag). Poles were fired from managerial positions with several hundred workers deported deep into Germany for forced labor and several dozen, mainly former participants of the Silesian uprisings, were sent to labor camps. In connection with

3038-422: The production of trams in Chorzów. The 105N family became the longest and most produced tram in Poland – between 1973 and 2001, a total of nearly 3500 wagons were built in over 20 standard and narrow-gauge varieties. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, Alstom decided that the Chorzów plant would not be a universal factory. Alstom decided to give the workshop a new speciality. Alstom Konstal, in addition to

3100-456: The production of trams, was to deal with the construction of metro cars. In search of further orders, the company took part in various tenders. Between 2001 and 2005, the company produced and delivered 14 Metropolis 98B trains for the Warsaw metro. By 2005, the plant had completed orders for Citadis trams for Istanbul and Metropolis metro trains for Budapest and Amsterdam. At the beginning of 2017, it

3162-567: The regular German forces for three days, afterwards the city was occupied by Germany, and on September 6, 1939, the Einsatzgruppe I entered the city to commit various atrocities against Poles . Most of the Polish defenders were murdered in mass executions. An execution of three Poles was carried out by the German Freikorps already on September 3, 1939. A unit of the Einsatzgruppe I

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3224-437: The remains of the destroyed Poniatowski Bridge from the Vistula riverbed. At the same time, new spans for this bridge were being built in the factory, and in addition, the repairs of damaged Warsaw trams and the production of new coal trucks began. After the end of the war, the factory was given the name Chorzów Wytwórnia Mostów i Wagonów (abbreviated as Mostowagon). At the end of 1945, the plant employed 1853 people, and at

3286-491: The same time, a narrow-gauge version, 2N and 2ND was also designed. In 1947, the factory was taken over by the state treasury, and renamed to Konstal on 15 September 1948. The name however wasn't adopted until 14 December 1948. First prototype of the 13N tram was produced (loosely based on the Tatra T1 ) in 1959, and last built N trams left the factory in 1962. Shortly after, Konstal made short series 14N, 15N and WPK trams. In 1967,

3348-626: The suspension of exports from Poland to Germany, caused a decline in production. In 1936, a four-axle motor car of the ESCx series called Luxtorpeda was built, and in 1939, Konstal welded first boxes of passenger cars. After the entry of German troops in 1939 and 1940, the administration and property of the Community of Mining and Metallurgical Interests came under the receivership of the state-owned Reichswerke A.G. für Berg- und Hüttenbetriebe Hermann Göring. The Processing Workshops became part of it and adopted

3410-871: The world record attendance for Motorcycle speedway ). From year 2009 have held there track and field competitions. Kamila Skolimowska Memorial , which was part of the inaugural meeting World Athletics Continental Tour in 2020 and Diamond League series since 2022. At the 2024 edition of the meeting, two world records were set, one by Jakob Ingebrigtsen (3000m 7.17,55) and the other by Armand Duplantis (pole vault 6.26, just 20 days after last set up in Olympic Games ). The stadium also hosts large music concerts. Throughout its history it has featured such artists and groups as The Rolling Stones , Metallica , Guns N' Roses , AC/DC , U2 , Iron Maiden , Linkin Park , Pearl Jam , Red Hot Chili Peppers , Genesis and The Police . Chorzów

3472-565: Was also the founder of several organizations: Upper Silesian Union, Upper Silesian Peasants Union. Juliusz Ligoń was a Polish activist and poet. In 1920 the football club Ruch Chorzów was founded in the city. Later on, it would become one of the most successful Polish football teams. In the Upper Silesia plebiscite a majority of 31,864 voters voted to remain in Germany while 10,764 votes were given for Poland Following three Silesian Uprisings ,

3534-479: Was decided that Alstom Konstal would produce metro trains for Dubai. In connection with the implementation of this project, it was announced that the plant will be expanded with a second, separate production line. In May of that year, the company employed over 1200 people. At the end of November 2018, a new assembly line was opened for the production of Intercity Next Generation trains (Coradia Stream) ordered in July 2016 by

3596-516: Was launched, and in 1908, departments of spring production and railway turnouts launched. In July 1917, the workshops were excluded from the organizational structure of the Royal Steelworks, because at that time the production of the factory differed from the activity of the raw material smelter. The established independent company was named the Royal Steelworks Workshop Board ( German : Werkstättenverwaltung Königshütte ). In 1922,

3658-412: Was made a separate city-county . The population was increasing rapidly: from 19,500 inhabitants in 1870 to 72,600 in 1910. Among them 17,300 workers were employed in the industry (similar number for 1939). In 1871 there was a workers' rebellion in the city. The Royal Iron Works were taken over in 1871 by the holding called Vereingte Königs- und Laurahütte AG für Bergbau und Hüttenbetrieb , which added

3720-540: Was occupied by the Soviet Red Army in January 1945 with the subsequent persecution of many ethnic Polish Silesians and Germans. At the end of World War II, Chorzów was given to Poland. Generally, the Chorzów industry suffered little damage during World War II due to its inaccessibility to Allied bombing , a Soviet Army enveloping manoeuvre in January 1945, and perhaps Albert Speer 's slowness or refusal to implement

3782-514: Was stationed in Chorzów, and it was responsible for many crimes against Poles committed in Chorzów and the nearby cities of Czeladź and Siemianowice Śląskie . Polish property was confiscated, and Chorzów was promptly re-incorporated into German Silesia; the Upper Silesian industry being one of the pillars of the Nazi Germany war effort . In 1939 and 1940, the Germans carried out mass arrests of Polish intelligentsia , especially teachers, for which

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3844-523: Was to later become the Polish state. Today the company operates as "Zakłady Koksochemiczne Hajduki SA". Towards the end of the 19th century, Chorzów experienced a revival of Polish national feelings. Ethnic tensions were mixed with the religious and class conflicts . Karol Miarka was the editor of Polish books and newspapers including Katolik (The Catholic) published in Królewska Huta since 1868, Poradnik Gospodarski ( Economic Advisor ) since 1879. He

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