Gdańsk (Kashubian: Gduńsk), historically known in English as Danzig, is a city on the Baltic coast of northern Poland, and the capital of the Pomeranian Voivodeship. With a population of 486,492, it is Poland's sixth-largest city and its major seaport. Gdańsk lies at the mouth of the Motława River and is situated at the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay, close to the city of Gdynia and the resort town of Sopot; these form a metropolitan area called the Tricity (Trójmiasto), with a population of approximately 1.5 million.
Gdańsk was first mentioned in 997 as part of the Duchy of Poland, and thereafter grew into a trading town under the Piast and Samboride dynasties. Shifting between Polish and Teutonic control during the Middle Ages, it subsequently joined the Hanseatic League and, with considerable autonomy, served as the Polish Crown's principal seaport and largest city until the early 18th century. With the Partitions of Poland, the city was annexed by Prussia in 1793, and was integrated into the German Empire in 1871. It was a free city from 1807 to 1814 and from 1920 to 1939. On 1 September 1939, it was the site of a military clash at Westerplatte, one of the first events of World War II. The contemporary city was shaped by extensive border changes, the flight and expulsion of the German population and Polish resettlement after 1945. In the 1980s, Gdańsk was the birthplace of the Solidarity trade union and movement, which helped precipitate the collapse of communism in Europe.
The city is home to the University of Gdańsk, Gdańsk University of Technology, the National Museum, the Gdańsk Shakespeare Theatre, the Museum of the Second World War, the Polish Baltic Philharmonic, the Polish Space Agency and the European Solidarity Centre. Among Gdańsk's most notable historical landmarks are the Town Hall, the Green Gate, Artus Court, Neptune's Fountain, and St. Mary's Church, one of the largest brick churches in the world. The city is served by Gdańsk Lech Wałęsa Airport, the country's third busiest airport and the most important international airport in northern Poland.
Gdańsk is one of the most visited cities in Poland, having received 4.5 million tourists in 2024, especially from Scandinavia and Germany. The city hosts St. Dominic's Fair, which dates back to 1260, and is regarded as one of the biggest trade and cultural events in Europe. In a 2019 quality of life poll, Gdańsk ranked highest among Polish cities. Its historic city centre has been listed as one of Poland's national monuments. In 2025, Gdańsk became a UNESCO City of Literature.
Names
Etymology
The name of the city was most likely derived from Gdania, a river presently known as Motława on which the city is situated. Other linguists also argue that the name stems from the Proto-Slavic adjective/prefix gъd-, which meant 'wet' or 'moist' with the addition of the morpheme ń/ni and the suffix -sk.
History
The name of the settlement was recorded after St. Adalbert's death in 997 CE, in his first biography, as urbs Gyddanyzc and it was later written as Kdanzk in 1148, Gdanzc in 1188, Danceke in 1228, Gdańsk in 1236, Danzc in 1263, Danczk in 1311, Danczik in 1399, Danczig in 1414, and Gdąnsk in 1656.
In Polish documents, the form Gdańsk was always used. In German-language documents, multiple variants of the name were recorded over time. The cluster "gd" became "d" (Danzc from 1263), the combination "ns" became "nts" (Danczk from 1311), and finally an epenthetical "i" broke up the final cluster (Danczik from 1399).
In Polish, the modern name of the city is pronounced [ɡdaj̃sk] ⓘ. In English (where the diacritic over the "n" is frequently omitted) the usual pronunciation is or . The German name, Danzig, is usually pronounced [ˈdantsɪç] ⓘ, or alternatively [ˈdantsɪk] ⓘ in more Southern German-speaking areas. The city's Latin name may be given as either Gedania, Gedanum, or Dantiscum.
Ceremonial names
In the Kashubian language, the city is called Gduńsk. On special occasions, the city is also referred to as "The Royal Polish City of Gdańsk" (Polish: Królewskie Polskie Miasto Gdańsk; Latin: Regia Civitas Polonica Gedanensis; Kashubian: Królewsczi Pòlsczi Gard Gduńsk). Although some Kashubians may also use the name "Our Capital City Gduńsk" (Nasz Stoleczny Gard Gduńsk) or "Our [regional] Capital City Gduńsk" (Stoleczny Kaszëbsczi Gard Gduńsk), the cultural and historical connections between the city and the region of Kashubia are debatable and use of such names raises controversy among Kashubians.
