Łeba

{{Infobox settlement

| name = Łeba

| image_skyline = Łeba-hotel Neptun.jpg

| image_caption = Neptun hotel

| image_flag = POL Łeba flag.svg

| image_shield = POL Łeba COA 1.svg

| pushpin_map = Poland

| subdivision_type = Country

| subdivision_name = {{POL}}

| subdivision_type1 = Voivodeship

| subdivision_name1 = Pomeranian

| subdivision_type2 = County

| subdivision_name2 = Lębork

| subdivision_type3 = Gmina

| subdivision_name3 = Łeba (urban gmina)

| established_title = First mentioned

| established_date = 1282

| established_title2 = Town rights

| established_date2 = 1357

| area_total_km2 = 14.8

| population_as_of = 31 December 2019

| population_total = 3601{{cite web|url=https://bdl.stat.gov.pl/BDL/dane/teryt/tablica|title=Local Area Data|accessdate=June 24, 2020}}

| population_density_km2 = auto

| coordinates = {{coord|54|47|N|17|33|E|region:PL|display=title,inline}}

| timezone = CET

| utc_offset = +1

| timezone_DST = CEST

| utc_offset_DST = +2

| elevation_m =

| postal_code_type = Postal code

| postal_code = 84–360

| registration_plate = GLE

| website = {{URL|http://www.leba.eu }}

}}

Łeba (pronounced: {{respell|Web-ah}}, {{langx|csb|Łeba}}; {{langx|de|Leba}}) is a seaside town in the Pomeranian Voivodeship of northern Poland. It is located in the region of Gdańsk Pomerania (Pomerelia), near Łebsko Lake and the mouth of the river Łeba on the Slovincian Coast of the Baltic Sea.

History

File:Leba-aerial photography.jpg

The Pomerelian settlement of Łeba was first mentioned in a 1282 document of Mestwin II, Duke of Pomerania.{{cite web|url=http://leba.eu/pl/o-lebie/historia|title=Historia Łeby|website=Leba.eu|accessdate=19 April 2020|language=Polish}} At that time the village was located about two kilometers ({{convert|2|km|1|abbr=off|disp=output only}}) west from the present mouth of the Łeba River. The church of St. Nicholas was mentioned in 1296. Łeba was part of fragmented Poland until 1309, when it was annexed by the Teutonic Order after their takeover of Gdańsk. Łeba received municipal rights by the State of the Teutonic Order in 1357. Located at the Łebsko Lake at the Baltic Sea, it developed to a fishing port and a wood marketplace.

In 1440, the town joined the Prussian Confederation, which opposed Teutonic rule,{{Cite book|last=Górski|first=Karol|title=Związek Pruski i poddanie się Prus Polsce: zbiór tekstów źródłowych|year=1949|publisher=Instytut Zachodni|location=Poznań|language=pl|page=XXXVII}} and upon the request of which King Casimir IV Jagiellon reincorporated the territory to the Kingdom of Poland in 1454.Górski, p. 54 With Lauenburg (Lębork) Land it became a Polish fief during the Thirteen Years' War in 1455, held by the Dukes of Pomerania.

Old Łeba was threatened for many centuries by floods and expanding sand dunes and therefore was rebuilt in a safer location after 1558. The town was reintegrated with the Polish Crown after the death of the last Pomeranian duke Bogislaw XIV as part of the Pomeranian Voivodeship, until King John II Casimir Vasa enfeoffed Elector Frederick William I of Brandenburg-Prussia with Lauenburg Land by the 1657 Treaty of Bydgoszcz.

With the First Partition of Poland in 1772, Łeba was incorporated into Prussia. Soon after a large port was built on instruction of the Prussian king, whereby a {{convert|34|m|0|abbr=off|adj=on}} broad channel between the Leba lake and the Baltic Sea was dug, which however did not weather the storms on the coast. Due to its picturesque setting, the Leba seaside after World War I became a popular resort for German bohémiens. The painter Max Pechstein and other expressionists frequented the place.

In the proximity of Leba there is a large former testing area for long-range rocket weapons operated by the Rheinmetall company. On the Leba spit the German long-range rocket Rheinbote was tested between 1941 and 1945. Also the V-1 flying bomb was tested here from 1943 to 1945. Between 1963 and 1973 33 Meteor sounding rockets were launched from Łeba.{{cite web|title=Encyclopedia Astronautica|url=http://www.astronautix.com/sites/leba.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040104195037/http://www.astronautix.com/sites/leba.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 4, 2004}}

In March 1945, shortly before the end of World War II, the region was occupied by the Red Army. Following the Potsdam Conference, after the end of the war the town became again part of Poland.

