Jagiellońska street in Bydgoszcz

Jagiellońska street

Bydgoszcz
Polish: Ulica Jagiellońska w Bydgoszczy
First buildings on the southern side
Jagiellońska street underlined in red
Former name(s)	Weg von Pohl[nische] Vordon - Der Weg von Vordon - Wilhelmstraße - Hermann-Göringstraße - Generalissimusa Stalina
Namesake	Jagiellonian Kings of Poland
Owner	City of Bydgoszcz
Length	2.2 km (1.4 mi)
Location	Bydgoszcz

Jagiellońska street is a historic street from downtown district in Bydgoszcz.

The street is located in the heart of Bydgoszcz. It stretches on an east-west axis, from Fordon roundabout to the intersection with Gdańska Street. It is approximately 2.2 km long. Jagiellońska street joins the Old Town and Downtown district of Bydgoszcz.

The Jagiellońska street is on the path of a medieval communication route between Bydgoszcz castle and Fordon on the Vistula river: since the mid-13th century, the only permanent crossing of the Brda river was the bridge of Bydgoszcz Old Town where customs duties were collected. This road was leaving the town from the "Gdansk Gate" and was running eastward following the northern side of the Brda river. In Fordon, it was possible to cross the Vistula river to get to Chełmno Land or follow northeast along the Lower Vistula valley towards Swiecie and Gdańsk.

The course of the road, coinciding with the current street, is visible on the oldest known plan of Bydgoszcz, by Swedish Count Erik Dahlbergh in 1657. In the 17th–18th century, the road was connected with the farming cities and villages located in the east: Grodztwo, Bartodzieje, Zimna Woda, Bartodzieje Małe and Fordonek.

In 1867, the village of Grodztwo has been incorporated to Bydgoszcz territory, pushing further east the limit of the town (in the area of today's Oginski Street). Another extension of the borders occurred in 1920, reaching current city borders: the ancient medieval path is now covered by Jagiellońska and Fordonska streets course. During the interwar period, Jagiellońska street ended on Maximilian Piotrowski street, the eastern remaining path being called "Promenade street".

The development of Jagiellońska street as an important and chic area started in the 1830s, with the construction of grand edifices like the building by Prussian administrative authorities of the Regional Office (Polish: Budynek Urzędu Wojewódzkiego). Later on, Grodztwo section gradually became an official area, with administrative, educational and cultural activities. In 1840, the axis so far called "road to Fordon" (German: Der Weg von Vordon) has been named Wilhelmstrasse in honor of the King Frederick William IV of Prussia. In 1870-1872, the construction of a new steel bridge on the Brda river, the Bernardyńska street was created, joining Jagiellońska and the river.