Silesia Language(s): Silesian language, Polish language, German language, Czech language Time zone: CET (UTC+1) CEST (UTC+2)

Contents 1 Extent 2 Etymology 3 History 3.1 Early people 3.2 Middle Ages 3.3 Silesian duchies 3.4 Protestant Reformation 3.5 Thirty Years' War 3.6 Kingdom of Prussia 3.7 Silesia in Germany and Austria 3.8 Interwar period 3.9 World War II 3.10 Silesia after World War II 4 Natural resources 5 Demographics 6 Cities in Silesia 7 See also 8 Footnotes 9 References 10 Further reading 11 External links

Silesia (in English, pronounced /saɪˈlɪːʃə/, Czech: Slezsko; German: Schlesien (help·info); Latin: Silesia; Polish: Śląsk; Silesian: Ślůnsk) is a historical region of Central Europe located in contemporary Poland, the Czech Republic and Germany. A national language is a Language (or language variant, ie Dialect) which has some connection - de facto or de jure - with Silesian or Upper Silesian (Silesian Ślůnsko godka, Slezsky jazyk Język śląski is a Slavic language or dialect spoken in the region of Polish ( język polski, polszczyzna) is the Official language of Poland. The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. Czech (ˈʧɛk čeština ˈʧɛʃcɪna in Czech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers it is the majority language in the Central European Time ( CET) is one of the names of the Time zone that is 1 hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. Central European Summer Time ( CEST) is one of the names of UTC+2 Time zone, 2 hours ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. Czech (ˈʧɛk čeština ˈʧɛʃcɪna in Czech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers it is the majority language in the The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. Latin ( lingua Latīna, laˈtiːna is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Polish ( język polski, polszczyzna) is the Official language of Poland. Silesian or Upper Silesian (Silesian Ślůnsko godka, Slezsky jazyk Język śląski is a Slavic language or dialect spoken in the region of Central Europe is the Region lying between the variously and vaguely defined areas of Eastern and Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland The Czech Republic ( ˈt͡ʃɛskaː ˈrɛpuˌblɪka short form in Česko ˈt͡ʃɛskɔ also called Czechia, Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. It is rich in mineral and natural resources and home to large amounts of industry. The largest cities are Wrocław, Katowice, and Ostrava. Wrocław (Breslau Vratislav Vratislavia or Wratislavia Yiddish: ברעסלוי) is the chief City of the historical region of Lower Silesia Katowice (Katovice Kattowitz is a City in Silesia in southern Poland, on the Kłodnica Ostrava ( pronounced, Ostrau Ostrawa is the third largest city in the Czech Republic, however it is the second largest urban agglomeration after Prague

Geographically, the area is very accessible but terminates within several mountain ranges making it historically a border region when incorporated amongst larger nation-states. It is primarily located in a swath flanking along both banks of the upper and middle Oder River, but extends to the upper Vistula River, and into and along the Sudetes, and arms of the Carpathian (both the Silesian Beskids, Silesian-Moravian Beskids) mountain ranges. The Oder (known in Czech and Polish as Odra) is a River in Central Europe. The Sudetes (suˈdiːtiːz is a Mountain range in Central Europe. The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians (Carpaţi Czech, Polish and Slovak: Karpaty; Ukrainian: Карпати Silesian Beskids ( Polish:, Czech:, Schlesischen Beskiden is one of the Beskids Mountain ranges in Outer Western Carpathians The Moravian-Silesian Beskids ( Czech:) is a mountain range in the Czech Republic with a small part reaching to Slovakia.

As a region, "national" ownership and borders have changed radically over the past millennium both as a heredity possession of noble houses or after the rise of modern nation-states — but, at present, most of the area is now within the borders of Poland where it is administered by the following sub-divisions: Silesian Voivodeship, Opole Voivodeship, Lower Silesian Voivodeship and Lubusz Voivodeship. A millennium (pl millennia) is a period of Time equal to one thousand Years (from Latin la mille, thousand and la annum Feudalism, a term first used in the early modern period (17th century in its most classic sense refers to a Medieval Europe Political system composed The term modern period or modern era (sometimes also modern times) is the period of history that followed the Middle Ages between c For the online game see Jennifer Government NationStates. The nation-state is a certain form of State that derives its legitimacy Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland Examples of administrative divisions English terms In many of the following terms corresponding to British cultural influence areas of relatively low mean population Silesian Voivodeship (also known as Silesia Province or by its Polish name of województwo śląskie or simply Śląskie) is a Voivodeship Opole Voivodeship (also known as Opole Province or by its Polish name of województwo opolskie or simply Opolskie; Woiwodschaft Oppeln/Oppelner Schlesien Lower Silesian Voivodeship (also known as Lower Silesia Province or by its Polish name of województwo dolnośląskie {{IPA-pl|d|o|l|n|o|'|ś|l|ą|s|k|j|e}} Lubusz Voivodeship (also known as Lubusz Province or by its Polish name of województwo lubuskie or simply Lubuskie) is a voivodeship (province Additional parts of the region are now in the Czech Republic (Czech Silesia) and Germany (Silesian-Lusatian Region or Silesian Lusatia: Ger: Niederschlesien-Oberlausitz/Schlesische Oberlausitz). The Czech Republic ( ˈt͡ʃɛskaː ˈrɛpuˌblɪka short form in Česko ˈt͡ʃɛskɔ also called Czechia, Czech Silesia (České Slezsko is one of the three Czech lands and a section of the Silesian historical region Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages.

