GdańskArticle Free Pass Gdańsk, German Danzig, city, capital of
Pomorskie województwo (province), northern Poland, situated at
the mouth of the Vistula River on the Baltic Sea. First
mentioned as a Polish city in 997 or 999, Gdańsk was part of the
Polish diocese of Włocławek, as noted in a papal bull of 1148.
It was granted municipal autonomy in 1260 and developed as a
trade centre. In 1308 the Teutonic Knights seized the city,
which they held until 1466, when King Casimir IV of Poland
regained the territory after a 13-year war. Granted local
autonomy by the king in gratitude for its loyalty, Gdańsk
expanded greatly, reaching its peak during the Renaissance as
the most-prosperous port on the Baltic. By 1754 it had the
largest population (77,000) of any eastern European city and
annual grain exports of more than 200,000 tons. The Swedish wars
of the 17th century halted the city’s economic growth and began
its decline. In 1772 Gdańsk was seized by Prussia, which
resulted in a rapid dissolution of trade through