Przedmoście, and
Lubiąż
Lubiąż (; german: Leubus) is a village (former city) on the east bank of the Odra (Oder) River, in the administrative district of Gmina Wołów, within Wołów County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. It lies approximately ...
. The other forest areas are The Natural Park in Orsk, the areas of Jodłowice, Wzgórze Joanny near Milicz, and Gola near Twardogóra. Such types of forest like those which are the mainstay for wild game or nurseries, are inaccessible because of permanent fire hazard. Territories partly accessible (marked specially) are located in areas of Góra Śląska, Oborniki Śląskie, Wołowa, in the Oder River valley, and in Wzgórza Niemczańsko-Strzelińskie.
Flora
The flora of Lower Silesia is specific and different for each zone. From the bottoms to the top, plants form groups that are arranged in wide or narrow belts, called floral zones. Subsequently, these zones are divided into narrower belts, called vegetation belts.
The zone of mountain forest is divided into two belts:
subalpine
Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial f ...
and lower subalpine forest. Above, there is a forestless zone divided into the subalpine belt with dwarf pine, and the alpine belt without shrubs. This vegetation is
glacial
A glacial period (alternatively glacial or glaciation) is an interval of time (thousands of years) within an ice age that is marked by colder temperatures and glacier advances. Interglacials, on the other hand, are periods of warmer climate betw ...
; the former vegetation—from the
Tertiary
Tertiary ( ) is a widely used but obsolete term for the geologic period from 66 million to 2.6 million years ago.
The period began with the demise of the non-avian dinosaurs in the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, at the start ...
—was destroyed by the climate of the
Ice Age
An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gree ...
. Along with glaciation from the North, some tundra plants appeared, for example
downy willow (''Salix lapponum'') and
cloudberry
''Rubus chamaemorus'' is a species of flowering plant in the rose family Rosaceae, native to cool temperate regions, alpine and arctic tundra and boreal forest. This herbaceous perennial produces amber-colored edible fruit similar to the blackbe ...
(Rubus chamaemorus).
The flora of Lower Silesia is strongly influenced by geological and climatic history. The vegetation is formed by species deriving from various geographic regions. Particular regions are represented by:
* Central European species:
fir (
Abies alba
''Abies alba'', the European silver fir or silver fir, is a fir native to the mountains of Europe, from the Pyrenees north to Normandy, east to the Alps and the Carpathians, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia, and sou ...
),
beech
Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...
(Fagus silvatica),
oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...
(
Quercus petraea
''Quercus petraea'', commonly known as the sessile oak, Cornish oak, Irish Oak or durmast oak, is a species of oak tree native to most of Europe and into Anatolia and Iran. The sessile oak is the national tree of Ireland, and an unofficial emble ...
),
maple
''Acer'' () is a genus of trees and shrubs commonly known as maples. The genus is placed in the family Sapindaceae.Stevens, P. F. (2001 onwards). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Version 9, June 2008 nd more or less continuously updated since http ...
(
Acer pseudoplatanus
''Acer pseudoplatanus'', known as the sycamore in the British Isles and as the sycamore maple in the United States, is a species of flowering plant in the Sapindus, soapberry and lychee family Sapindaceae. It is a large deciduous, broad-leaved ...
)
* European Syberian species: European
spindle-tree (Evonymus europaea),
alder
Alders are trees comprising the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus comprises about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few sp ...
(Alnus glutinosa),
wicker
Wicker is the oldest furniture making method known to history, dating as far back as 5,000 years ago. It was first documented in ancient Egypt using pliable plant material, but in modern times it is made from any pliable, easily woven material. ...
(Salix purpurea)
* Boreal-Sub arctic species:
cress (Cardamine pratensis),
yellow marsh marigold (Caltha palustris),
liverleaf (Hepatica nobilis)
* Boreal-Arctic species:
bearberry
Bearberries ( indigenous kinnickinnick) are three species of dwarf shrubs in the genus ''Arctostaphylos''. Unlike the other species of ''Arctostaphylos'' (see manzanita), they are adapted to Arctic and Subarctic climates, and have a circumpolar ...
(Arctostaphylos uva-ursi),
dwarf willow
''Salix herbacea'', the dwarf willow, least willow or snowbed willow, is a species of tiny creeping willow (family Salicaceae) adapted to survive in harsh arctic and subarctic environments. Distributed widely in alpine and arctic environments ar ...
(Salix herbacea),
black crowberry
''Empetrum nigrum'', crowberry, black crowberry, or, in western Alaska, blackberry, is a flowering plant species in the heather family Ericaceae with a near circumboreal distribution in the Northern Hemisphere. It is usually dioecious, but there ...
(Empetrum nigrum),
Sudetic Lousewort (Pedicularis sudetica),
alpine saxifrage (Micranthes nivalis),
cloudberry
''Rubus chamaemorus'' is a species of flowering plant in the rose family Rosaceae, native to cool temperate regions, alpine and arctic tundra and boreal forest. This herbaceous perennial produces amber-colored edible fruit similar to the blackbe ...
(Rubus chamaemorus),
lake quillwort (Isoëtes lacustris)
* Alpine species: Alpine bastard toadflax (Thesium alpinium),
Alpine coltsfoot
''Homogyne alpina'', the Alpine coltsfoot or purple colt's-foot, is a rhizomatous herb in the family Asteraceae, which is often used as an ornamental plant. In addition, this plant has purple-red flowers, and it is usually associated with the g ...
(Homogyne alpina),
mountain avens
''Dryas octopetala'', the mountain avens, eightpetal mountain-avens, white dryas or white dryad, is an Arctic–alpine flowering plant in the family Rosaceae. It is a small prostrate evergreen subshrub forming large colonies. The specific epit ...
(Geum montanum),
mountain pine
''Pinus mugo'', known as bog pine, creeping pine, dwarf mountain pine, mugo pine, mountain pine, scrub mountain pine, or Swiss mountain pine, is a species of conifer, native to high elevation habitats from southwestern to Central Europe and S ...
(Pinus mugo)
* Sudetic and Sudetic-Carpathian species:
mossy saxifrage
''Saxifraga bryoides'' is a species of saxifrage known by the common name of mossy saxifrage. In German it is known as '. It is an inhabitant of the Arctic tundra but it also grows in the Alps and other European mountain ranges at high altitudes. ...
(Saxifraga moschata ssp. Basaltica),
Sudetic lousewort (Pedicularis sudetica)
Lower subalpine forest
Lower subalpine forest ( pl, Regiel Dolny), , is characterized by deciduous or mixed forest. The fragments of forests similar to natural complexes of
pine
A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accep ...
-
fir-
beech
Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...
with admixture of
larch
Larches are deciduous conifers in the genus ''Larix'', of the family Pinaceae (subfamily Laricoideae). Growing from tall, they are native to much of the cooler temperate northern hemisphere, on lowlands in the north and high on mountains furt ...
