Pu?tusk : Poland
Yet another Battle of Pu?tusk was fought on December 26, 1806, between forces of Russia and France. The battle became so famous that its name is inscripted on Arc de Triomphe in Paris. After the fall of Warsaw in 1809 Pu?tusk became the temporary capital of the Duchy of Warsaw. After the fall of Napoleon Bonaparte the town was annexed by Russia.
During the November Uprising the town changed hands several times. However, in 1831 the Russian forces brought a cholera epydemic to the town. Pu?tusk inhabitants took part also in the January Uprising. Afterwards the town was utterly destroyed and many prominent citizens were sent to Siberia. On January 30, 1868 a meteorite fell in Pu?tusk. It was one of the biggest to fall in Europe and large chunks of it (9 kg each) are nowadays present at the British Museum.
The heavy fire in 1875 destroyed most of the city and was depicted by Nobel Laureate Henryk Sienkiewicz in his novel Quo Vadis as the great fire of Rome.
The town was also a battleground for heavy fights in the Polish-Russian War of 1920, at the eve of Battle of Warsaw. In 1931 the town had some 16.800 inhabitants. As a result of the September Campaign it was incorporated into Germany. During the German occupation approximately 50% of the city’s inhabitants were murdered. In the battle of Pu?tusk during the World War II over 16.000 soldiers of the Red Army fell. As a result of the battle approximately 85% of the city was destroyed.
Currently Pu?tusk is one of the most picturesque towns of Masovia. Located at the Bugonarew river, it is one of the most popular weekend places for inhabitants of Warsaw. Tourist attractions include:
Gothical church (Bazylika Zwiastowania NMP)
Small gothical church with unique renaissance stuccos
The old town market
Town Hall
The castle (nowadays a hotel and seat of Dom Polonii)
Ogrdek Jordanowski (one of the first children playgrounds in Poland)
