Wenceslaus Pit
The Wenceslaus-Grube (also Wenceslausgrube , Wenzeslaus-Grube ; 1931–1932, Union Consolidirte Wenceslaus Grube ; 1933–1939 Betriebsgemeinschaft Wenceslaus-Grube ) is a closed mine in Mölke in the former district of Neurode , which was merged in 1932 with the district of Glatz . The area of the Wenceslaus pit is located in the west of the Owl Mountains , in the north of the former County of Glatz . Today the area belongs to the powiat Kłodzki (Glatz district) in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship . The Wenceslaus mine gained notoriety when a carbonic acid outbreak occurred on July 9, 1930 in the Hausdorf "Schacht Kurt", which also belonged to the Wenceslaus mine , in which 151 miners were killed.
history
The Wenceslaus mine was founded in 1771 and named after the landlord of the house village Wenceslaus von Haugwitz . In 1790 it was owned by Count Stillfried on Neurode . After several changes of ownership, it came to the industrialist Gustav Linnartz from Lorraine in 1897 , who transferred it to his son-in-law Adrian Gaertner in 1901 . This soon developed the Wenceslaus mine into the most modern coal mine in Germany. Further by opening up coal fields, the drilling of new wells , plant more efficient transport paths underground , better organization of work and use of modern technology was the annual production of 135,000 in 1901 will be increased to 584,000 tons of coal in the 1914th The profits generated were reinvested in the company, but also served to increase wages. After the First World War, there were labor unrest among the workforce in the Wenceslaus mine. Nevertheless, Gaertner, who had explained his concept for the future at a works meeting, was elected chairman of the workers 'and soldiers' council. In addition to wage increases, he also campaigned for better living conditions for workers. An infirmary was set up at the plant and subsidies for the miners' recreational measures were granted. In addition, he participated in the financing of the Knappschaftskrankenhaus in Neurode. Negative consequences for coal sales resulted from the demarcation with Czechoslovakia , which was newly established in 1918 , as the sales areas in the Habsburg Monarchy now ceased to exist. Despite the politically difficult circumstances, Gaertner succeeded in modernizing other work areas. 1919-20 he led electric locomotives on the third floor , which could pull 60 cars h at 20 km /. In 1923 conveyor belts were installed underground and in 1924 attempts were made with the Bergius Pier method . At that time, 4600 people were employed in the model company. As early as 1923, as a result of inflation, Gaertner had to sell the Wenceslaus mine to the Breslauer Elektrizitätswerk Schlesien , which appointed him as general director. Significantly better working conditions were again achieved in 1926 when Gaertner introduced complete electrical lighting underground and, two years later, fully automatic coal mining in one of the seams . Nevertheless, layoffs were necessary. The Great Depression of 1929 survived the Wenceslaus-pit mines better than others. She suffered a severe blow on July 9, 1930 in the Hausdorf "Schacht Kurt" from a carbonic acid outbreak , in which 151 miners were killed. Most of the victims came from Hausdorf and the immediate vicinity. The recovery of the dead took four weeks.
The funeral service, which was attended by more than 20,000 people from the surrounding area and Czechoslovakia, took place on Sunday, July 13, 1930 in the Catholic cemetery of Hausdorf. In addition to the Grafschafter grand dean Franz Dittert were u. a. represented: State Secretary Hermann Geib , Reichstag President Paul Löbe , the Upper President of the Province of Lower Silesia Hermann Lüdemann and the District President Wilhelm Happ for the District of Wroclaw and Hans Poeschel for the District of Liegnitz . Local pastor Franz Schröfel paid tribute to the deceased who, despite their hard work and low pay, had always fulfilled their duty. He also thanked the rescuers, some of whom were deployed without gas protection devices, for their heroic courage. The miners from Hausdorf who had been recovered by then were buried in three mass graves. More dead found their final resting place in their hometowns Kunzendorf , Ludwigsdorf , Mittelsteine , Neurode, Schlegel and Volpersdorf . The Reichstag commemorated the victims of Hausdorf in its session on July 10, 1930. To commemorate the dead, a cross was set up at the entrance to the Hausdorf cemetery, which was created by the neuroder sculptor August Wittig (* 1881).
Since neither the E-Werk Silesia nor the Reich government provided funds for continued operation, the Wenceslaus mine was shut down on January 28, 1931. This left 2,600 miners unemployed. Since there were hardly any other job opportunities for them, the misery increased immeasurably. Protest rallies from the entire population were the result. Adrian Gaertner resigned as General Manager on March 17, 1931. On April 18, 1931 bankruptcy was declared because the mine was in debt with twelve million Reichsmarks . Several auction attempts were unsuccessful. The Reich government refused aid because the renovation was too expensive and too dangerous because of the danger of carbon dioxide.
In October 1931, the dismissed miners founded the “Betriebsgemeinschaft Wenceslaus-Grube, Bergbaugenossenschaft mbH”. A year later they started the pumps again with the money they had collected. On July 29, 1933, the Wenceslaus mine started production again. Since the promises of the NSDAP were not kept, it was already clear in 1935 that the mine would not be able to generate any profit without state aid. Nonetheless, full operation was maintained until March 31, 1939, after which it should take four to five months to expire until the final shutdown. On September 1, 1939, the Second World War began with the invasion of Poland . The miners' struggle for almost nine years to keep the Wenceslaus mine in operation came to a sad end. The disappointment of the population in the entire Neuroder coal district was great.
literature
- Horst-Alfons Meißner: Serious mine accident in Hausdorf near Neurode on July 9, 1930 . In: The County of Glatz between 1918 and 1946 . Aschendorff Verlag 2012, ISBN 978-3-402-12896-1 , pp. 167-176.
- Horst-Alfons Meißner: The fight for the Wenceslaus pit in Ludwigsdorf-Mölke, Glatz district, 1931 to 1939 . In: The County of Glatz between 1918 and 1946 . Aschendorff-Verlag 2012, ISBN 978-3-402-12896-1 , pp. 177-198.
- Arno Herzig , Małgorzata Ruchniewicz : History of the Glatzer Land. DOBU-Verlag et al., Hamburg et al. 2006, ISBN 3-934632-12-2 , pp. 392 and 330-332.
- Peter Güttler: The Glatzer Land . Travel guide published by Aktion West-Ost in the BDKJ, Düsseldorf 1995, ISBN 3-928508-03-2 , pp. 53 and 70.