,
sycamore maple
''Acer pseudoplatanus'', known as the sycamore in the British Isles and as the sycamore maple in the United States, is a species of flowering plant in the soapberry and lychee family Sapindaceae. It is a large deciduous, broad-leaved tree, tol ...
and
lime
Lime commonly refers to:
* Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit
* Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide
* Lime (color), a color between yellow and green
Lime may also refer to:
Botany ...
occur near the Szklarski waterfall, in the Jagniątkowski complex, and
Chojnik Mountain. Particular species of trees have different climatic requirements. The lowest parts are covered with oak and ash, up to . On the level of 500– occurs pine; in the higher parts, up to , there occurs
European larch
''Larix decidua'', the European larch, is a species of larch native to the mountains of central Europe, in the Alps and Carpathian Mountains as well as the Pyrenees, with disjunct lowland populations in northern Poland and southern Lithuania. It ...
; and above 800 m, fir and beech.
Despite transformation of the basic tree vegetation, the same form of undergrowth survived. There occurs:
daphne mezereum
''Daphne mezereum'', commonly known as mezereum, mezereon, February daphne, spurge laurel or spurge olive, is a species of '' Daphne'' in the flowering plant family Thymelaeaceae, native to most of Europe and Western Asia, north to northern Scan ...
,
red elderberry
''Sambucus racemosa'' is a species of elderberry known by the common names red elderberry and red-berried elder.
Distribution and habitat
It is native to Europe, northern temperate Asia, and North America across Canada and the United States. It ...
,
hazel
The hazel (''Corylus'') is a genus of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family Betulaceae,Germplasmgobills Information Network''Corylus''Rushforth, K. (1999). ...
,
platanthera bifolia
''Platanthera bifolia'', commonly known as the lesser butterfly-orchid, is a species of orchid in the genus ''Platanthera'', having certain relations with the genus '' Orchis'', where it was previously included and also with the genus ''Habenar ...
,
sweet woodruff,
Herb Paris,
cranberry
Cranberries are a group of evergreen dwarf shrubs or trailing vines in the subgenus ''Oxycoccus'' of the genus ''Vaccinium''. In Britain, cranberry may refer to the native species ''Vaccinium oxycoccos'', while in North America, cranberry ...
,
wood sorrel
''Oxalis'' ( (American English) or (British English)) is a large genus of flowering plants in the wood-sorrel family Oxalidaceae, comprising over 550 species. The genus occurs throughout most of the world, except for the polar areas; species d ...
,
chickweed wintergreen
''Lysimachia europaea'' (formerly known as ''Trientalis europaea'') is a flowering plant in the primrose Family (biology), family Primulaceae, called by the common name chickweed-wintergreen or arctic starflower. It is a small herbaceous perennia ...
,
Common Cow-wheat
''Melampyrum pratense'', the common cow-wheat, is a plant species in the family Orobanchaceae.
The seed of the plant has an elaiosome, which is attractive to wood ants (''Formica'' spp.). The ants disperse the seeds of the plant when they tak ...
and
lily of the valley
Lily of the valley (''Convallaria majalis'' (), sometimes written lily-of-the-valley, is a woodland flowering plant with sweetly scented, pendent, bell-shaped white flowers borne in sprays in spring. It is native throughout the cool temperate No ...
. The parts over 800 m are mainly covered with grasses, purple small-reeds, cranberries, and
willow gentian.
In highlighted places, on meadows, and along roads, there occurs:
spotted orchid,
bugleweed,
yellow archangel
''Lamium galeobdolon'', commonly known as yellow archangel, artillery plant, aluminium plant, or yellow weasel-snout, is a widespread wildflower in Europe, and has been introduced elsewhere as a garden plant. It displays the zygomorphic flower mo ...
,
arnica montana
''Arnica montana'', also known as wolf's bane, leopard's bane, mountain tobacco and mountain arnica, is a moderately toxic European flowering plant in the daisy family Asteraceae. It is noted for its large yellow flower head. The names "wolf's ...
,
sword-leaved helleborine,
rosebay willowherb
''Chamaenerion angustifolium'' is a perennial herbaceous flowering plant in the willowherb family Onagraceae. It is known in North America as fireweed, in some parts of Canada as great willowherb, in Britain and Ireland as rosebay willowherb. I ...
,
groundsel Groundsel is a common name for several plants and may refer to:
*Members of the genus ''Senecio''
**Creeping groundsel, ''Senecio angulatus''
**Common groundsel, ''Senecio vulgaris''
**Welsh groundsel, '' Senecio cambrensis''
**York radiate grounds ...
, and
foxglove
''Digitalis'' ( or ) is a genus of about 20 species of herbaceous perennial plants, shrubs, and biennials, commonly called foxgloves.
''Digitalis'' is native to Europe, western Asia, and northwestern Africa. The flowers are tubular in shap ...
. Along riversides, there occurs white
butterbur
''Petasites'' is a genus of flowering plants in the sunflower family, Asteraceae, that are commonly referred to as butterburs and coltsfoots.[fungus
A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from th ...]
and
insect
Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...
s. The most damaging is
honey mushroom, with edible
specimen
Specimen may refer to:
Science and technology
* Sample (material), a limited quantity of something which is intended to be similar to and represent a larger amount
* Biological specimen or biospecimen, an organic specimen held by a biorepository ...
, which grows in pulp, between the
bark and
timber
Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...
, causing the death of tree. The other damaging fungus is
bracket fungus
A bracket is either of two tall fore- or back-facing punctuation marks commonly used to isolate a segment of text or data from its surroundings. Typically deployed in symmetric pairs, an individual bracket may be identified as a 'left' or 'r ...
, which destroys roots and trunks from the inside. The honey mushroom devastates the tree within a few months, and the bracket fungus, within a few years, as a result of mechanic changes in wood structure.
History
Ancient history
At the close of the
Ice Age
An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gree ...
, the first man appeared at the
Silesian Lowland
Silesian Lowlands (or Silesian Plains, pl, Nizina Śląska, cs, Slezská nížina, german: Schlesische Niederung) are lowlands located in Silesia, Poland in Central Europe. A small part is located in the Czech Republic. It is part of the Centr ...
. In the
Mesolithic
The Mesolithic (Greek: μέσος, ''mesos'' 'middle' + λίθος, ''lithos'' 'stone') or Middle Stone Age is the Old World archaeological period between the Upper Paleolithic and the Neolithic. The term Epipaleolithic is often used synonymous ...
(7,000 years ago), the first nomadic people settled in Lower Silesia, living in caves and primitive chalets. They were collectors, hunters, and fishers, and used weapons and other tools made of stone and wood. In the
Upper Paleolithic
The Upper Paleolithic (or Upper Palaeolithic) is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. Very broadly, it dates to between 50,000 and 12,000 years ago (the beginning of the Holocene), according to some theories coin ...
