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Austrian Silesia, (historically also ''Oesterreichisch-Schlesien, Oesterreichisch Schlesien, österreichisch Schlesien''); cs, Rakouské Slezsko; pl, Śląsk Austriacki officially the Duchy of Upper and Lower Silesia, (historically ''Herzogthum Ober- und Niederschlesien''); cs, Vévodství Horní a Dolní Slezsko; pl, Księstwo Górnego i Dolnego Śląska was an autonomous region of the Kingdom of Bohemia and the
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 ...
(from 1804 the Austrian Empire, and from 1867
Cisleithania Cisleithania, also ''Zisleithanien'' sl, Cislajtanija hu, Ciszlajtánia cs, Předlitavsko sk, Predlitavsko pl, Przedlitawia sh-Cyrl-Latn, Цислајтанија, Cislajtanija ro, Cisleithania uk, Цислейтанія, Tsysleitaniia it, Cislei ...
n Austria-Hungary). It is largely coterminous with the present-day region of Czech Silesia and was, historically, part of the larger Silesia region.


Geography

Austrian Silesia consisted of two territories, separated by the Moravian land strip of
Moravská Ostrava Ostrava (; pl, Ostrawa; german: Ostrau ) is a city in the north-east of the Czech Republic, and the capital of the Moravian-Silesian Region. It has about 280,000 inhabitants. It lies from the border with Poland, at the confluences of four rive ...
between the
Ostravice Ostravice (german: Ostrawitz, pl, Ostrawica) is a municipality and village in Frýdek-Místek District in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,400 inhabitants. Geography Ostravice is located about south of Frýdek- ...
and
Oder The Oder ( , ; Czech, Lower Sorbian and ; ) is a river in Central Europe. It is Poland's second-longest river in total length and third-longest within its borders after the Vistula and Warta. The Oder rises in the Czech Republic and flows thr ...
rivers. The area east of the Ostravice around Cieszyn reached from the heights of the Western Carpathians ( Silesian Beskids) in the south, where it bordered with the Kingdom of Hungary, along the
Olza Olza may refer to: *Olza (river), a river in the Czech Republic and Poland *Olza, Silesian Voivodeship, a village in Poland *Cendea de Olza/Oltza Zendea, a municipality in Spain *SS Olza, SS ''Olza'', a Polish ship {{disambig ...
and upper Vistula rivers to the border with
Prussian 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 ...
in the north. In the east the Biała river at Bielsko separated it from the
Lesser Polish Lesser Poland, often known by its Polish name Małopolska ( la, Polonia Minor), is a historical region situated in southern and south-eastern Poland. Its capital and largest city is Kraków. Throughout centuries, Lesser Poland developed a s ...
lands of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, incorporated into the Austrian Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria upon the First Partition of Poland in 1772. The territory west of the Oder river stretching from the town of
Opava Opava (; german: Troppau, pl, Opawa) is a city in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 55,000 inhabitants. It lies on the river Opava (river), Opava. Opava is one of the historical centres of Silesia. It was a histori ...
up to Bílá Voda was confined by the Jeseníky mountain range of the eastern
Sudetes The Sudetes ( ; pl, Sudety; german: Sudeten; cs, Krkonošsko-jesenická subprovincie), commonly known as the Sudeten Mountains, is a geomorphological subprovince in Central Europe, shared by Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic. They consis ...
in the south, separating it from Moravia, and the
Opava Opava (; german: Troppau, pl, Opawa) is a city in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 55,000 inhabitants. It lies on the river Opava (river), Opava. Opava is one of the historical centres of Silesia. It was a histori ...
river in the north. In the west the Golden Mountains formed the border with the County of Kladsko.