Silesia has been inhabited from time immemorial by people of multiple ethnic groups. Time immemorial is a phrase meaning time extending beyond the reach of Memory, record or Tradition. Germanic tribes were first recorded within Silesia in the 1st century. The Germanic tribes referred to as East Germanic constitute a wave of Migrants who may have moved from Scandinavia into the area between the Oder Slavic peoples arrived in this territory around the 6th century. The first known states in Silesia were those of Greater Moravia and Bohemia. Great Moravia (see Name section was a Slavic state that existed in Central Europe from the 9th century to the early 10th century Bohemia (Čechy; Bohemia Czechy is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands, currently the In the 10th century, Mieszko I incorporated Silesia into the Polish state. Life In 965 Mieszko married Dobrawa (Dobrava Dubrawka daughter of Boleslav I, Duke of Bohemia.

In the Middle Ages, Silesia was divided among many independent duchies ruled by various Silesian dukes of the Piast dynasty. In accordance with the last will and testament of Poland's Duke Bolesław III Wrymouth, Poland was upon his death divided into 4-5 hereditary provinces distributed among his Piast dynasty is the name used since the 17th century for Polish Royal Dynasty that ruled Poland from its beginnings as Duchy ruled by Mieszko During this time, cultural and ethnic German influence increased due to immigrants from the German-speaking components of the Holy Roman Empire. The German people (Deutsche are an Ethnic group, in the sense of sharing a common German culture, descent and speaking the German language as Germanisation (also spelled Germanization) is either the spread of the German language, people and culture either by force or Assimilation This article covers the medieval eastward migrations of Germans The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. The Holy Roman Empire ( HRE; German Heiliges Römisches Reich (HRR, Latin Sacrum Romanum Imperium (SRI was a union of territories in Between the years 1289–1292 Bohemian king Wenceslaus II became suzerain of some Upper Silesian duchies. Wenceslaus II Premyslid (Václav II Wacław II Czeski September 27, 1271 &ndash June 21, 1305) was King of Bohemia (1278 - 1305 Silesia subsequently became a possession of the Bohemian crown under the Holy Roman Empire in the 14th century, and passed with that crown to the Habsburg Monarchy of Austria in 1526. Bohemia (Čechy; Bohemia Czechy is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands, currently the The Holy Roman Empire ( HRE; German Heiliges Römisches Reich (HRR, Latin Sacrum Romanum Imperium (SRI was a union of territories in Habsburg Monarchy (alternatively Habsburg Empire) refers to the territories ruled by the Austrian branch of the House of Habsburg, and then by the successor Austria (Österreich ( officially the Republic of Austria (Republik Österreich The Duchy of Crossen was inherited by Margraviate of Brandenburg in 1476 and, with the renunciation by King Ferdinand I and estates of Bohemia in 1538, it became an integral part of Brandenburg. Not to be confused with Krosno in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship Krosno Odrzańskie (Crossen an der Oder is a city on the east The Margraviate of Brandenburg (Markgrafschaft Brandenburg was a major Principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1157 to 1806 Ferdinand I Holy Roman Emperor ( Alcalá de Henares (near Madrid) Kingdom of Castile (now Spain) 10 March 1503 &ndash

In 1742, most of Silesia was seized by King Frederick the Great of Prussia in the War of the Austrian Succession and subsequently made the Prussian Province of Silesia. Frederick II (Friedrich II January 24 1712 August 17 1786) was a King of Prussia (1740&ndash1786 from the The Kingdom of Prussia (Königreich Preußen was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918 and from 1871 was the leading state of the German Empire, comprising The War of the Austrian Succession (1740-1748 involved nearly all the powers of Europe The Province of Silesia (Provinz Schlesien Prowincja Śląsk was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1815 to 1919 the territory had been conquered from