, the oldest human remains of the nomadic people, which were 40,000 years old, were found in a tomb in
Tyniec
Tyniec is a historic village in Poland on the Vistula river, since 1973 a part of the city of Kraków (currently in the district of Dębniki). Tyniec is notable for its Benedictine abbey founded by King Casimir the Restorer in 1044.
Etymology
...
on the river
Ślęża.
In the
Neolithic
The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...
(4000–1700 BC), began the process of transformation into a settled way of life. The first rural settlements were made, as people began to farm and breed animals. Mining, pottery, and weaving are dated to this period.
Serpentinite
Serpentinite is a rock composed predominantly of one or more serpentine group minerals, the name originating from the similarity of the texture of the rock to that of the skin of a snake. Serpentinite has been called ''serpentine'' or ''ser ...
quarries came into existence, of which Silesian hatchets were made, and near
Jordanów Śląski, people extracted nephrite that was transformed into diverse tools. In the
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...
(1700–1500 BC), the evolution of different cultures developed to the existence of
Unetice culture
The Únětice culture or Aunjetitz culture ( cs, Únětická kultura, german: Aunjetitzer Kultur, pl, Kultura unietycka) is an archaeological culture at the start of the Central European Bronze Age, dated roughly to about 2300–1600BC. The epon ...
that affected the existence of
Trzciniec culture
The Trzciniec culture is a Bronze-Age archaeological culture in East-Central Europe (c. 1600 – 1200 BC). It is sometimes associated with the Komariv neighbouring culture, as the Trzciniec-Komariv culture.
History
The Trzciniec culture develop ...
. In the next periods since , it encompasses all of Europe.
Early history
In the
La Tène culture
The La Tène culture (; ) was a European Iron Age culture. It developed and flourished during the late Iron Age (from about 450 BC to the Roman conquest in the 1st century BC), succeeding the early Iron Age Hallstatt culture without any defini ...
period, Lower Silesia was inhabited by the
Celts
The Celts (, see pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples () are. "CELTS location: Greater Europe time period: Second millennium B.C.E. to present ancestry: Celtic a collection of Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancien ...
, who had their main place of cult on the
Mount Ślęża
Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest.
Mount or Mounts may also refer to:
Places
* Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England
* Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, ...
. Their stony statues situated on and around this hill were later worshipped by the
Slavic tribes
This is a list of Slavic peoples and Slavic tribes reported in Late Antiquity and in the Middle Ages, that is, before the year AD 1500.
Ancestors
*Proto-Indo-Europeans (Proto-Indo-European speakers)
** Proto-Balto-Slavs (common ancestors of B ...
that came here around the sixth century AD. ''
Magna Germania
Germania ( ; ), also called Magna Germania (English: ''Great Germania''), Germania Libera (English: ''Free Germania''), or Germanic Barbaricum to distinguish it from the Roman province of the same name, was a large historical region in north-c ...
'' (second century) records that between the Celtic and the Slavic period, Lower Silesia was inhabited by a number of
Germanic tribes
The Germanic peoples were historical groups of people that once occupied Central Europe and Scandinavia during antiquity and into the early Middle Ages. Since the 19th century, they have traditionally been defined by the use of ancient and e ...
. Among them, are the
Vandals
The Vandals were a Germanic peoples, Germanic people who first inhabited what is now southern Poland. They established Vandal Kingdom, Vandal kingdoms on the Iberian Peninsula, Mediterranean islands, and North Africa in the fifth century.
The ...
, the
Lugii
The Lugii (or ''Lugi'', ''Lygii'', ''Ligii'', ''Lugiones'', ''Lygians'', ''Ligians'', ''Lugians'', or ''Lougoi'') were a large tribal confederation mentioned by Roman authors living in ca. 100 BC–300 AD in Central Europe, north of the Sude ...
, and the
Silingi
The Silings or Silingi ( la, Silingae; grc, Σιλίγγαι – ) were a Germanic tribe, part of the larger Vandal group. The Silingi at one point lived in Silesia, and the names ''Silesia'' and ''Silingi'' may be related.Jerzy Strzelczyk, "Wan ...
, who might have given the Silesia region its name, though it is unclear and thus disputed. With the Germanic tribes leaving westward during the
Migration Period
The Migration Period was a period in European history marked by large-scale migrations that saw the fall of the Western Roman Empire and subsequent settlement of its former territories by various tribes, and the establishment of the post-Roman ...
, a number of new peoples arrived in Silesia from
Sarmatia
The Sarmatians (; grc, Σαρμαται, Sarmatai; Latin: ) were a large confederation of ancient Eastern Iranian equestrian nomadic peoples of classical antiquity who dominated the Pontic steppe from about the 3rd century BC to the 4th c ...
,
Asia Minor
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
, and the Asian steppes from the beginning of the sixth century.
The
Bavarian Geographer The epithet "Bavarian Geographer" ( la, Geographus Bavarus) is the conventional name for the anonymous author of a short Latin medieval text containing a list of the tribes in Central- Eastern Europe, headed ().
The name "Bavarian Geographer" was ...
() referred to the West Slavic
Ślężanie
The Silesians ( pl, Ślężanie) were a tribe of West Slavs, specifically of the Lechitic/Polish group, inhabiting territories of Lower Silesia, near Ślęża mountain and Ślęza river, on both banks of the Oder, up to the area of modern city ...
(the other possible source of the region's ''Śląsk'' and later ''Silesia'' name), centered on
Niemcza
Niemcza (german: Nimptsch) is a town in Dzierżoniów County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. It is the seat of the administrative district (gmina) called Gmina Niemcza.
The town lies on the Ślęza River, approximately e ...
, and
Dziadoszanie tribes, while a 1086 document issued by Bishop
Jaromir of Prague listed the
Zlasane,
Trebovane,
Poborane, and
Dedositze. At the same time, Upper Silesia was inhabited by the
Opolanie,
Lupiglaa, and
Golenshitse tribes. In the late 9th century, the territory was subject to the
Great Moravia
Great Moravia ( la, Regnum Marahensium; el, Μεγάλη Μοραβία, ''Meghálī Moravía''; cz, Velká Morava ; sk, Veľká Morava ; pl, Wielkie Morawy), or simply Moravia, was the first major state that was predominantly West Slavs, Wes ...
n realm of Prince
Svatopluk I
Svatopluk I or Svätopluk I, also known as Svatopluk the Great (Latin: ''Zuentepulc'', ''Zuentibald'', ''Sventopulch'', ''Zvataplug''; Old Church Slavic: Свѧтопълкъ and transliterated ''Svętopъłkъ''; Polish: ''Świętopełk''; Greek ...
and from about 906 came under the rule of the
Přemyslid duke
Spytihnev I of Bohemia and his successors
Vratislaus I
Vratislaus (or Wratislaus) I ( cs, Vratislav I.; – 13 February 921), a member of the Přemyslid dynasty, was Duke of Bohemia from 915 until his death.
