Skarszewy

Skarszewy [skarˈʂɛvɨ] (German: Schöneck in Westpreußen) is a town in Starogard Gdański County, Pomeranian Voivodeship, northern Poland. It is located within the ethnocultural region of Kociewie in the historic region of Pomerania, 40 kilometres (25 miles) south of Gdańsk. Population: 6 809 (30 June 2005). It is the seat of the urban-rural administrative district Gmina Skarszewy. Founded in the medieval period, Skarszewy is a former royal town of Poland, which served as the capital of the Pomeranian Voivodeship from 1613 to 1772. The old town is enclosed by remains of 14th-century stone walls and its landmarks include the Gothic parish Church of St. Michael the Archangel with well-preserved Baroque furnishings, a preserved market square and a medieval castle of Knights Hospitaller, which in the early modern period housed a court in which Józef Wybicki, the author of the lyrics of the Polish national anthem, studied law. In 2005 the town was given the title the Pearl of Pomerania.