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German: Breslau, [ˈbʁɛslaʊ] ⓘ, also known by other names) is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, roughly 40 kilometres (25 mi) from the Sudeten Mountains to the south.
Wroclaw, or Breslau as it had then been known for 200 years, was so Germanised by that time that it eventually became the last stronghold of the Nazis. It was the last town to surrender to the Soviets, after a 14-week siege, on May 6th 1945.
- Duncan Rhodes
- Overview
- History
- The contemporary city
Wrocław, city, capital of Dolnośląskie województwo (province), southwestern Poland. It lies along the Oder River at its confluence with the Oława, Ślęza, Bystrzyca, and Widawa rivers. A large industrial centre situated in Dolny Śląsk (Lower Silesia), Wrocław is the fourth largest city in Poland. Pop. (2011) 630,131; (2017 est.) 638,586.
Archaeological findings indicate settlement on the site as early as the Stone Age, several thousand years ago. Wrocław originated in the 10th century ce at the crossroads of the amber trade route between the Roman Empire and the Baltic Sea and the trade route linking the Black Sea to western Europe; it was administered by the Polish Piast kings. In 1000 King Bolesław I (the Brave) fortified the place and established a bishopric on Ostrów Tumski (“Cathedral Island”). In 1109 a major attack by German forces was repelled at nearby Psie Pole. In 1138 Wrocław became the first capital of all Silesia under the rule of the Piast prince Władysław II (the Exile). Much of the city south of the Oder River was devastated during the Mongol invasion in 1241. At the invitation of Silesian authorities in the 13th century, many Germans migrated to Wrocław. The city received self-governing rights in 1261, when it adopted the Magdeburg Law (Magdeburger Recht), a civic constitution based on German law. Wrocław again flourished as an economic centre. Nearby to the east a “new town” was developed; it was united with the older city in 1327. In 1335 Wrocław passed to Bohemia with the rest of Silesia, and in 1526 it passed to the Habsburgs. In 1741 the city, which had for centuries had a large German population, fell to Prussia under the rule of Frederick II (the Great) and eventually became part of Germany.
The city grew physically with the razing of its fortifications, and by 1910 its inhabitants numbered more than 500,000. During World War II the Nazis refortified the city, holding it until May 1945, when Soviet troops defeated the remaining German forces. In August 1945 Wrocław became part of Poland. The city’s German inhabitants fled westward during 1944–45 or were evacuated in subsequent years, and thenceforth the population was exclusively Polish.
As a direct result of fighting during World War II, 90 percent of the city’s industry and 70 percent of its residential area were heavily damaged or entirely destroyed. Reconstruction of the city began immediately, and by 1950 more than 50,000 new houses had been built, with an additional 50,000 by 1965. The university and many other fine architectural monuments were reconstructed, and modern industrial districts were built to house the growing population. The present-day city prides itself on its numerous parks and restored historical treasures.
Wrocław contains Poland’s largest flour mills, an electronics and data-processing industry, foundries, heavy-machinery plants, textile mills, the Hutmen copper plant, and food-processing facilities. It is a major communications centre, having international rail connections, an international airport, and river transport.
A cultural and scientific centre, Wrocław contains numerous educational institutions (including the University of Wrocław, founded in 1702 and rebuilt in 1945), museums, theatres and music centres, and a botanical garden and zoo. Buildings of historical interest include the cluster of churches at Ostrów Tumski, the Gothic town hall, and the Aula Leopoldina, a Baroque assembly hall at the university. Centennial Hall (1911–13), a noted example of reinforced-concrete architecture, was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2006. The city hosts the Jazz on the Oder Festival and the “Wratislavia Cantans,” an oratorio and cantata festival that ranks as one of the most important music events in Poland. It was the home of the Polish Laboratory Theatre, which was internationally famous for its innovative approaches to actor training and dramatic production in the 1960s and ’70s.
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- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Oct 19, 2012 · After a long period of trying to obfuscate its history, Wroclaw – once the German city of Breslau before being transferred to Poland after World War II – is now coming to terms with its past.
Both the Polish 'Wrocław' (which apparently predates the German) and German 'Breslau' are thought to have been derived from the Czech ' Vratislava ,' as the city was likely known in the 10th century - an homage to Duke Vratislav I of Bohemia, who ruled these lands from 915 to 921 AD.
Jan 17, 2016 · More than 40,000 people in “Fortress Breslau” paid for Nazi obduracy with their lives. Soon, as it fell under Soviet dominion, the pulverised city and its region became part of Poland as the...
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The history of Wrocław starts at a crossroads in Lower Silesia. It was one of the centres of the Duchy and then Kingdom of Poland, and briefly, in the first half of the 13th century, the centre of half of the divided Kingdom of Poland.
