Królewska Chojna

The history of the area of ​​the current Chojna commune should be considered within the framework of a broader historically shaped territory called the Chojna Land ("terra Chinz"). Permanent settlement in these areas took shape around the 7th-8th century, and in the 9th century a network of castle and open settlements was created. The inhabitants of this land were the Licikawiki, mentioned in written sources, one of the Pomeranian Slavic tribes. Important trade routes ran through the Chojna Land. Crossings on the Oder, among others in Krajnik Dolny, led from the Wielet lands to Wielkopolska. Another route led from Kostrzyn to Chojna, where it intersected with the route from Radogoszcz through Krąjnik, Chojna, Santok. From the south, the road through Chojna connected the areas along the Oder from Krajnik to its mouth. The emerging Polish state saw the importance of these lands, as well as the entire Western Pomerania due to trade routes, access to the sea and natural borders in the north and west. Around 963, Mieszko I incorporated the territories inhabited by the Licikawiki in the Warta and Odra river basins into the Polish state. Mieszko I's later victories over the Wielecko-Woliński troops in 967 and the Germans in 972 (at Cedynia) consolidated the annexation of Western Pomerania to Poland for about 200 years. In 1124, during the reign of Bolesław Krzywousty, Bishop Otto of Bamberg carried out the Christianization of Pomerania. In the 2nd half of the 12th century and at the beginning of the 13th century, the Chojń lands were located within the Greater Poland district (after the Polish state was divided into provinces). During the following centuries, this land was a place of conflict of influences, diplomatic efforts and border wars between the Pomeranian dukes, Brandenburg and Greater Poland.

Here are some important dates:
1232-1236 – the Knights Templar were brought here,
1234 – in a document by the Pomeranian Duke Barnim I, the "terra Chinz" is mentioned,
1250-1320 – the Chojen Land under the rule of Brandenburg (as part of the Neumark),
1320-1323 – as part of the Duchy of Pomerania,
1324-1402 – again in the Neumark,
1402-1454 – in the possession of the Teutonic Order and later the Neumark.

The entire period, starting with Christianization, is characterized by intensive development of settlement, agriculture, crafts and construction. The grants of princes and clergymen resulted in the creation of numerous villages and monastic settlements (Cistercian and Augustinian), farms of knightly orders (Templars and Hospitallers), settler villages founded under German law, and the residences and farms of knightly families (including von Sydow, von Marwitz, von Fiddichow). From the mid-13th century, granite churches were built, which still exist today.

The introduction of Lutheranism in 1532 significantly changed the ownership relations in this area. The monastic and religious estates were taken over by the Elector of Brandenburg. From that time on, the property of the ruling princes would constantly increase. The wars in the 17th century (the Thirty Years' War 1618-1648 and the Brandenburg-Swedish War 1674-1680) caused enormous devastation and depopulation of the villages of the Chojnice region (for example, the village of Jelenim was completely destroyed). The 17th century saw intensive development of the farm economy, related to the demand for grain and agricultural products in Western Europe. This contributed to the further consolidation of land in the hands of knightly families. Villages previously devastated by wars were taken over.

In the lists of the Brandenburg princes' estates from 1337, 28% of the land was in the possession of knightly families, according to the lists from 1718, it was already 67%. Only in a few villages at that time there were no noble estates. The few examples of purely peasant villages were Garnowo, Lisie Pole, Nawodna. In the 2nd half of the 17th century, intensive exploitation of forests can be observed thanks to the improvement of wood processing in the sawmills that were being built on a mass scale at that time. In 1701, the Brandenburg prince Frederick III Hohenzollern was crowned King of Prussia, as Frederick I. The policy of the Prussian kings aimed to modernize the management of the state and the economy. In 1716-1718, a census of the nobility's estates was conducted. In the following years, the drainage of the Oder riverbanks and the establishment of settlements on newly acquired lands began, as part of the so-called "Frederician colonization" (2nd half of the 18th century).

For the Chojna commune, these activities only affected the development of industry located on the regulated banks of the Oder (including brickyards and shipping). The long period of peace was interrupted by the Seven Years' War (1756-1763), bringing further destruction (e.g. Krajnik Górny). The beginning of the 19th century, along with the Napoleonic wars, brought an acceleration of capitalist transformations. The emancipation of peasants was initiated (by the decree of 1807), which lasted until the mid-19th century. As a result of land regulation, many new settlements and manors were established around the mid-19th century. The agricultural nature of these areas and the insufficient communication network were the reasons for the very slow economic development in the 19th century.

Only one road from Berlin to Gdańsk ran through Chojna. It was not until 1853 that the Chojna-Trzcińsko-Myślibórz paved road was put into use; in 1864, the route from Cedynia to Chojna. The first railway line Chojna-Godków-Kostrzyn was opened in 1876 and extended to Gryfino and Szczecin a year later. In 1892, the Godków-Siekierki line was built; in 1898, the Pyrzyce-Trzcińsko-Godków line. The development of communication infrastructure and the unification of Germany in 1870 led to a revival in the large-scale agricultural economy of the Chojna region. The Chojna region, like the whole of Pomerania, became an important agricultural base for the eastern part of Germany, which was developing dynamically economically and militarily. Many new construction projects were observed in the last decades of the 19th century. During this time, most of the medieval churches were rebuilt and new ones were built. New developments were being built on farms and peasant farms. Impressive residences of the owners of the estates were also built.

Brickyards were operating and the agricultural and food industry (distilleries, flake factories, mills) was developing. The buildings built during this period determine the current landscape of the commune's localities. The First World War (1914-1919) brought stagnation in the economy and a decline in population. The mementos of these years were monuments commemorating residents who died on the front, erected in almost every village (only one has survived - in Lisie Pole). The war operations at the end of World War II did not cause any major destruction outside the town of Chojna and the village of Grabowe. After 1945, there were profound political and ownership changes in these areas. They were incorporated into the Polish state and settled by military settlers and people displaced from the eastern territories of the Second Polish Republic. State farms were established in the former estates or divided among settlers (as in Brwice).

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