Landmarks

There is an abundance of architectural and natural attractions near Łeba, above all the Słowiński National Park with its moving sand dunes, about {{convert|8|km|0|abbr=off}} west of the city. Further objects of interest include:

Ruins of the St. Nicholas church west of the city
Fishermen's church of 1683 with a painting by Max Pechstein
Fishermen's dwellings from the 19th century in Kościuszki street
19th century casino on Nadmorska street, today the Hotel Neptun
Former rocket test site near Pletka{{cite web|title=Ostseebad Leba|url=http://lawrenz.homepage.t-online.de/hp-s10.htm|language=de}}
Dinosaur park{{cite web|title=Łeba Park|url=http://www.lebapark.pl/|language=pl}} south of the city

File:Port jachtowy Łeba2.JPG|Yacht port in Łeba

File:Leba Dunes.jpg|Beachgoers on the white sand dunes of Łeba

File:Nadmorska Street - Łeba.JPG|Nadmorska, one of the main tourist streets in Łeba, facing west

File:Łeba-Harbor.jpg|Port of Łeba

Climate

Łeba has an oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification: Cfb).{{cite journal|last1=Kottek|first1=Markus|last2=Grieser|first2=Jürgen|last3=Beck|first3=Christoph|last4=Rudolf|first4=Bruno |last5=Rubel|first5=Franz|title=World Map of the Köppen-Geiger climate classification updated|journal=Meteorologische Zeitschrift|date=2006|volume=15|issue=3|pages=259–263|doi=10.1127/0941-2948/2006/0130|bibcode=2006MetZe..15..259K|url=https://opus.bibliothek.uni-augsburg.de/opus4/files/40083/metz_Vol_15_No_3_p259-263_World_Map_of_the_Koppen_Geiger_climate_classification_updated_55034.pdf}}{{cite journal |author1=Peel, M. C. |author2=Finlayson B. L. |author3=McMahon, T. A. |name-list-style=amp |year=2007 |title=Updated world map of the Köppen–Geiger climate classification |journal=Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. |volume=11 |issue=5 |pages=1633–1644 |doi=10.5194/hess-11-1633-2007 |bibcode=2007HESS...11.1633P |issn=1027-5606|url=https://www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net/11/1633/2007/hess-11-1633-2007.pdf |doi-access=free }}

{{Weather box

| location = Łeba (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1951–present)