Life
He was a son of Duke Bořivoj I of Bohemia by his wife Ludmila of Bohemia, Ludmila and ...
, the alleged founder of Wrocław ( cs, Vratislav), and
Boleslaus the Cruel.
Piast Kingdom of Poland
![Polska 992 - 1025](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/Polska_992_-_1025.png)
Meanwhile, the West Slavic
Polans Polans may refer to two Slavic tribes:
* Polans (eastern)
The Polans (, ''Poliany'', ''Polyane'', pl, Polanie), also Polianians, were an East Slavic tribe between the 6th and the 9th century, which inhabited both sides of the Dnieper river ...
had established the first duchy under the
Piast dynasty
The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I (c. 930–992). The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of king Casimir III the Great.
Branch ...
in the adjacent
Greater Polish lands in the north. About 990 Silesia was conquered and incorporated into the
first Polish state by the Piast duke
Mieszko I
Mieszko I (; – 25 May 992) was the first ruler of Poland and the founder of the first independent Polish state, the Duchy of Poland. His reign stretched from 960 to his death and he was a member of the Piast dynasty, a son of Siemomysł and ...
, who had gained the support of Emperor
Otto II
Otto II (955 – 7 December 983), called the Red (''der Rote''), was Holy Roman Emperor from 973 until his death in 983. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto II was the youngest and sole surviving son of Otto the Great and Adelaide of Italy. ...
against the Bohemian duke
Boleslaus II.
In 1000 his son and successor
Bolesław I Chrobry Boleslav or Bolesław may refer to:
In people:
* Boleslaw (given name)
In geography:
*Bolesław, Dąbrowa County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland
*Bolesław, Olkusz County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland
*Bolesław, Silesian Voivodeship, Pol ...
founded the
Diocese of Wrocław
In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop.
History
In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...
, which, together with the
Bishoprics
In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop.
History
In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associat ...
of
Kraków
Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...
and
Kołobrzeg
Kołobrzeg ( ; csb, Kòlbrzég; german: Kolberg, ), ; csb, Kòlbrzég , is a port city in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in north-western Poland with about 47,000 inhabitants (). Kołobrzeg is located on the Parsęta River on the south coast o ...
, was placed under the
Archbishopric of Gniezno
The Archdiocese of Gniezno ( la, Archidioecesis Gnesnensis, pl, Archidiecezja Gnieźnieńska) is the oldest Latin Catholic archdiocese in Poland, located in the city of Gniezno.[Greater Poland
Greater Poland, often known by its Polish name Wielkopolska (; german: Großpolen, sv, Storpolen, la, Polonia Maior), is a Polish historical regions, historical region of west-central Poland. Its chief and largest city is Poznań followed ...]
, founded by Emperor
Otto III
Otto III (June/July 980 – 23 January 1002) was Holy Roman Emperor from 996 until his death in 1002. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto III was the only son of the Emperor Otto II and his wife Theophanu.
Otto III was crowned as King of ...
at the
Congress of Gniezno in the same year. The ecclesial suzerainty of
Gniezno
Gniezno (; german: Gnesen; la, Gnesna) is a city in central-western Poland, about east of Poznań. Its population in 2021 was 66,769, making it the sixth-largest city in the Greater Poland Voivodeship. One of the Piast dynasty's chief cities, ...
over Wrocław lasted until 1821. After a temporary shift to Bohemia in the first half of the 11th century, Lower Silesia continued to be an integral part of the Polish state until the end of its fragmentation period when all Polish claims on this land were finally renounced in favor of the
Bohemian kingdom
The Kingdom of Bohemia ( cs, České království),; la, link=no, Regnum Bohemiae sometimes in English literature referred to as the Czech Kingdom, was a medieval and early modern monarchy in Central Europe, the predecessor of the modern Czec ...
in 1348.
![Silesia 1217-1230](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/14/Silesia_1217-1230.jpg)
Various Polish defensive battles against the invading Germans took place in the region in the Middle Ages, including the victorious battles
of Niemcza in 1017 and
Głogów
Głogów (; german: Glogau, links=no, rarely , cs, Hlohov, szl, Głogōw) is a city in western Poland. It is the county seat of Głogów County, in Lower Silesian Voivodeship (since 1999), and was previously in Legnica Voivodeship (1975–199 ...
and
Psie Pole
Psie Pole () (polish: ''Dog Field'') is one of the five administrative districts of Wrocław, Poland. Before 1928, it was an independent city. Its functions were largely taken over on 8 March 1990 by the Municipal Office of the newly established ...
in 1109. In the early 12th century,
Wrocław
Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...
was named one of the three major cities of the
Polish Kingdom alongside
Kraków
Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...
and
Sandomierz
Sandomierz (pronounced: ; la, Sandomiria) is a historic town in south-eastern Poland with 23,863 inhabitants (as of 2017), situated on the Vistula River in the Sandomierz Basin. It has been part of Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship (Holy Cross Prov ...
in the oldest Polish chronicle, ''
Gesta principum Polonorum
The ''Gesta principum Polonorum'' (; "''Deeds of the Princes of the Poles''") is the oldest known medieval chronicle documenting the history of Poland from the legendary times until 1113. Written in Latin by an anonymous author, it was most lik ...
''. One of the largest battles of medieval Poland, the
Battle of Legnica, during the
first Mongol invasion of Poland
The Mongol Invasion of Poland from late 1240 to 1241 culminated in the Battle of Legnica, where the Mongols defeated an alliance which included forces from fragmented Poland and their allies, led by Henry II the Pious, the Duke of Silesia. ...
was fought in the region 1241.
![Book of Henryków](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9c/Book_of_Henryk%C3%B3w.PNG)
Also a leading region of medieval Poland. The first-ever granting of
town privileges
Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the traditio ...
in Polish history, happened there, when
Złotoryja
Złotoryja (; german: Goldberg, ; Latin: ''Aureus Mons'', ''Aurum'') is a historic town in Lower Silesian Voivodeship in southwestern Poland, the administrative seat of Złotoryja County, and of the smaller Gmina Złotoryja. Having been granted ...
was granted such rights in 1211 by
Henry the Bearded
Henry the Bearded ( pl, Henryk (Jędrzych) Brodaty, german: Heinrich der Bärtige; c. 1165/70 – 19 March 1238) was a Polish duke from the Piast dynasty.
He was Dukes of Silesia, Duke of Silesia at Wrocław from 1201, Seniorate Province, Duke ...
