POSEN

POSEN, the chief town of the province, and a fortress of the first rank (1827-53), is situated on the Warthe, 158 miles by rail E. of Berlin. One of the most ancient cities of Poland, it became the seat of a Christian bishop in 968, and it was the capital of the early Polish dukes. In the 16th century it was an important trading mart, but by the end of the same century had begun to decline. Recent improvements have rendered it one of the pleasantest towns in Prussia; it has regularly built streets and squares and handsome suburbs. The fortifications have been strengthened by detached forts built in 1876-84. The cathedral, a Gothic pile dating from 1775, has attached to it the 'Golden Chapel' of Count Raczynski, which is adorned with valuable treasures and works of art. The principal secular buildings are the town-house (1508), containing valuable archives; the Raczynski Palace, with a library; the Dzialynski Palace, with archives; and the archiepiscopal palace. There is a provincial museum of antiquities. The chief manufactures are artificial manures, agricultural implements, furniture, carriages, &c.; and there are likewise several breweries, distilleries, and flour-mills. Pop. (1875) 60,998; (1890) 69,627, about one-half being Poles, the other half Germans, though the Jews number nearly 7000. See Histories by Lukaszewicz (1881) and Öhlschläger (1866).