After World War I, parts of Silesia were transferred to the Second Polish Republic and administered as the Autonomous Silesian Voivodeship. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All The Second Polish Republic or interwar Poland is the Republic of Poland between World War I and World War II. The Autonomous Silesian Voivodeship (Autonomiczne Województwo Śląskie Autonome Woiwodschaft Schlesien was an autonomous region of the Poland created as the A plebecite recorded the majority of the population of all of Upper Silesia wished to remain part of Germany. However, the easternmost portion of Upper Silesia, with a majority ethnic Polish population, was transferred to Poland. The Prussian Province of Silesia within Germany was divided into the Provinces of Lower Silesia and Upper Silesia. The Province of Lower Silesia (Provinz Niederschlesien was a province of the Free State of Prussia from 1919 to 1945 The Province of Upper Silesia (Provinz Oberschlesien Górny Śląsk Silesian: Górny Ślonsk) was a province of the Free State of Prussia created Austrian Silesia (now Czech Silesia), the small portion of Silesia retained by Austria after the Silesian Wars, became part of the new Czechoslovakia. See also Duchy of Silesia. The Duchy of Upper and Lower Silesia (Herzogtum Ober- und Niederschlesien was an autonomous region of the Czech Silesia (České Slezsko is one of the three Czech lands and a section of the Silesian historical region The Silesian Wars were a series of wars between Prussia and Austria (and their changing allies for control of Silesia. Czechoslovakia may also refer to what is now the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

In 1945 following World War II, all of Silesia was seized by the Soviet Union and most of it transferred to Poland. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 As a result a vast majority of the native ethnic German population was expelled by force and replaced by Polish settlers.

Extent

First map of Silesia by Martin Helwig, 1561

Traditionally, Silesia was bounded to the west by the Kwisa and Bóbr rivers, while the territory west of the Kwisa was in Upper Lusatia (earlier Milsko). Bóbr (Bobr Bober) is a River which runs through the north of the Czech Republic and the southwest of Poland, a tributary of the Oder River Upper and Lower Lusatia Upper Lusatia ( Oberlausitz or Hornja Łužica) is today part of the German state of Saxony except for a small part east of However, because part of Upper Lusatia was included in the Province of Silesia in 1815, in Germany Görlitz, Niederschlesischer Oberlausitzkreis and neighbouring areas are considered parts of Silesia. The Province of Silesia (Provinz Schlesien Prowincja Śląsk was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1815 to 1919 the territory had been conquered from Görlitz ( is a town in Germany on the Lusatian Neisse River in the Bundesland The Niederschlesischer Oberlausitzkreis (German for district of Lower Silesian Upper Lusatia) was the easternmost Kreis ( District) Those districts, along with Poland's Lower Silesian Voivodeship and parts of Lubusz Voivodeship, make up the geographic region of Lower Silesia. Lower Silesian Voivodeship (also known as Lower Silesia Province or by its Polish name of województwo dolnośląskie {{IPA-pl|d|o|l|n|o|'|ś|l|ą|s|k|j|e}} Lubusz Voivodeship (also known as Lubusz Province or by its Polish name of województwo lubuskie or simply Lubuskie) is a voivodeship (province Lower Silesia (Niederschlesien Silesia Inferior Dolny Śląsk is the northwestern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia; Upper Silesia is to

Silesia has undergone a similar notional extension at its eastern extreme. Traditionally it extended only as far as the Brynica river, which separates it from Zagłębie Dąbrowskie. Brynica is a river in Silesia, Poland. It has a length of 55 km and is the main confluence of Czarna Przemsza. Zagłębie Dąbrowskie (literally Coal Fields of Dąbrowa;) is a historical and geographical region in Poland. However to most Poles today (excluding those from the area in question), Silesia (Śląsk) is understood to cover all of the area around Katowice, including Zagłębie. This interpretation is given official sanction in the use of the name Silesian Voivodeship (województwo śląskie) for the province covering this area. Silesian Voivodeship (also known as Silesia Province or by its Polish name of województwo śląskie or simply Śląskie) is a Voivodeship In fact the word Śląsk in Polish (when used without qualification) now commonly refers exclusively to this area (also called Upper Silesia), to the exclusion of Lower Silesia. Upper Silesia (Horní Slezsko Oberschlesien Latin: Silesia Superior; Górny Śląsk Silesian: Gůrny Ślůnsk) is the southeastern part

Apart from Silesian Voivodeship, Upper Silesia in a broader sense also includes Opole Voivodeship in Poland and Czech Silesia in the Czech Republic. Opole Voivodeship (also known as Opole Province or by its Polish name of województwo opolskie or simply Opolskie; Woiwodschaft Oppeln/Oppelner Schlesien Czech Silesia (České Slezsko is one of the three Czech lands and a section of the Silesian historical region Czech Silesia consists of the Moravian-Silesian Region and Jeseník District in the Olomouc Region. Moravian-Silesian Region (Moravskoslezský kraj or Moravo-Silesian Region, is an administrative unit ( kraj) of the Czech Republic, located in the Jeseník District (Okres Jeseník is a district ( Okres) within the Olomouc Region of the Czech Republic. Olomouc Region (Olomoucký kraj is an administrative unit (kraj of the Czech Republic, located in the north-western and central part of its historical region of Moravia

