Gdansk city guide

Province: Pomerania
Population: 456,000
Area: 262km²
Altitude: 13m above sea level
Motto: Neither rashly nor timidly

Napoleon said Gdansk is "key to everything", something a 1,000-year history that has seen it regularly change hands attests to. The maritime city known until 1945 as Danzig has been under the rule of Poland, the Teutonic Order, Prussia and later Germany. As recently as 1939 when World War Two started with the invasion of Gdansk, it was even a city state, with its own constitution, national anthem and currency. Since 1945 it has prospered under the Polish flag.

Throughout its tumultuous rule, trade and mercantilism has been a constant. Once in the Hanseatic League, much of Gdansk's major sights date from then and architecturally it is as much Flemish as Polish or German. The evidence survives despite major rebuilding over the past 60 years but it is events away from the centre and on the shores of the Baltic, in the shipyards, that have had the biggest impact on recent history. It was there that the Solidarity trade union was born, whose opposition led to the end of Communist Party rule in 1989. Solidarity's leader, Lech Wałęsa, later became Polish president.

Lying at the mouth of the Motlawa river and very close to the outlet of the 1,050km long Vistula, Gdansk remains Poland's principal seaport. It forms, together with the city of Gdynia and spa town of Sopot, a metropolitan area spread along 25km of the Baltic coast known as the Tricity (Trójmiasto).

HISTORY
There has been a settlement at the mouth of the Motlawa river since the seventh century, and having boomed under the Teutonic Order the town – known as Danzig – pledged allegiance to the Polish monarchy in 1454. By the mid-16th century it was Poland's largest city, home to legions of international traders, yet wars brought economic decline and in 1793 Prussia annexed it. Aside from a spell as a free city between 1807 and 1814, Gdansk remained under Prussian and then German rule until 1918 and the end of World War One.

The Treaty of Versailles returned free city status, which lasted until the start of World War Two when, on 1 September 1939, the SMS Schleswig-Holstein fired on the city's Polish military base of Westerplatte. Gdansk was granted to Poland at the end of the war but heavy bombing had left it severely damaged. As the careful reconstruction was finishing in 1970, the anti-regime demonstrations which led to the downfall of Communist leader Władysław Gomułka were starting. Ten years later the Solidarity trade union was founded at Gdansk shipyard and Lech Wałęsa, the electrician who led the strike and subsequent negotiations with the government, became president of Poland in 1990.

Economy
The city waterfront was once a bustling quay with hundreds of boats moored side by side, loading and unloading cargo. Today the only jostling for position comes from tourists as they take in the promenade's cafés and art galleries, and during the summer thousands flock to the Baltic beaches of Gdansk and nearby Sopot and Gdynia. Shipbuilding remains, with petrochemicals, food processing and high-tech sectors on the rise. Known as Baltic gold, the majority of the world's amber deposits lie along the coast.

NOTABLE NAMES
• Johannes Hevelius, astronomer (1611-87) – produced one of the first detailed maps of the moon's surface.

• Gabriel Daniel Fahrenheit, scientist (1686-1736) – invented the mercury thermometer.

• Arthur Schopenhauer, philosopher (1788-1860) – author of The World as Will and Representation.

• Günter Grass, writer (b1927) – author of The Tin Drum, Dog Years and Cat and Mouse (all based in Danzig/Gdansk); won 1999 Nobel Prize for Literature.

• Lech Wałęsa, politician (b1943) – founded Solidarity trade union, won the 1983 Nobel Peace Prize and was Polish president from 1990-1995.

THINGS TO SEE
Most tourist attractions are in the Main Town along or near Ulica Długa (Long Street) and Długi Targ (Long Market), a pedestrian thoroughfare surrounded by buildings reconstructed in historical (primarily 17th century) style and bookended by elaborate city gates. This part of the city is sometimes referred to as the Royal Way as it was the former path of processions for visiting kings and those loathe to walk too far may be pleased to learn that Long is a bit of a misnomer – it is only 300m from start to finish.

The numerous churches include the 15th century St Mary's (Bazylika Mariacka), the largest brick church in the world. Behind Neptune's Fountain is the Artus Court, home to Europe's highest tiled stove (10.65m), while the waterfront boasts the biggest crane in Medieval Europe, the Gdansk Crane. The museum ship SS Sołdek is anchored on the Motlawa river while in the northern outskirts, at the entrance to the shipyards, stands a monument to its revered workers.

