The city, which is a part of the historical province of
Lesser Poland, was most probably founded some time before the 15th century, and was first mentioned as
Siedlecz in a document issued in 1448. In 1503, local
nobleman Daniel Siedlecki erected a new village of the same name nearby, together with a church. In 1547 the town was granted
Magdeburg rights by King
Sigismund the Old. Siedlce as an urban center was created after a merger of the two neighboring villages. It was a
private town, administratively located in the
Lublin Voivodeship in the
Lesser Poland Province. In the 16th century, and until the mid-17th century, Siedlce prospered, with its population quickly growing and a number of artisans opening their shops here. The period of prosperity ended during the
Swedish invasion of Poland (1655–1660), when Siedlce, together with most Lesser Poland's towns and cities, was burned by the
Cossacks,
Tatars,
Muscovities,
Swedes and the
Transylvanians. After these conflicts, the town belonged to the
Czartoryski family, as a dowry of Joanna Olędzka, who married Prince Michał Jerzy Czartoryski. In 1692 Siedlce burned again, and the destruction was used by
Kazimierz Czartoryski, the son of Michał Jerzy, to plan a new, modern market square, together with adjacent streets. In the first half of the 18th century, a new parish church was built. In 1775, after Aleksandra Czartoryska married
Hetman Michał Kazimierz Ogiński, the town passed over to the
Ogiński family. At that time Siedlce emerged as one of the most important cultural centers of the nation. The
Ogiński Palace was visited by several notable artists and writers, such as
Franciszek Karpiński, and
Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz. King
Stanisław August Poniatowski visited the palace twice, in 1783 and 1793. Due to efforts of Aleksandra Ogińska, several improvements took place in Siedlce. Among them, a new town hall was built, which now is one of the symbols of the city. In 1809 Siedlce became part of the Polish
Duchy of Warsaw established by
Napoleon, within which it was the capital of the
Siedlce Department. Following his defeat, during the creation of the Russian-controlled
Congress Poland (1815), Siedlce became the seat of a province in the
Russian Partition (see
Podlasie Governorate). During the
November Uprising against Russian domination, the
Battle of Iganie (10 April 1831) took place near the town. In the
January Uprising of 1863, Siedlce was again an important center of the anti-Tsarist rebellion. In 1867 the
Siedlce Governorate was created. Siedlce continued to develop with new administration buildings, a post office complex, a courthouse, and a new prison. In the late 19th century, Siedlce became an important railroad junction, with connections to
Warsaw (completed 1866),
Brest Litovsk (1867),
Małkinia Górna (1884), and
Czeremcha (1906). In the beginning of the 20th century, local students launched a protest against the ruthless
Russification policies. Subsequently, in 1906 the Russian secret police organized the
Siedlce pogrom in order to terrorize the locals. At that time, Siedlce was an important center of Jewish culture, with Jews making up 50% of the population. On 19 August 1920, after the Polish victory in the
Battle of Warsaw, Marshal
Józef Piłsudski, Prime Minister
Wincenty Witos and Minister
Maciej Rataj held a meeting in the city. and the city was captured and then
occupied by Germany until 1944. The Polish government evacuated the Polish
gold reserve, part of which was stored in Siedlce, to Polish-allied France. In mid-September 1939, the German
Einsatzgruppe V entered the city to commit
atrocities against Poles. Siedlce was included within the Warsaw District of the
General Government (German-occupied central Poland). During the war, the area of Siedlce was home to a large partisan force of the
Home Army and other
underground organizations, such as
Armia Ludowa. Due to
German terror, the town lost one-third of its population, including its entire Jewish community deported to
extermination camps during
the Holocaust. In 1941, the Germans relocated the Oflag 58
prisoner-of-war camp to Siedlce, which was soon converted into the Stalag 366 POW camp for Polish,
Italian,
French and Soviet POWs with subcamps in
Suchożebry and
Biała Podlaska. Approximately 9,000–12,000 POWs died in the Stalag 366 camp. In late July 1944 (see
Operation Tempest), Home Army units freed the town, together with the
Red Army. After the war, 50% of Siedlce was in ruins, including the town hall. == Jewish history ==