, and in the 13th century the ''
Book of Henryków
The ''Book of Henryków'' ( pl, Księga henrykowska, la, Liber fundationis claustri Sanctae Mariae Virginis in Heinrichow) is a Latin chronicle of the Cistercian abbey in Henryków in Lower Silesia, Poland. Originally created as a registry of ...
'', a chronicle containing the oldest known text in Polish, was created in the region.
The
Duchy of Silesia
The Duchy of Silesia ( pl, Księstwo śląskie, german: Herzogtum Schlesien, cs, Slezské knížectví) with its capital at Wrocław was a medieval duchy located in the historic Silesian region of Poland. Soon after it was formed under the Pia ...
was first split into lower and upper parts in 1172 during the period of
Poland's feudal fragmentation, when the land was divided between two sons of former High Duke
Władysław II. The elder
Bolesław the Tall Boleslav or Bolesław may refer to:
In people:
* Boleslaw (given name)
In geography:
* Bolesław, Dąbrowa County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland
* Bolesław, Olkusz County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland
* Bolesław, Silesian Voivodeship, ...
ruled over Lower Silesia with his capital in Wrocław (then known as Vratislav, Wrotizla, or Prezla), and younger
Mieszko Tanglefoot ruled over Upper Silesia with his capital at first in
Racibórz
Racibórz (german: Ratibor, cz, Ratiboř, szl, Racibōrz) is a city in Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland. It is the administrative seat of Racibórz County.
With Opole, Racibórz is one of the historic capitals of Upper Silesia, being t ...
, from 1202 in
Opole
Opole (; german: Oppeln ; szl, Ôpole) ;
* Silesian:
** Silesian PLS alphabet: ''Ôpole''
** Steuer's Silesian alphabet: ''Uopole''
* Silesian German: ''Uppeln''
* Czech: ''Opolí''
* Latin: ''Oppelia'', ''Oppolia'', ''Opulia'' is a city loc ...
. Later Silesia was divided into as many as 17
duchies
A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a medieval country, territory, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or queen in Western European tradition.
There once existed an important difference between " ...
. Main duchies of Lower Silesia:
*
Silesia–Wrocław
**
Legnica, split off in 1248
***
Brzeg
Brzeg (; Latin: ''Alta Ripa'', German: ''Brieg'', Silesian German: ''Brigg'', , ) is a town in southwestern Poland with 34,778 inhabitants (December 2021) and the capital of Brzeg County. It is situated in Silesia in the Opole Voivodeship on t ...
, split off from Legnica in 1311
***
Świdnica
Świdnica (; german: Schweidnitz; cs, Svídnice; szl, Świdńica) is a city in south-western Poland in the region of Silesia. As of 2019, it has a population of 57,014 inhabitants. It lies in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, being the seventh large ...
-
Jawor
Jawor (german: Jauer) is a town in south-western Poland with 22,890 inhabitants (2019). It is situated in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship (from 1975 to 1998 it was in the former Legnica Voivodeship). It is the seat of Jawor County, and lies appr ...
, split off from Legnica in 1274
****
Ziębice
Ziębice (german: Münsterberg) is a town in Ząbkowice Śląskie County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland.
The town lies on the Oława River, approximately east of Ząbkowice Śląskie and south of the regional capital ...
, split off from Świdnica in 1321
**
Głogów
Głogów (; german: Glogau, links=no, rarely , cs, Hlohov, szl, Głogōw) is a city in western Poland. It is the county seat of Głogów County, in Lower Silesian Voivodeship (since 1999), and was previously in Legnica Voivodeship (1975–199 ...
, split off from Legnica in 1251
***
Żagań
Żagań ( French and german: Sagan, hsb, Zahań, la, Saganum) is a town in western Poland, on the Bóbr river, with 25,731 inhabitants (2019). The town is the capital of Żagań County in the historic region of Silesia. Previously in the Zielon ...
, split off from Głogów in 1274/1278
***
Oleśnica
Oleśnica (pronounced ; german: Oels; szl, Ôleśnica) is a town in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland, within the Wrocław metropolitan area. It is the administrative seat of Oleśnica County and also of the rural district of ...
, split off from Głogów in 1313
****
Bierutów
Bierutów (german: Bernstadt in Schlesien) is a town in Oleśnica County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. It is the seat of the administrative district (gmina) called Gmina Bierutów. The town lies approximately south-east ...
, split off from Oleśnica in 1412
***
Krosno
Krosno (in full ''The Royal Free City of Krosno'', pl, Królewskie Wolne Miasto Krosno) is a historical town and county in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in southeastern Poland. The estimated population of the town is 47,140 inhabitants as of ...
-
Ścinawa
Ścinawa (german: Steinau an der Oder, links=no) is a town and municipality on the Oder river in the Lower Silesian region of Poland. The Ścinawa train station is a key gateway for travel throughout the region, connecting major destinations su ...
**
Nysa
Nysa may refer to:
Greek Mythology
* Nysa (mythology) or Nyseion, the mountainous region or mount (various traditional locations), where nymphs raised the young god Dionysus
* Nysiads, nymphs of Mount Nysa who cared for and taught the infant ...
, established in 1290
Polish duchies, Bohemian Crown, Hungary, Austria, and Prussia
![Brzeg, zamek elewacja](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7a/Brzeg%2C_zamek_elewacja.JPG)
With the 1335
Treaty of Trentschin
The Treaty of Trentschin was concluded on 24 August 1335 between King Casimir III of Poland and King John of Bohemia as well as his son Margrave Charles IV. The agreement was reached by the agency of Casimir's brother-in-law King Charles I of H ...
(
Trenčín
Trenčín (, also known by other alternative names) is a city in western Slovakia of the central Váh River valley near the Czech border, around from Bratislava. It has a population of more than 55,000, which makes it the eighth largest municip ...
) and the 1348
Treaty of Namysłów
The Treaty of Namslau or Namysłów, also known as the Peace of Namslau/Namysłów, was a peace treaty between King Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor, Charles IV of Bohemia and King Casimir III of Poland. It was signed at Namysłów (german: Namslau ...
, most of the Silesian duchies were ruled by the
Silesian Piast
The Silesian Piasts were the elder of four lines of the Polish Piast dynasty beginning with Władysław II the Exile (1105–1159), eldest son of Duke Bolesław III of Poland. By Bolesław's testament, Władysław was granted Silesia as his her ...
dukes under the feudal overlordship of the
Bohemian kings, and thus became part of the
Crown of Bohemia
The Lands of the Bohemian Crown were a number of incorporated states in Central Europe during the medieval and early modern periods connected by feudal relations under the Bohemian kings. The crown lands primarily consisted of the Kingdom of Bo ...
within the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...
