| Rydułtowy | |
| Pushpin Map: | Poland |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Type1: | Voivodeship |
| Subdivision Name1: | Silesian |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name3: | Rydułtowy (urban gmina) |
| Subdivision Type3: | Gmina |
| Subdivision Name2: | Wodzisław |
| Leader Title: | Mayor |
| Leader Name: | Marcin Połomski |
| Established Title: | First mentioned |
| Established Date: | 1228 |
| Area Total Km2: | 15 |
| Population As Of: | 2019-06-30[1] |
| Population Total: | 21616 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Coordinates: | 50.0583°N 18.4167°W |
| Timezone: | CET |
| Utc Offset: | +1 |
| Timezone Dst: | CEST |
| Utc Offset Dst: | +2 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code |
| Postal Code: | 44-280 |
| Registration Plate: | SWD |
| Blank Name Sec2: | Voivodeship roads |
| Website: | http://www.rydultowy.pl |
Rydułtowy (de|Rydultau) is a town in southern Poland, in the Wodzisław County of the Silesian Voivodeship. Rydułtowy is in the south-western part of the Silesian Highland, on the Rybnik Plateau, in the Oświęcim-Racibórz Valley.
A mining town, Rydułtowy has been closely bound with the 200-year-old "Rydułtowy-Anna" coal mine.
Rydułtowy was first mentioned in a document of the Diocese of Wrocław from 1228 as Rudolphi Willa, when it was part of the Duchy of Racibórz of fragmented Piast-ruled Poland.
In 1861, Rydułtowy Dolne had an entirely Polish population of 1,066, while Rydułtowy Górne had 360 inhabitants.[2] In the late 19th century, the main occupation of the population was farming and coal mining.[2] In 1923, the first Polish scout troop of Rydułtowy was founded.[3] Rydułtowy Dolne and Rydułtowy Górne were merged in 1926.
Following the joint German-Soviet invasion of Poland, which started World War II in September 1939, Rydułtowy was occupied by Germany until 1945. Many local Polish scouts were killed during the war,[3] and some teachers from Rydułtowy were among Polish teachers murdered by the Germans in concentration camps as part of the Intelligenzaktion (see Nazi crimes against the Polish nation).[4] The Germans operated five forced labour camps in Rydułtowy, including a subcamp of the Auschwitz concentration camp.[5] The prisoners of the camps were initially Poles from nearby settlements, and then also French, English and Soviet prisoners of war.[6] Over 1,000 mostly Jewish prisoners were held in the subcamp of Auschwitz.[5] Prisoners unable to continue labour were sent back to Auschwitz and gassed there,[6] while over 50 prisoners died in the subcamp itself, also by suicide.[5] In January 1945, the Germans evacuated the prisoners on foot to Wodzisław Śląski, and then deported them to the Mauthausen concentration camp.[5]
In 1951, Rydułtowy was granted town rights, and the neighboring settlement of Pietrzkowice was included within town limits as a new district.[7]
The local football team is . It competes in the lower leagues.
See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Poland. Rydułtowy is twinned with:[8]