History
Prehistory
The oldest evidence found for the existence of a settlement on the lands of what is now Gdańsk comes from the Bronze Age (which is estimated to be from c. 2500–1700 BC) and the Iron Age (c. 1200–550 BC). Archaeological finds testify to the existence of the Lusatian culture and amber trade along the so-called Amber Road.
Duchy of Poland and Samborid rule
The origins of the settlement that is now known as Gdańsk remain uncertain. Archaeological and environmental studies indicate increasing settlement activity in the area during the 10th century. The earliest written reference to the settlement appears in a biography of Saint Adalbert written before 1000, which records his visit in 997 to a town (Latin: urbs) named Gyddanyzc, then ruled by Bolesław I the Brave of Poland. Although generally identified with Gdańsk, the precise location of this early settlement has not been securely established.
Archaeological research has identified a 10th-century fortified site at the location of the modern-day Góra Gradowa sub-district of Gdańsk. A later stronghold was established near the confluence of the Motława and Vistula rivers, probably in the 1050s or 1060s. Earlier interpretations attributed this riverside stronghold to Mieszko I and dated its construction to the 980s, but this dating has been superseded by dendrochronological research.
Gdańsk was ruled by the Samborides as part of the Duchy of Pomerelia, a fief of the Duchy of Poland since 1119. The early settlement was inhabited mainly by Slavic (Pomeranian) fishermen and craftsmen. According to a 1148 papal bull, Gdańsk was part of the Polish diocese of Włocławek. Beginning approximately in 1180, the city’s increasing involvement in Baltic trade attracted numerous German settlers, the majority of whom came from Lübeck. Henceforth, the site consisted of a settlement at the modern Long Market, settlements of craftsmen along the Old Ditch, the old Piast stronghold and the newly established German merchant settlements around St Nicholas' Church.
Since 1227, Świętopełk II ruled Pomerelia as an independent duchy and the town subsequently became part of the Duchy of Gdańsk. It was at this time that Gdańsk became an important trading town on the lower Vistula. Between 1242–1248 and 1252–1254, Świętopełk fought against the Teutonic Order, who were supported by Lübeck. These conflicts hindered the transformation of the German colony into an autonomous town at this time. Migration of merchants to the town resumed in 1257. At the latest in 1263, Pomerelian duke Świętopełk II granted city rights under Lübeck law to the emerging market settlement. It was an autonomy charter similar to that of Lübeck, which was also the primary origin of many settlers. In a document of 1271 the Pomerelian duke Mestwin II addressed the Lübeck merchants settled in the city as his loyal citizens from Germany.
As Mestwin II was the last male representative of his dynasty, his death in 1294 precipitated a contest for control of the city and its surrounding region, involving the Polish Piast dynasty, the Přemyslid rulers of Bohemia, the German Margraves of Brandenburg, and the Teutonic Order. In 1300, the town had an estimated population of 2,000. While overall the town was not an important trade centre at that time, it had relevance in regional trade.
Teutonic Order
In 1308, following a rebellion instigated against Bogusza, the governor of Gdańsk who was appointed by the future king of Poland, Władysław I the Elbow-high, the town was taken by Brandenburg. Polish forces, under siege in the stronghold, sought aid from the Teutonic Knights, who freed them and proceeded to seize the town, which had previously acknowledged Brandenburg's authority. Subsequently, the Teutonic Order massacred not only the Brandenburg forces and the Pomeranian knights who supported them, but also the town's inhabitants. Błażej Śliwiński (2008) estimates that the overall number of killed was between 50 and 60 Pomeranian and Brandenburg knights, and 1,000 commoners from of the town's population and the adjacent settlements, which he estimates at the time numbered between 2,000 and 3,000 people. Śliwiński & Możejko (2017) give the estimated number of victims as approximately 1,000. According to Smoliński (2021), the death toll is estimated to lie between 60 and 150. The events were used by the Polish Crown to condemn the Teutonic Order in a subsequent papal lawsuit. After the takeover, the Teutonic Knights faced charges that they committed a massacre in a papal bull issued by Clement V.
