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'Żagań' (French and ) is a town in western Poland, with 26,665 inhabitants (2004). Historically the seat of the Silesian Dukes of Sagan, the town is the capital of Żagań County.
Previously in the Zielona Gora Voivodeship (1975-1998), Żagań has been situated in the Lubusz Voivodeship since 1999.

Contents

History

Notable residents

Gallery

External links

History

Żagań is the site of the castle of Sagan at the center of a fief that belonged to Albrecht von Wallenstein, the generalissimo of the Thirty Years' War. It then passed to the illustrious Bohemian family of Lobkowicz.
In 1786 the fief of Sagan was purchased by Peter von Biron, Duke of Courland, and eventually (1843) passed to his daughter Dorothea, the wife of Edmond de Talleyrand, a nephew of the great French diplomat Talleyrand, who came to pass her retirement years at Żagań. A patent of King Frederick William IV of Prussia on January 6, 1845 invested her as Duchess of Sagan and Napoleon III recognized the title in France, in favor of her son Louis.
In France there is a ''prince'' and a ''duc'' de Sagan. The double title, both Prussian and French, served to render the duc de Sagan a neutral party in World War II: his Château de Valençay provided a safe haven for treasures of the Louvre during the German occupation of France. During World War II, the town was the location of the infamous Stalag Luft III. The town was transferred from Germany to Poland in 1945.

Notable residents

★ Adolf Engler (1844-1930), botanist
==Twin towns==

★ Duns, Scotland

Gallery

Image:Zagan-palac.jpg|Palace in Żagań
Image:Dworzeckolejowy Zagan.JPG|Railway station
Image:Panorama1 Zagan.jpg|town panorama

External links

★ Official town webpage

★ Map from mapa.szukacz.pl

★ "Le château de Sagan"