History

The area originally formed the south-eastern part of the Medieval Duchy of Silesia. During the 14th century the Dukes of Silesia were vassals of the King of Bohemia. As part of the Lands of the Bohemian Crown, Silesia was inherited by the
Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...
Archduke Ferdinand I of Austria in 1526, after King
Louis II of Bohemia Louis II ( cs, Ludvík, hr, Ludovik , hu, Lajos, sk, Ľudovít; 1 July 1506 – 29 August 1526) was King of Hungary, Croatia and Bohemia from 1516 to 1526. He was killed during the Battle of Mohács fighting the Ottomans, whose victory led to ...
had died at the
Battle of Mohács The Battle of Mohács (; hu, mohácsi csata, tr, Mohaç Muharebesi or Mohaç Savaşı) was fought on 29 August 1526 near Mohács, Kingdom of Hungary, between the forces of the Kingdom of Hungary and its allies, led by Louis II, and those ...
. With the female succession of the Habsburg empress
Maria Theresa Maria Theresa Walburga Amalia Christina (german: Maria Theresia; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was ruler of the Habsburg dominions from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position ''suo jure'' (in her own right). ...
to the throne in 1740, the Prussian king Frederick the Great laid claim to the Silesian province and, without waiting for any reply, on 16 December started the First Silesian War, thereby opening the larger War of the Austrian Succession. His campaign was concluded in 1742 with the Prussian victory at the Battle of Chotusitz leading to the treaties of Breslau and Berlin, in which Silesia was divided. Under the terms of the treaty, the Kingdom of Prussia received most of the territory including the Bohemian County of Kladsko, while only a small part of southeastern Silesia remained with the
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 ...
, consisting of: *the Upper Silesian
duchy of Teschen The Duchy of Teschen (german: Herzogtum Teschen), also Duchy of Cieszyn ( pl, Księstwo Cieszyńskie) or Duchy of Těšín ( cs, Těšínské knížectví), was one of the Duchies of Silesia centered on Cieszyn () in Upper Silesia. It was split o ...
(Cieszyn) *parts of the former Moravian
Duchy of Opava The Principality of Opava ( cs, Opavské knížectví; pl, Księstwo Opawskie) or Duchy of Troppau (german: Herzogtum Troppau) was a historic territory split off from the Margraviate of Moravia before 1269 by King Ottokar II of Bohemia to prov ...
with Duchy of Krnov south of the Opava River, comprising several Moravian enclaves. *the southern part of the Lower Silesian
Duchy of Nysa The Duchy of Nysa ( pl, Księstwo Nyskie, cs, Niské knížectví) or Duchy of Neisse (german: Herzogtum Neisse) was one of the duchies of Silesia with its capital at Nysa in Lower Silesia. Alongside the Duchy of Siewierz, it was the only eccle ...
around Jeseník forming the Duchy of Upper and Lower Silesia, which remained a Bohemian crown land with its capital in the city of
Opava Opava (; german: Troppau, pl, Opawa) is a city in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 55,000 inhabitants. It lies on the river Opava (river), Opava. Opava is one of the historical centres of Silesia. It was a histori ...
. In 1766 the title of a Duke of Teschen was granted to Prince Albert of Saxony, son-in-law of Maria Theresa, while the title of a Duke of Troppau and Jägerndorf remained with the Princely Family of Liechtenstein. The Nysa territory was held by the
Bishops of Wrocław A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
with their residence at Castle Jánský vrch ''(Johannisberg)''. When in 1804 the Habsurg emperor Francis II established the Austrian Empire, his title would include the "Duke of Upper and Lower Silesia". Austrian Silesia was connected by rail with the Austrian capital Vienna, when the Emperor Ferdinand Northern Railway line was extended to Bohumín station in 1847. In the course of the
Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 The Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 (german: Ausgleich, hu, Kiegyezés) established the dual monarchy of Austria-Hungary. The Compromise only partially re-established the former pre-1848 sovereignty and status of the Kingdom of Hungary ...
the Duchy of Upper and Lower Silesia became a crown land of Cisleithanian Austria. In November 1918 the Dual Monarchy was abolished. The major part of Austrian Silesia was ceded to the newly created state of Czechoslovakia by the 1919 Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, with the exception of Cieszyn Silesia (the former Duchy of Teschen), which after the Polish–Czechoslovak War was split in 1920 along the
Olza Olza may refer to: *Olza (river), a river in the Czech Republic and Poland *Olza, Silesian Voivodeship, a village in Poland *Cendea de Olza/Oltza Zendea, a municipality in Spain *SS Olza, SS ''Olza'', a Polish ship {{disambig ...
river with its eastern part falling to the
Autonomous Silesian Voivodeship In developmental psychology and moral, political, and bioethical philosophy, autonomy, from , ''autonomos'', from αὐτο- ''auto-'' "self" and νόμος ''nomos'', "law", hence when combined understood to mean "one who gives oneself one's ...
of Poland. Smaller parts of the duchy also became a part of Poland, while the adjacent
Hlučín Region Hlučín Region ( cs, Hlučínsko, german: Hultschiner Ländchen, pl, Ziemia hulczyńska) is a historically significant part of Czech Silesia, now part of the Moravian-Silesian Region in the Czech Republic. It is named after its largest town, Hlu ...
of Prussian Silesia fell to Czechoslovakia.


