The Port of Gdańsk „PORT CITIES AS ENCOUNTER POINTS"

The most remote times  The entries about trade carried out by sea appeared as early as in chronicles from the most remote times.  As from the year 1000, Gdansk was mentioned in historical records. Chronicles of the early 13th century give more details about Gdansk's overseas trade at that time

Gdansk's significant growth as a port  Gdansk's significant growth as a port occurred in the second half of the 14th century and the consecutive centuries.  As of that time, a range of commercial relations between Gdansk and the overseas countries such as Denmark, Sweden, Flanders, England, France, Spain and Portugal was rapidly expanding.

The main area of gravity  The main area of gravity for the Gdansk port comprised the Polish lands  Gdansk also maintained lively relations with Lithuania, Riga, Rewal and with distant Novogrod in the north; to the south Gdansk's relations reached Hungary and Moldavia,

A successful development  At the end of the 14th century, during the favourable years, Gdansk sent on an average of over 2,500 hundreds of timber, with a hundred equal to 120 planks.  These years also saw an average annual export of 1,000 lasts of ash and tar and up to 1,000 stones of wax.  Over the 16th and 17th centuries the exports continued growing, so that e.g. in 1610 a volume of 10,014 lasts of ash and potash was sent, as well as 6,074 lasts of tar.

A successful development  Among the export products there were in addition copper and lead  During the 16th and the 17th centuries, Gdansk exported in transit ,000 cwt (equals 112 lbs) of copper annually.  Export of grain started in the 15th century and its remarkable growth was recorded in the second half of the 16th century and the early 17th century

The major goods that came to Gdansk  The major goods that came to Gdansk comprised spices, southern fruit, drysalter's products and other goods of the kind brought from Antwerp, Amsterdam and Lisbon.  Their import volume in the early 18th century amounted to some 200,000 pounds  Besides, there were substantial volumes of sea salt, herrings and wine.

A vital role  In the 15th - 17th century, the port of Gdansk played a vital role as a go- between for the East and the West  The only significant competitor to Gdansk on the Baltic Sea was Lubeck.

Resalts of wars  As from the mid-18th century, Gdansk's trade experienced a gradual decline as a result of wars and political changes in the area of gravity.  The beginning of the 19th century saw Gdansk fall under the rule of Prussia and become one of the many German ports on the Baltic.  The focus of gravity in terms of the international trade was then shifted towards the Atlantic Ocean and to ports in its closer vicinity  Notwithstanding, the port of Gdansk managed to gradually increase its turnover and, over the last years before the war, it played a significant role in sea trade on the Baltic.

The years between 1919 and 1939  The years between 1919 and 1939 were the period of the Free City of Gdansk and the port's development was shaped by rather specific socio-political conditions  During that time the economic development of the town depended greatly upon the overall prosperity of the Polish State and before the outbreak of the Second World War the cargo handling capacity of the port exceeded 7 million tonnes a year.

After the war  In 1945 Gdansk again became a Polish port but the years immediately following the war were devoted to the reconstruction of the city from the ruins.  In the second half of the 1950's the improvements to the wharfs and port canals began.  The overall cargo turnover rose from 6.6 million tonnes in 1949 to 15.8 million tonnes in 1974

The Northern Port  At the beginning of the seventies the Northern Port with fuel and coal terminals was built.  After the completion of this project the total turnover of the port reached in 1978 the record volume of 27.7 million tonnes.