During the 22nd session of the Pomeranian Voivodeship Assembly, councillors unanimously adopted a special resolution on ‘Commemorating the 100th anniversary of Gdynia being granted city rights’. The councillors also extended their best wishes to all residents of Gdynia on the city's birthday, which falls on 10 February.
The resolution of the Pomeranian Voivodeship Assembly highlighted the significance of Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski, the builder of Gdynia, who, as Minister of Trade in 1926-1930, secured government funds for the construction of the port. Thanks to these funds, construction began in earnest, and the port in Gdynia became the largest and most modern on the Baltic Sea. The resolution quoted Kwiatkowski on the economic importance of Poland’s access to the sea.
Every new metre of coastline, every new crane, every goods depot, every new commercial facility in Gdynia, every improvement in transport, every new ship, every new factory on the coast, every bank, every new bond cementing Gdynia with Pomerania, and the entire Pomeranian Voivodeship with the rest of the country, is a great achievement, a significant asset to our national wealth. This is where Poland’s only practical merchant academy is concentrated, this is where the surest and shortest path to equalising the value of a human being in Poland with the value of a human being in Western Europe lies open, this is where the border of cooperation with the nations of the whole world converges, and this is where, finally, all differences of opinion, all clashes of ideas and programmes throughout Poland automatically harmonise.
The councillors were unanimous in their vote on the resolution on ‘Commemorating the 100th anniversary of Gdynia being granted city rights’.
I deeply appreciate the fact that the Pomeranian Voivodeship Assembly has adopted a resolution commemorating the 100th anniversary of Gdynia being granted city rights. It is a beautiful gesture and an important signal that the history of our city and its significance for Pomerania and the whole of Poland are a common cause. For a hundred years, Gdynia has been showing that courage, cooperation and forward thinking can change reality. We are grateful to receive this sign of solidarity, says Aleksandra Kosiorek, Mayor of Gdynia.
Photo: Łukasz Tokarczyk
The Marshal of the Pomeranian Voivodeship, Mieczysław Struk, emphasises that the community has a duty to commemorate all those who built the local government of Gdynia – from the village administrator Jan Radtke and mayor Augustyn Krauze to representatives of modern times.
We express our gratitude to all those who created this extraordinary city, regardless of whether they came from the local Kashubian population or arrived in Pomerania from the interior of the country, strengthening the potential of this place with their work and talents. Gdynia is a symbol of the ambitions and fulfilled development aspirations of Pomerania and the whole of Poland. In extending our wishes to the current residents on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the granting of city rights, we believe that Gdynia will continue to be a source of pride for our region in the future and will set new directions for development, concludes the Marshal.
During the 22nd session of the Pomeranian Voivodeship Assembly, councillors adopted a commemorative resolution on ‘Celebrating the 100th anniversary of Gdynia being granted city rights’ (Photo: Łukasz Tokarczyk)
During the 22nd session of the Pomeranian Voivodeship Assembly, Senator Sławomir Rybicki quoted an excerpt from a resolution he had presented in the Polish Senate, declaring 2026 the Year of Gdynia.
May this year remind us of the unique history of a city that rose from the sea and the realisation of the visionary plans of the builders of the Second Republic. May it bring closer the fate of the Kashubians, who had to share the land of their fathers with compatriots coming from different parts of the country, and give momentum to further creative development, while respecting existing achievements and traditions, explains Senator Sławomir Rybicki.
The Senate's resolution is unique. It is extremely rare for a document of this rank to declare a year as the year of a specific city.
Main photo: Michał Puszczewicz