| metric first = y

| single line = y

| width = auto

| Jan record high C = 12.1

| Feb record high C = 16.8

| Mar record high C = 22.6

| Apr record high C = 29.6

| May record high C = 32.4

| Jun record high C = 33.7

| Jul record high C = 34.9

| Aug record high C = 37.2

| Sep record high C = 32.1

| Oct record high C = 27.6

| Nov record high C = 20.3

| Dec record high C = 12.9

| year record high C = 37.2

| Jan avg record high C = 7.9

| Feb avg record high C = 9.1

| Mar avg record high C = 14.5

| Apr avg record high C = 22.0

| May avg record high C = 26.1

| Jun avg record high C = 28.6

| Jul avg record high C = 29.6

| Aug avg record high C = 29.1

| Sep avg record high C = 24.6

| Oct avg record high C = 18.8

| Nov avg record high C = 12.7

| Dec avg record high C = 8.7

| year avg record high C = 31.4

| Jan high C = 2.4

| Feb high C = 3.1

| Mar high C = 6.0

| Apr high C = 11.3

| May high C = 15.7

| Jun high C = 19.1

| Jul high C = 21.5

| Aug high C = 21.7

| Sep high C = 17.9

| Oct high C = 12.6

| Nov high C = 7.2

| Dec high C = 3.7

| year high C = 11.9

| Jan mean C = 0.2

| Feb mean C = 0.6

| Mar mean C = 2.7

| Apr mean C = 6.9

| May mean C = 11.2

| Jun mean C = 15.0

| Jul mean C = 17.5

| Aug mean C = 17.5

| Sep mean C = 13.9

| Oct mean C = 9.3

| Nov mean C = 4.9

| Dec mean C = 1.6

| year mean C = 8.4

| Jan low C = -2.1

| Feb low C = -1.9

| Mar low C = -0.2

| Apr low C = 2.9

| May low C = 6.9

| Jun low C = 10.8

| Jul low C = 13.5

| Aug low C = 13.3

| Sep low C = 10.2

| Oct low C = 6.2

| Nov low C = 2.5

| Dec low C = -0.6

| year low C = 5.1

| Jan avg record low C = -11.7

| Feb avg record low C = -9.7

| Mar avg record low C = -7.3

| Apr avg record low C = -3.7

| May avg record low C = -0.2

| Jun avg record low C = 4.4

| Jul avg record low C = 7.8

| Aug avg record low C = 7.8

| Sep avg record low C = 3.6

| Oct avg record low C = -0.8

| Nov avg record low C = -4.0

| Dec avg record low C = -8.6

| year avg record low C = -14.5

| Jan record low C = -23.2

| Feb record low C = -27.4

| Mar record low C = -19.0

| Apr record low C = -7.5

| May record low C = -4.8

| Jun record low C = -1.6

| Jul record low C = 4.1

| Aug record low C = 1.8

| Sep record low C = -2.5

| Oct record low C = -6.1

| Nov record low C = -15.4

| Dec record low C = -19.7

| year record low C = -27.4

| precipitation colour = green

| Jan precipitation mm = 43.0

| Feb precipitation mm = 34.0

| Mar precipitation mm = 37.7

| Apr precipitation mm = 27.9

| May precipitation mm = 48.7

| Jun precipitation mm = 53.2

| Jul precipitation mm = 73.3

| Aug precipitation mm = 79.8

| Sep precipitation mm = 75.1

| Oct precipitation mm = 76.8

| Nov precipitation mm = 58.9

| Dec precipitation mm = 53.2

| year precipitation mm = 661.7

| Jan snow depth cm = 4.7

| Feb snow depth cm = 5.9

| Mar snow depth cm = 3.4

| Apr snow depth cm = 0.5

| May snow depth cm = 0.1

| Jun snow depth cm = 0.0

| Jul snow depth cm = 0.0

| Aug snow depth cm = 0.0

| Sep snow depth cm = 0.0

| Oct snow depth cm = 0.3

| Nov snow depth cm = 1.1

| Dec snow depth cm = 4.4

| year snow depth cm =

| unit precipitation days = 0.1 mm

| Jan precipitation days = 17.57

| Feb precipitation days = 16.14

| Mar precipitation days = 14.00

| Apr precipitation days = 10.80

| May precipitation days = 11.27

| Jun precipitation days = 12.27

| Jul precipitation days = 13.53

| Aug precipitation days = 14.63

| Sep precipitation days = 14.90

| Oct precipitation days = 16.10

| Nov precipitation days = 17.53

| Dec precipitation days = 19.03

| year precipitation days = 177.77

| unit snow days = 0 cm

| Jan snow days = 11.8

| Feb snow days = 12.0

| Mar snow days = 5.4

| Apr snow days = 0.4

| May snow days = 0.1

| Jun snow days = 0.0

| Jul snow days = 0.0

| Aug snow days = 0.0

| Sep snow days = 0.0

| Oct snow days = 0.2

| Nov snow days = 1.5

| Dec snow days = 7.1

| year snow days = 38.5

| Jan humidity = 85.9

| Feb humidity = 85.0

| Mar humidity = 82.1

| Apr humidity = 78.1

| May humidity = 78.4

| Jun humidity = 79.3

| Jul humidity = 81.3

| Aug humidity = 81.3

| Sep humidity = 82.2

| Oct humidity = 83.9

| Nov humidity = 87.6

| Dec humidity = 87.9

| year humidity = 82.8

| Jan sun = 42.8

| Feb sun = 67.1

| Mar sun = 133.1

| Apr sun = 213.6

| May sun = 281.3

| Jun sun = 277.2

| Jul sun = 274.7

| Aug sun = 249.0

| Sep sun = 176.1

| Oct sun = 109.8

| Nov sun = 48.3

| Dec sun = 31.6

| year sun = 1904.5

| source 1 = Institute of Meteorology and Water Management

{{cite web

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20211203115527/https://klimat.imgw.pl/pl/climate-normals/TSR_AVE

| archive-date = 3 December 2021

| url = https://klimat.imgw.pl/pl/climate-normals/TSR_AVE

| title = Średnia dobowa temperatura powietrza

| work = Normy klimatyczne 1991-2020

| publisher = Institute of Meteorology and Water Management

| language = pl

| access-date = 12 February 2022}}

{{cite web

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220115043924/https://klimat.imgw.pl/pl/climate-normals/TMIN_AVE

| archive-date = 15 January 2022

| url = https://klimat.imgw.pl/pl/climate-normals/TMIN_AVE

| title = Średnia minimalna temperatura powietrza

| work = Normy klimatyczne 1991-2020

| publisher = Institute of Meteorology and Water Management

| language = pl

| access-date = 12 February 2022}}

{{cite web

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220115044916/https://klimat.imgw.pl/pl/climate-normals/TMAX_AVE

| archive-date = 15 January 2022

| url = https://klimat.imgw.pl/pl/climate-normals/TMAX_AVE

| title = Średnia maksymalna temperatura powietrza

| work = Normy klimatyczne 1991-2020

| publisher = Institute of Meteorology and Water Management

| language = pl

| access-date = 12 February 2022}}

{{cite web

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220109045820/https://klimat.imgw.pl/pl/climate-normals/OPAD_SUMA