Fan zone: Plac Zebrań Ludowych (People's Meeting Square)
Gdansk's 30,000-capacity fan zone, located close to the bus and train stations, will centre on one giant 100m² screen and will open for the duration of the tournament from 12.00 to 01.00 local time on matchdays, 14.00 to 00.00 on non-matchdays. It is free to enter and will broadcast all 31 matches live, though at other times there will be plenty of entertainment such as football skill tests, five-a-side pitches, live concerts and DJ sets, as well as offer a full range of food and beverages.

TRANSPORT
To and from
Lech Wałęsa airport is 14km west of Gdansk and has regular flights to Warsaw, Frankfurt, Munich and London, among others. Ferries run several times a week from the Nowy Port to Nynashamn, Stockholm while the PKS bus terminal has regular connections with Warsaw. The nearby Gdansk Główny train station also has daily services with the Polish capital (4.5 hours), Wroclaw (7.5 hours) and Poznan (4 hours). Gdansk is the starting point of the EuroVelo 9 cycle route which goes through the Czech Republic, Austria and Slovenia before ending at the Adriatic Sea in Pula, Croatia.

Distances to other UEFA EURO 2012 venues
Poznan – 305km
Warsaw – 345km
Wroclaw – 480km
Lviv – 725km
Kyiv – 1,190km
Kharkiv – 1,600km
Donetsk – 1,810km

In and around
For getting around the city, a regular commuter train runs from Gdansk Główny train station to Gdynia Główna and there are trams and buses to local stops.

FOOTBALL
Gdansk has always been on the periphery of Polish football, a northern satellite far removed from the big spheres of Warsaw, Chorzow and Lviv – but for one glorious moment in 1983 KS Lechia Gdańsk eclipsed everyone.

There was little inkling of what was to come as the Green and Whites, a yo-yo side since their 1945 creation, kicked off 1982/83 hoping to make an impression in the second tier after promotion. They did more than that, beating KS Ruch Chorzów and WKS Śląsk Wrocław to reach the Polish Cup final. A 2-1 win against GKS Piast Gliwice sealed the title.

Five weeks later Jerzy Kruszczyński's late goal earned victory over titleholders KKS Lech Poznań in the inaugural Polish Super Cup. The good times rolled on. The following season they graced the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, including a memorable tie with Juventus, and booked a return to the Ekstraklasa after a 21-year absence. True to form, within four years they were on their way back down.

By 2001, a combination of organisational and financial problems saw the side founded by immigrants from Lviv, now Ukraine, relegated to the sixth tier. Within eight seasons they were back among the elite, much to the delight of their famous fans, who include former Poland president, Lech Wałęsa, and prime minister Donald Tusk. Arch-rivals KS Arka Gdynia were less pleased: they lost five of their six derbies before being relegated in 2010/11.

Based 20km away in Gdynia, Arka can trace their roots back to the 1920s; for Lechia and other minor sides in Gdansk, such as SKS Polonia Gdańsk, life began in 1945. There has always been a strong footballing tradition, though. The city's first side, BuEV Danzig was established in April 1903, winning the regional championship in 1912, a feat matched by SC Preussen Danzig in 1934.

Footballing alumni
Former AJ Auxerre striker Andrzej Szarmach is Gdansk's most famous footballing son, scorer of 32 goals in 61 internationals during Poland's 1970s golden age. He registered five at the 1974 FIFA World Cup as Poland finished third, then helped them to Olympic silver two years later. Defender Janusz Kupcewicz was in the side that came third at the 1982 World Cup while ex-FC Schalke 04 centre-back Tomasz Wałdoch won 74 caps between 1991 and 2002. Sławomir Wojciechowski and Grzegorz Szamotulski also turned out for Poland.

Did you know?
Lechia's only taste of European competition came against Juventus in the 1983/84 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. They lost the first leg 7-0 in Turin – future UEFA President Michel Platini scoring twice – but put up more of a fight in the second leg which they lost 3-2, the winning goal on the night scored by Juve's Polish forward Zbigniew Boniek.

OTHER SPORTS
Home town of Olympic gold medallists Zygmunt Chychła (boxing, 1952) and Adam Korol (rowing, 2008), Gdansk is represented in the top divisions of Polish rugby, ice hockey and women's volleyball. Wybrzeże Gdańsk are three-time national speedway titleholders while the club's handball won ten championship before being wound up in 2003 (they reformed seven years later). Former player Bogdan Wenta is coach of Poland's men's handball team. Other notable sports include fencing and gymnastics, and Gdansk hosted the Table Tennis European Championship in October 2011.