AUGUSTOW (Poland)

There are four main reasons for the link with AUGUSTOW.

The first is the similarity in the name.

The second is that Augustow has a canal which is important to Augustow in the same way that the Caledonian Canal was and is important to Fort Augustus.

The third reason is that the canal is vital to Fort Augustus because it is the major route for ships of up to a certain size to pass safely from the Atlantic Ocean to the North Sea and vice-versa.

The fourth reason is that the canal is also a major tourist attraction and therefore it is economically extremely important for the residents of Fort Augustus as it is in Augustow (old Lithuanian frontier).

Canal of Augustów

This canal is 101 Km long and has 18 locks which allows to to go up 56m between the rivers Biebrza and Niemen. Like in Fort Augustus, this canal host boats and canoes.

 

Augustów

Augustówis a town in north-eastern Poland with 30,600 inhabitants. Situated in the Podlasie Voivodship (since 1999), previously in Suwalki Voivodship (1975-1998). The town is first mentioned in 1496 and was granted city rights by king Sigismund II in 1557. Tatar invaders destroyed Augustów in 1656, and the second half of the 17th century saw the town afflicted by plague. In 1795 Prussia annexed Augustów, and in 1807 it became part of the Duchy of Warsaw, followed by incorporation into the Kingdom of Poland in 1815. Made a county seat in 1842, the first railway connection reached Augustów in 1899.

 

During World War I, in the Battle of Augustów (1914) the Russian army successfully counterattacked the German army. From 1939 to 1941, Soviet troops were in occupation, then the German Wehrmacht until 1944. World War II brought destruction of about 70% of the town and the death or departure of most of its residents.

 

In 1970 Augustów officially became a health-cure resort, and in 1973 adjoining local villages were annexed.

 

www.augustow.pl (only available in polish)