Demographics

According to an Austrian census, Austrian Silesia in 1910 was home to 756,949 people, speaking the following languages: *43% -
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 **Ger ...
*31% -
Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...
*24% - Czech


Major towns

Towns with more than 5,000 people in 1880:


Linguistic distribution (1851 - 1910)


Linguistic distribution by district (1910)


Administration

The Duchy of Upper and Lower Silesia was originally divided into the two districts ''(
Bezirke The German term ''Bezirk'' (plural ''Bezirke'', derived from la, circulus, "circle") translated as "district" can refer to the following types of administrative divisions: * '' Stadtbezirk'', a subdivision of a city in the sense of a borough (e ...
)'' of Teschen (''Těšínský kraj'', pop. 213,040 in 1847) and Troppau (''Opavský kraj'', pop. 260,199) with its seat at Krnov. In eastern Teschen, the autonomous
Duchy of Bielsko The Duchy of Bielsko (german: freie Standesherrschaft Bielitz, Fürstentum Bielitz, Herzogtum Bielitz, la, status minores Bilicensis, status maiores Bilicensis, ducatus Bilicensis, pl, księstwo bielskie, cs, Bílské knížectví ) was one of th ...
was established in 1754. Upon the Revolutions of 1848 and up to its dissolution Austrian Silesia was intermittently re-organised into the districts of: * Bielitz ( Bielsko) *
Freistadt Freistadt (, literally "Freetown") is a small Austrian town in the state of Upper Austria in the region Mühlviertel. With a population of approximately 7,500 residents, it is a trade centre for local villages. Freistadt is the economic centre of ...
( Fryštát) *Freiwaldau ( Frývaldov) *Freudenthal (
Bruntál Bruntál (; german: Freudenthal) is a town in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 16,000 inhabitants. It is located in the historical region of Czech Silesia. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected ...
) * Friedek ( Frýdek) *Jägerndorf ( Krnov) * Teschen ( Cieszyn/Těšín) *Troppau (
Opava Opava (; german: Troppau, pl, Opawa) is a city in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 55,000 inhabitants. It lies on the river Opava (river), Opava. Opava is one of the historical centres of Silesia. It was a histori ...
) *Wagstadt ( Bilovec). For example, in 1900, there were 8 ''Bezirkshauptmannschaften'' in Austrian Silesia (in comparison to above list without Frydek).Die postalischen Abstempelungen auf den österreichischen Postwertzeichen-Ausgaben 1867, 1883 und 1890, Wilhelm KLEIN, 1967


Notes


References


External links

{{Authority control States and territories disestablished in 1918 States and territories established in 1742 Habsburg Silesia Subdivisions of Austria-Hungary Lands of the Empire of Austria (1867–1918) Former Slavic countries 1742 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1742 establishments in the Habsburg Monarchy History of Czech Silesia Former monarchies of Europe