. Many duchies remained Polish-ruled under the houses of Piast,
Jagiellon
The Jagiellonian dynasty (, pl, dynastia jagiellońska), otherwise the Jagiellon dynasty ( pl, dynastia Jagiellonów), the House of Jagiellon ( pl, Dom Jagiellonów), or simply the Jagiellons ( pl, Jagiellonowie), was the name assumed by a cad ...
and
Sobieski, some up to the 17th and 18th century. In 1469, Lower Silesia passed to
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
, and in 1490 it fell back to Bohemia, then ruled by the
Jagiellonian dynasty
The Jagiellonian dynasty (, pl, dynastia jagiellońska), otherwise the Jagiellon dynasty ( pl, dynastia Jagiellonów), the House of Jagiellon ( pl, Dom Jagiellonów), or simply the Jagiellons ( pl, Jagiellonowie), was the name assumed by a cad ...
. In 1476, the Crossen district became part of the
Margraviate of Brandenburg
The Margraviate of Brandenburg (german: link=no, Markgrafschaft Brandenburg) was a major principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1157 to 1806 that played a pivotal role in the history of Germany and Central Europe.
Brandenburg developed out o ...
, when the widow of the Piast ruler, Barbara von Brandenburg, daughter of Elector
Albert Achilles, inherited Crossen. It remained an important center of Polish culture. In 1475
Głogów
Głogów (; german: Glogau, links=no, rarely , cs, Hlohov, szl, Głogōw) is a city in western Poland. It is the county seat of Głogów County, in Lower Silesian Voivodeship (since 1999), and was previously in Legnica Voivodeship (1975–199 ...
-born Polish printer founded the (''Holy Cross Printing House'') in Wrocław, which published the ', the first
incunable
In the history of printing, an incunable or incunabulum (plural incunables or incunabula, respectively), is a book, pamphlet, or broadside that was printed in the earliest stages of printing in Europe, up to the year 1500. Incunabula were pr ...
in Lower Silesia, which also contains the first-ever text printed in the
Polish language
Polish (Polish: ''język polski'', , ''polszczyzna'' or simply ''polski'', ) is a West Slavic language of the Lechitic group written in the Latin script. It is spoken primarily in Poland and serves as the native language of the Poles. In a ...
.
In 1526 Silesia was acquired by
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
's
Habsburg monarchy
The Habsburg monarchy (german: Habsburgermonarchie, ), also known as the Danubian monarchy (german: Donaumonarchie, ), or Habsburg Empire (german: Habsburgerreich, ), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities ...
after the death of King
Louis II of Bohemia. Brandenburg contested the inheritance, citing a treaty made with
Frederick II of Legnica
Frederick II, Duke of Legnica ( pl, Fryderyk II Legnicki) (12 February 1480 – 17 September 1547), also known as the Great of Legnica ( pl, Legnicki Wielki), was a Duke of Legnica from 1488 (until 1495 and 1505 with his brothers), of Brzeg from ...
, but Silesia largely remained under Habsburg control until 1742. In 1675 Duke
George William of Legnica died at the
Brzeg Castle
Brzeg Castle is located in Brzeg, Opole Voivodeship, within the Polish part of the Silesia region. Now a museum, the structures includes the Piast dynasty mausoleum.
Geography
Brzeg Castle is located on a cliff to the west of the Oder River, in ...
, as the last male member of the
Piast dynasty
The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I (c. 930–992). The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of king Casimir III the Great.
Branch ...
, which founded the Polish state in the 10th century. He was buried in
Legnica.
![RBSilezie1878](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e6/RBSilezie1878.png)
Most of Lower Silesia, except for the southern part of the Duchy of Nysa, became part of the
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Re ...
after the
First Silesian War
The First Silesian War (german: Erster Schlesischer Krieg, links=no) was a war between Prussia and Austria that lasted from 1740 to 1742 and resulted in Prussia's seizing most of the region of Silesia (now in south-western Poland) from Austria. T ...
by the 1742
Treaty of Breslau
The Treaty of Breslau was a preliminary peace agreement signed on 11 June 1742 following long negotiations at the Silesian capital Wrocław (german: Breslau) by emissaries of Archduchess Maria Theresa of Austria and King Frederick II of Prussia ...
. In 1815, it became part of the Prussian Province of Silesia, Silesia Province, which was divided into the two Lower Silesian administrative regions (''Regierungsbezirke'') of ''Legnica, Liegnitz'' and ''Breslau'' (sometimes also referred to as Middle Silesia), and Upper Silesian ''Opole, Oppeln'' (including the Lower Silesian districts of Nysa, Poland, Neisse and Grodków, Grottkau). The western ''Liegnitz'' region had been enlarged by the incorporation of the
Upper Lusatia
Upper Lusatia (german: Oberlausitz ; hsb, Hornja Łužica ; dsb, Górna Łužyca; szl, Gōrnŏ Łużyca; pl, Łużyce Górne or ''Milsko''; cz, Horní Lužice) is a historical region in Germany and Poland. Along with Lower Lusatia to the ...
n districts of Lubań, Lauban,
Görlitz
Görlitz (; pl, Zgorzelec, hsb, Zhorjelc, cz, Zhořelec, :de:Ostlausitzer Mundart, East Lusatian dialect: ''Gerlz'', ''Gerltz'', ''Gerltsch'') is a town in the Germany, German state of Saxony. It is located on the Lusatian Neisse River, and ...
, Rothenburg, Oberlausitz, Rothenburg and
Hoyerswerda
Hoyerswerda () or Wojerecy () is a major district town in the district of Bautzen in the German state of Saxony. It is located in the Sorbian settlement area of Upper Lusatia, a region where some people speak the Sorbian language in addition to G ...
, all seized from the
Kingdom of Saxony
The Kingdom of Saxony (german: Königreich Sachsen), lasting from 1806 to 1918, was an independent member of a number of historical confederacies in Napoleonic through post-Napoleonic Germany. The kingdom was formed from the Electorate of Saxon ...
after the
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
. From 1871, Lower Silesia was part of the
German Empire
The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...
.
As a result of long lasting Ostsiedlung, German colonization and Germanisation, by the beginning of the 20th century Lower Silesia had a majority German-speaking population, with the exception of a small Polish language, Polish-speaking area in the northeastern part of the district of Namysłów, Namslau (Namysłów), Syców, Groß Wartenberg (Syców) and Milicz, Militsch (Milicz) and a Czech-speaking minority in the rural area around Strzelin, Strehlen (Strzelin). There were also Polish communities in large cities such as Breslau (Wrocław) and Zielona Góra, Grünberg (Zielona Góra). After the First World War, the bulk of Lower Silesia remained within Germany, the Bohemian part was included within
Czechoslovakia
, rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי,
, common_name = Czechoslovakia
, life_span = 1918–19391945–1992
, p1 = Austria-Hungary
, image_p1 ...
