Gdańsk
Schidlitz (now part of Gdańsk, Poland) Source: Wikipedia Commons

Schidlitz (also known as Szydlice, Alurium Schedelicz, Vlys Schedelicz, Szëdlëce, and Siedlece; now known as Siedlce; coordinates: 54.3482, 18.6171 [54° 20′ 53″ N, 18° 37′ 01″ E]; population in 2013, 17,584) is a district of Gdansk located west of the downtown area.

Until 1772 Schidlitz was located in what was known as Royal Prussia (also known as Polish Prussia) in the Kingdom of Poland. The First Partition of Poland in 1772 resulted in the creation of a new province in 1773, called West Prussia, in which the village was located. Schidlitz was situated in the district (Kreis) of Stadtkreis Danzig. The village became part of the Free City of Danzig from 1920 until the outbreak of World War II in 1939, when it came under the control of Nazi Germany. In February 1945 it was occupied by Soviet forces and eventually returned to Poland.

Schidlitz, then a suburb of the city of Danzig, was one of the first villages to be settled by Mennonites in Poland. The 1776 Prussian census lists 23 Mennonite families residing in Schidlitz with the following surnames: Baller, Becker, Claasen, Doell, Eck, Elias, Gillis (Gilz), Harder, Jantzen, Kauenhawen (four families), Kurtz, Penner, Sudermann, Thielmann, Van Riesen, Wass, Wientz, Wilcke. The Mennonite population in Schidlitz dropped dramatically after 1776, for by 1820 Schidlitz had only eight Mennonites out of a total population of 509.

Mennonites who were residents of Schidlitz were members of the Danzig Mennonite Church.

Bibliography

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