| archive-date = 9 January 2022

| url = https://klimat.imgw.pl/pl/climate-normals/OPAD_SUMA

| title = Miesięczna suma opadu

| work = Normy klimatyczne 1991-2020

| publisher = Institute of Meteorology and Water Management

| language = pl

| access-date = 12 February 2022}}

{{cite web

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220115051112/https://klimat.imgw.pl/pl/climate-normals/OPAD_01

| archive-date = 15 January 2022

| url = https://klimat.imgw.pl/pl/climate-normals/OPAD_01

| title = Liczba dni z opadem >= 0,1 mm

| work = Normy klimatyczne 1991-2020

| publisher = Institute of Meteorology and Water Management

| language = pl

| access-date = 12 February 2022}}

{{cite web

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220115054936/https://klimat.imgw.pl/pl/climate-normals/SNIEG_SR_GRUB

| archive-date = 15 January 2022

| url = https://klimat.imgw.pl/pl/climate-normals/SNIEG_SR_GRUB

| title = Średnia grubość pokrywy śnieżnej

| work = Normy klimatyczne 1991-2020

| publisher = Institute of Meteorology and Water Management

| language = pl

| access-date = 12 February 2022}}

{{cite web

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220121044246/https://klimat.imgw.pl/pl/climate-normals/SNIEG_0

| archive-date = 21 January 2022

| url = https://klimat.imgw.pl/pl/climate-normals/SNIEG_0

| title = Liczba dni z pokrywą śnieżna > 0 cm

| work = Normy klimatyczne 1991-2020

| publisher = Institute of Meteorology and Water Management

| language = pl

| access-date = 12 February 2022}}

{{cite web

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220115055331/https://klimat.imgw.pl/pl/climate-normals/USL

| archive-date = 15 January 2022

| url = https://klimat.imgw.pl/pl/climate-normals/USL

| title = Średnia suma usłonecznienia (h)

| work = Normy klimatyczne 1991-2020

| publisher = Institute of Meteorology and Water Management

| language = pl

| access-date = 12 February 2022}}

| source 2 = Meteomodel.pl (records, relative humidity 1991–2020)

{{cite web

| url = https://meteomodel.pl/dane/srednie-miesieczne/?imgwid=354170120&par=tmax&max_empty=3

| title = Łeba Absolutna temperatura maksymalna

| date = 6 April 2018

| publisher = Meteomodel.pl

| language = pl

| access-date = 12 February 2022}}

{{cite web

| url = https://meteomodel.pl/dane/srednie-miesieczne/?imgwid=354170120&par=tmin&max_empty=3

| title = Łeba Absolutna temperatura minimalna

| date = 6 April 2018

| publisher = Meteomodel.pl

| language = pl

| access-date = 12 February 2022}}

{{cite web

| url = https://meteomodel.pl/dane/srednie-miesieczne/?imgwid=354170120&par=rh&max_empty=3

| title = Łeba Średnia wilgotność

| date = 6 April 2018

| publisher = Meteomodel.pl

| language = pl

| access-date = 12 February 2022}}

}}

Demographics

Since the medieval Christianization of the region, the local population was Catholic. After the Reformation, the inhabitants of the town were predominantly Protestants and the area was subjected to Germanisation. Since the end of World War II the population is predominantly composed of Polish Roman Catholics.

Year ! Inhabitants ! Notes
class="wikitable" width="50%" \|+ Number of inhabitants in years
1782	503	no Jews.Kratz (1865), [https://books.google.com/books?id=67gDAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA254 p. 254 (in German)]
1784	497Ludwig Wilhelm Brüggemann (Hrsg.): Ausführliche Beschreibung des gegenwärtigen Zustandes des Königlich-Preußischen Herzogtums Vor- und Hinterpommern. Part II, vol. 2, Stettin 1784, [https://books.google.com/books?id=uwk_AAAAcAAJ&pg=PA1044 p. 1044 (in German)].
1794	526	no Jews.
1812	707	incl. four Catholics and 16 Jews.
1816	639	incl. two Catholics and 12 Jews.
1831	806	incl. seven Catholics and two Jews.
1843	948	incl. four Catholics and two Jews.
1852	1,093	incl. seven Catholics and eight Jews.Topographisch-statistisches Handbuch des preußischen Staats (Kraatz, Hrsg.). Berlin 1856, [https://books.google.com/books?id=g7QDAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA340 p. 340 (in German)].
1861	1,236	incl. seven Catholics, eight Jews and one German Catholic.
1900	1,966Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon. 6th edition, vol. 12, Bibliographisches Institut, Leipzig and Vienna 1908, p. 277 (in German).
1925	2,330Der Große Brockhaus. 15th edition, vol. 11, Leipzig 1932, p. 203 (in German).
1939	2,846Johannes Hinz: Pommern. Wegweiser durch ein unvergessenes Land. Flechsig-Buchvertrieb, Würzburg 2002, {{ISBN\|3-88189-439-X}}, p. 211 (in German).
1978	3,649