, and a small part was reintegrated with Second Polish Republic, Poland, which just regained independence. The German part was re-organized into the Province of Lower Silesia of the Free State of Prussia consisting of the ''Breslau'' and ''Liegnitz'' regions. In the interwar period, there were multiple instances of Anti-Polish sentiment, anti-Polish violence in the German part, and already in 1920 a Polish consulate in Wrocław was attacked and demolished by German nationalists. In the 1930s Poles and Jews were increasingly persecuted in the German-controlled part of the region.
World War II
![Gross-Rosen - brama wjazdowa](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/Gross-Rosen_-_brama_wjazdowa.jpg)
During World War II the Germans established the Gross-Rosen concentration camp with around 100 List of subcamps of Gross-Rosen, subcamps in the region, in which around 125,000 people of various nationalities, among them mostly Jews, Poles and citizens of the Soviet Union, were imprisoned, and around 40,000 died. Also several German prisoner-of-war camps, including Stalag VIII-A, Stalag VIII-C, Stalag VIII-E, Stalag Luft III, Oflag VIII-B, Oflag VIII-F, with numerous Forced labour under German rule during World War II, forced labour subcamps were located in the region, as well as various subcamps of the Stalag VIII-B, Stalag VIII-B/344 POW camp. POWs of various nationalities were held in those camps, including Poles, French people, Frenchmen, Belgians, Britons, Italians, Canadians, Americans, Greeks, Yugoslavians, Russians, Australians, New Zealanders, South Africans, Norwegians, Lithuanians, Slovaks, etc. In the final stages of the war it was the site of several The March (1945), death marches perpetrated by Nazi Germany.
In view of Polish claims to the area, a memorandum prepared by the United States Department of State in May 1945 recommended that the area stay with Germany because there was "no historic or ethnic justification" for granting this land to Poland.
However, according to Soviet insistence at the Potsdam Agreement, in which the Soviet Union annexed most of the eastern Poland, Lower Silesia went to the
Republic of Poland. These border shifts were agreed on pending a final peace conference with Germany which eventually never took place. Germany retained the small portion of the former Prussian Province of Lower Silesia to the west of the
Oder-Neisse line.
Modern Poland
The remaining
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
population Expulsion of Germans after World War II, was expelled from the bulk of Lower Silesia east of the Neisse in accordance with the Potsdam Agreement. Poles from Central Poland and the Polish areas annexed by the Soviet Union came to the region.
From 1945 to 1975 Lower Silesia was administered within the Wrocław Voivodeship. As a result of the Local Government Reorganisation Act (1975), Poland's administration was reorganized into 49 voivodeships, four of them in Lower Silesia: Jelenia Góra Voivodeship, Jelenia Góra, Legnica Voivodeship, Legnica, Wałbrzych Voivodeship, Wałbrzych, and Wrocław Voivodeships (1975–1998). As a result of the Local Government Reorganisation Act of 1998, these four provinces were joined into the
Lower Silesian Voivodeship (effective 1 January 1999), whose capital is Wrocław.
Population
At the close of the classical antiquity, classical period the region was inhabited by Germanic Tribes, who during the
Migration Period
The Migration Period was a period in European history marked by large-scale migrations that saw the fall of the Western Roman Empire and subsequent settlement of its former territories by various tribes, and the establishment of the post-Roman ...
moved westward to the lands of modern Germany and France and were replaced in Lower Silesia by Lechites, Lechitic tribes. Centuries later, German settlers came to Lower Silesia during the Late Middle Ages, attracted by newly founded towns to develop the region. Over time, the autochthonous Polish population became partly
Germanised
Germanisation, or Germanization, is the spread of the German language, people and culture. It was a central idea of German conservative thought in the 19th and the 20th centuries, when conservatism and ethnic nationalism went hand in hand. In ling ...
and took up the German language as well, however, notable Polish communities survived, especially in northern Lower Silesia, and in larger cities. In year 1819, the Breslau Regency had 833,253 inhabitants, the majority of whom—755,553 (90%)—were German-speakers; with a Polish-speaking minority numbering 66,500 (8%); as well as 3,900 Czechs (1%) and 7,300 Jews (1%).
U.S. Immigration Commission in 1911 classified Polish-speaking Silesians as ethnic Poles. After World War II, German inhabitants that had not fled the area due to the war, were expelled, and the region was resettled by Poles from former eastern Poland, which was Territories of Poland annexed by the Soviet Union, annexed by the Soviet Union, as well as from other regions, making Polish minority majority again. In 1948–1954 Greeks and Macedonians (ethnic group), Macedonians, refugees of the Greek Civil War, came to Lower Silesia. They were temporarily admitted in five towns and villages in the region and afterwards finally settled in various cities and counties, although in the next decades some returned to Greece, and some emigrated to other countries. The largest Greek-Macedonian communities were located in Zgorzelec, Wrocław,
Świdnica
Świdnica (; german: Schweidnitz; cs, Svídnice; szl, Świdńica) is a city in south-western Poland in the region of Silesia. As of 2019, it has a population of 57,014 inhabitants. It lies in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, being the seventh large ...
and Wałbrzych.
Cities and towns
![Ratusz2noc](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b1/Ratusz2noc.jpg)
Towns with over 20,000 inhabitants:
*
Wrocław
Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...
*
Zielona Góra
Zielona Góra is the largest city in Lubusz Voivodeship, located in western Poland, with 140,403 inhabitants (2021). Zielona Góra has a favourable geographical position, being close to the Polish-German border and on several international road ...
* Wałbrzych
*
Legnica
* Jelenia Góra
* Lubin
*
Głogów
Głogów (; german: Glogau, links=no, rarely , cs, Hlohov, szl, Głogōw) is a city in western Poland. It is the county seat of Głogów County, in Lower Silesian Voivodeship (since 1999), and was previously in Legnica Voivodeship (1975–199 ...
*
Świdnica
Świdnica (; german: Schweidnitz; cs, Svídnice; szl, Świdńica) is a city in south-western Poland in the region of Silesia. As of 2019, it has a population of 57,014 inhabitants. It lies in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, being the seventh large ...
*
Bolesławiec
Bolesławiec (pronounced , szl, Bolesławiec, german: Bunzlau) is a historic city situated on the Bóbr River in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in western Poland. It is the administrative seat of Bolesławiec County, and of Gmina Bolesławiec, ...
* Nowa Sól
* Oleśnica
* Brzeg
* Dzierżoniów
*
Oława
Oława (pronounced , , szl, Oława) is a historic town in south-western Poland with 33,029 inhabitants (2019). It is situated in Lower Silesian Voivodeship (from 1975–1998 it was in the former Wrocław Voivodeship), within the Wrocław ...