The Teutonic Knights incorporated the town into their monastic state and instructed the remaining burghers to depart. In 1308, they founded Osiek Hakelwerk near the town, initially as a Lechitic fishing settlement. The Order did not rebuild the town until the mid-1320s, when some of its former inhabitants—primarily Lübeckers, who also brought back the pre-1308 town seal—returned, alongside settlers from other German regions. The town saw a rapid rise in population and became almost completely German; it would become primarily known by its German name, Danzig. In 1340, the Teutonic Order constructed a large fortress, the Gdańsk Castle, which became the seat of the knights' Komtur. After a series of Polish–Teutonic Wars, King Casimir of Poland recognized the Teutonic Order’s possession of Danzig and Pomerelia in the Treaty of Kalisz (1343), and the Order acknowledged that it would hold Danzig and Pomerelia as a grant from the Polish Crown. By accepting this grant, the Teutonic Order thus recognised the previous rights of Polish monarchs to the seized territories, something which they had previously denied, also this allowed for future claims by the Crown for the territories to be returned. The city thrived as a result of increased exports of grain (especially wheat), timber, potash, tar, and other goods of forestry from Prussia and Poland via the Vistula River trading routes. The Order's religious networks helped to develop Danzig's literary culture.
In 1346, Teutonic Order changed the Town Law of the city, which then consisted only of the Rechtstadt, to Kulm law. In 1358, Danzig joined the Hanseatic League, and became an active member in 1361. It maintained relations with the trade centres Bruges, Novgorod, Lisbon, and Seville. Around 1377, the Old Town was equipped with city rights as well. In 1380, the New Town was founded as the third, independent settlement. Urban growth was mainly driven by migration from German-speaking lands. A new war broke out in 1409, culminating in the Battle of Grunwald (1410), and the city came under the control of the Kingdom of Poland. A year later, with the First Peace of Thorn, it returned to the Teutonic Order. In 1440, the city participated in the foundation of the Prussian Confederation, an organisation opposed to the rule of the Teutonic Order. Following a fire in 1442, the Crane Gate, one of the city's present-day landmarks, was constructed in 1444 under the sanction of the Order. In a complaint of 1453, the Prussian Confederation mentioned repeated cases in which the Teutonic Order imprisoned or murdered local patricians and mayors without a court verdict.
Kingdom of Poland
In 1454, the Prussian Confederation renounced its obedience to the Grand Master of the Teutonic Order and appealed to King Casimir IV of Poland for the territory’s reintegration into the Kingdom of Poland. This led to the Thirteen Years' War between Poland and the State of the Teutonic Order (1454–1466). The local mayor pledged allegiance to the king during the incorporation in March 1454 in Kraków, and the city again solemnly pledged allegiance to the king in June 1454 in Elbing (Elbląg), recognizing the prior Teutonic annexation and rule as unlawful. The incorporation considerably strengthened Danzig’s position, as the king granted the city extensive privileges on 16 June 1454. In 1455, the king conferred additional rights on the city, including the right to enact its own laws and to impose taxes.
On 15 May 1457, King Casimir IV granted the town the Great Privilege, after he had been invited by the town's council and had already stayed in town for five weeks. With the Great Privilege, the town was granted full autonomy and protection by the king of Poland. The privilege removed tariffs and taxes on trade within Poland, Lithuania, and Ruthenia (present day Belarus and Ukraine), and conferred on the town independent jurisdiction, legislation and administration of its territory, as well as the right to mint its own coin, the Danzig thaler. Furthermore, the privilege united the Old Town and Main Town and legalised the demolition of New Town, which had sided with the Teutonic Order. By 1457, New Town was demolished completely and no buildings remained.
Gaining free and privileged access to Polish markets, the seaport prospered while simultaneously trading with the other Hanseatic cities. After the Second Peace of Thorn (1466) between Poland and the Teutonic Order, the warfare ended permanently. The Order recognised Danzig’s incorporation into the Kingdom of Poland and the city became part of the autonomous province of Royal Prussia (which in 1569 became part of the larger Greater Poland Province). The city was visited by Nicolaus Copernicus in 1504 and 1526, and Narratio Prima, the first printed abstract of his heliocentric theory, was published there in 1540. During the Protestant Reformation, most German-speaking inhabitants adopted Lutheranism. Following the Reformation, High German soon prevailed in Danzig, where Low German had long served as the administrative language owing to the city’s Hanseatic ties. In 1566, High German also replaced Low German as the language of the courts. After the Union of Lublin between Poland and Lithuania in 1569, the city continued to enjoy a large degree of internal autonomy (cf. Danzig law). Being the largest and one of the most influential cities of Poland, it enjoyed voting rights during the royal election period in Poland.