Łęczna is a town in eastern Poland with 22,300 inhabitants (2001), situated in the Lublin Voivodship.

Economy

Since the 1970s the town has benefited from the close proximity of profitable coal mining industry. Leczna was the place of the first coal mine in the whole area of Lublin Coal Basin (Lubelskie Zagłębie Węglowe). It has other small industries.

Sports

• Górnik Łęczna - football team (1st league in season 2003/2004)

History

Founded by Jan Tarnowski, the castellan of Cracow, who built a castle near the town. In 1457 the town received its charter. Thanks to trade privileges granted by king Stephen Bathory in 1581, the town became one of the most important centres for trading horses and cattle in Poland.

After the Partitions of Poland, the town became part of Austria in 1795, then part of the Duchy of Warsaw in 1809, finally part of the Congress Kingdom under Russian rule in 1815. It became part of Poland again after the country regained its independence in 1918.

During the Holocaust, the Jewish population of the town was exterminated by the Nazis.

External link

• Official Łęczna Homepage