* Bielawa
* Żagań
* Jawor
* Świebodzice
* Polkowice
* Nowa Ruda
*
Świebodzin
Świebodzin (; szl, Świybodzin; german: Schwiebus) is a town in western Poland with 21,736 inhabitants (2019). It is the capital of Świebodzin County. Since the Local Government Reorganization Act of 1998, Świebodzin has been part of Lubusz ...
* Jelcz-Laskowice
Silesian traditions in Upper Lusatia
![Radmeritz Stift Joachimstein-02](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/35/Radmeritz_Stift_Joachimstein-02.jpg)
Eastern parts of
Upper Lusatia
Upper Lusatia (german: Oberlausitz ; hsb, Hornja Łužica ; dsb, Górna Łužyca; szl, Gōrnŏ Łużyca; pl, Łużyce Górne or ''Milsko''; cz, Horní Lužice) is a historical region in Germany and Poland. Along with Lower Lusatia to the ...
also formed part of Silesia in the early 14th century, as part of the Duchy of Jawor of fragmented Poland,
[Gustav Köhler, ''Der Bund der Sechsstädte in der Ober-Lausitz: Eine Jubelschrift'', G. Heinze & Comp., Görlitz, 1846, p. 11] and again from 1815 to 1945, when the area was annexed from Kingdom of Saxony, Saxony by Kingdom of Prussia, Prussia and included within the
Province of Silesia
The Province of Silesia (german: Provinz Schlesien; pl, Prowincja Śląska; szl, Prowincyjŏ Ślōnskŏ) was a province of Prussia from 1815 to 1919. The Silesia region was part of the Prussian realm since 1740 and established as an official p ...
and later of Province of Lower Silesia, Lower Silesia. During this time Silesian culture and the
Silesian German
Silesian (Silesian: ', german: Schlesisch), Silesian German or Lower Silesian is a nearly extinct German dialect spoken in Silesia. It is part of the East Central German language area with some West Slavic and Lechitic influences. Silesian G ...
dialect spread into this region with its centre
Görlitz
Görlitz (; pl, Zgorzelec, hsb, Zhorjelc, cz, Zhořelec, :de:Ostlausitzer Mundart, East Lusatian dialect: ''Gerlz'', ''Gerltz'', ''Gerltsch'') is a town in the Germany, German state of Saxony. It is located on the Lusatian Neisse River, and ...
. The expulsion of the Germans from the east of the Oder-Neisse line led to an additional settlement of German Silesians in this region.
Due to these facts, some of the inhabitants of this region still consider themselves
Silesia
Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...
n and cultivate Silesian customs. One of their special privileges is the right to use the Lower Silesian flag and coat of arms which is guaranteed to them by the Saxon Constitution of 1992. The Evangelical Church of Silesia in Upper Lusatia, meanwhile, merged with the one of Berlin and Brandenburg to form the Evangelical Church of Berlin-Brandenburg-Silesian Upper Lusatia.
Towns
The main cities within the former province of Lower Silesia west of the
Oder-Neisse line are (Upper Sorbian names in italics):
*
Görlitz
Görlitz (; pl, Zgorzelec, hsb, Zhorjelc, cz, Zhořelec, :de:Ostlausitzer Mundart, East Lusatian dialect: ''Gerlz'', ''Gerltz'', ''Gerltsch'') is a town in the Germany, German state of Saxony. It is located on the Lusatian Neisse River, and ...
(Zhorjelc)
*
Hoyerswerda
Hoyerswerda () or Wojerecy () is a major district town in the district of Bautzen in the German state of Saxony. It is located in the Sorbian settlement area of Upper Lusatia, a region where some people speak the Sorbian language in addition to G ...
(Wojerecy)
* Weißwasser/O.L. (Běła Woda)
* Niesky (Niska)
The main Lusatian cities within the former Duchy of Jawor and province of Lower Silesia east of Lusatian Neisse, now within Lower Silesian Voivodship are:
* Zgorzelec (formerly part of Görlitz)
* Lubań
* Bogatynia
Tourism
![Ksiaz - zamek 01](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/Ksiaz_-_zamek_01.jpg)
The international airport is located in
Wrocław
Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...
– Wrocław – Copernicus Airport.
The A4 autostrada (Poland), A4 motorway and A18 autostrada (Poland), A18 motorway run through Lower Silesia.
Lower Silesia is one of the most visited regions in Poland. It is famous for a large number of castles and palaces (more than 100), inter alia: Książ Castle, Czocha Castle, Grodziec Castle, Gola Dzierżoniowska Castle, Oleśnica Castle, Kamieniec Ząbkowicki Palace. There is also a lot in the List of castles and palaces in Jelenia Góra valley, Jelenia Góra valley.
The most widely visited city is
Wrocław
Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...
where the Festival of Good Beer is held every year on the second weekend of June.
Other highlights:
Kłodzko Fortress, Srebrna Góra, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, Fort Srebrna Góra, Project Riese, Wambierzyce, Legnickie Pole, Oleśnica Mała, Lubiąż Abbey, Grüssau Abbey, Krzeszów, Henryków, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, Henryków, Vang Stave Church, Churches of Peace,
Mount Ślęża
Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest.
Mount or Mounts may also refer to:
Places
* Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England
* Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, ...
, Table Mountains,
Owl Mountains
The Owl Mountains ( pl, Góry Sowie, cs, Soví hory, german: Eulengebirge) are a mountain range of the Central Sudetes in southwestern Poland. It includes a protected area called Owl Mountains Landscape Park.
Geography
The Owl Mountains cover ...
, Krkonoše, Karkonosze, Główny Szlak Sudecki, Main Sudetes Trail (440 km from Świeradów Zdrój to Prudnik), Barycz (river), Barycz Valley Landscape Park.
Sport
![Stadion Wroclaw 2011-11-18](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/Stadion_Wroclaw_2011-11-18.jpg)
Among the most accomplished sports clubs in Lower Silesia are football clubs Śląsk Wrocław and Zagłębie Lubin, Motorcycle speedway, speedway clubs Falubaz Zielona Góra and Sparta Wrocław, basketball clubs Śląsk Wrocław (basketball), Śląsk Wrocław, Basket Zielona Góra, Górnik Wałbrzych (basketball), Górnik Wałbrzych and handball club Śląsk Wrocław (handball), Śląsk Wrocław.
Every year in September,
Wrocław
Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...
Marathon is organized.
See also
* Koleje Dolnośląskie
* Izera railway
* Silesia Walls
* Chrobry fortified village in Szprotawa
* Project Riese
References
Sources
* Urbanek M., (2003), Dolny Śląsk. Siedem stron świata., MAK publishing, Wrocław, p. 240 + CD-ROM
* Śląsk na weekend – touristic guide, Pascal publishing
External links
Lower Silesian Voivodeship WebsiteLower Silesian official website for tourist information
{{authority control
Geography of Lower Silesian Voivodeship, *
Czech geographic history
Historical regions in Poland
Lower Silesia,