Etymology

One theory claims that the name Silesia is derived from the Silingi, who were most likely a Vandalic (East Germanic) people migrated towards south of the Baltic Sea along the Elbe, Oder, and Vistula Rivers in the 2nd century. The Silings or Silingi (Latin Silingae, Greek Σιλίγγαι - Silingai) were an East Germanic tribe probably part of the larger The Baltic Sea is a Brackish inland sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N Latitude and from 20°E to 26°E Longitude. When the Silingi moved from the area during the Migration Period, they left remnants of their society behind. The Migration Period, also called Barbarian Invasions, or sometimes Völkerwanderung ( German for "wandering of peoples" is the English name

The most evident remnants are in the names of places, which were imposed (in Slavic form) by the new inhabitants, who were in fact Slavic (Polish: Śląsk; Old Polish: Śląžsk [-o]; Old Slavic: *Sьlęžьskъ [<*sǐlęgǐskǔ], from Old Vandalic *Siling-isk [land]). The Slavic languages (also called Slavonic languages) a group of closely related Languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages Polish ( język polski, polszczyzna) is the Official language of Poland. Vandalic was a Germanic language probably closely related to the Gothic language. These people became associated with the place, and were thenceforth known as Silesians (using a Latinized form of the Polish name, Ślężanie), even though they may have had little in common with the original Silingi. Latin ( lingua Latīna, laˈtiːna is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. The critics claim that neither the Polish name Śląsk nor German Schlesien show resemblance to the alleged tribe of "Silingi", and that the Latin name Silesia originated in 11th century.

The other theory (supported by archaeological finds) claims that the original name of the region Śląsk, is derived from the West Slavic word ślągwa meaning high humidity (to this day the region of Mountain Ślęża, the original Polish settlement, has a coastal climate). The West Slavic languages is a subdivision of the Slavic language group that includes Czech, Polish, Slovak, and Sorbian.

History

Early people

The first signs of genus Homo in Silesia date to between 230,000 and 100,000 years ago. Homo is the Genus that includes modern humans and their close relatives The Silesian region between the upper Vistula and upper Oder was the northern extreme of the human penetration at the time of the last glaciation. The Last Glacial Maximum (LGM refers to the time of maximum extent of the Ice sheets during the last Glaciation (the Würm or Wisconsin glaciation) approximately The anatomically-modern human is estimated to have arrived in Silesia about 35,000 years ago ^[1]. Human beings, humans or man (Origin 1590–1600 L homō man OL hemō the earthly one (see Humus Subsequently, Silesia was inhabited by people who belonged to changing archaeological cultures in the Stone, Bronze, and Iron Ages, and the ethnic identity of whose cannot currently be determined. The Stone Age is a broad prehistoric time period during which Humans widely used stone for toolmaking The term Bronze Age refers to a period in human cultural development when the most advanced Metalworking (at least in systematic and widespread use included techniques for This article is about the archaeological period known as the Iron Age for the mythological Iron Age see Ages of Man. The civilization of Old Europe undoubtedly included Silesia. Not to be confused is the term "Old European" as used by Hans Krahe in connection with hydronymy. In the late Bronze Age, the Lusatian culture (in the past, variously speculated to be either 'pre-Germanic', Proto-Slavic, Thracian, Karpo-Dacian, or Illyrian) covered Silesia. The Lusatian culture existed in the later Bronze Age and early Iron Age ( 1300 BC - 500 BC) in eastern Germany, most of Poland Proto-Slavic is the Proto-language from which Slavic languages later emerged "Thracians" also refers to modern inhabitants of Thrace, regardless of ethnicity The Carpi or Carpians were a Dacian tribe that were originally located on the Eastern slopes of the Carpathian Mountains, in what is now Bacău County The Illyrian languages are a group of Indo-European languages that were spoken in the western part of the Balkans in former times by groups identified as Later, the Scythians and Celts are known to have played a role within the Silesian territory. The Scythians or Scyths (Σκύθες Σκύθοι were an Iranian speaking people of horse-riding Nomadic pastoralists who dominated the Pontic Celts (ˈkɛlts or /ˈsɛlts/, see Names of the Celts Still later Germanic tribes migrated to Silesia, possibly from Northern Germany or Scandinavia.

In ancient times, the main route of the Amber Road passed through Silesia. "Ancient" redirects here For other uses see Ancient_(disambiguation. The Amber Road was an ancient Trade route for the transfer of Amber.

The first written sources about Silesia came down from the Egyptian Claudius Ptolemaeus (Magna Germania) and the Roman Gaius Cornelius Tacitus (Germania). Claudius Ptolemaeus ( Greek: Klaúdios Ptolemaîos; after 83 &ndash ca Germania was the Latin Exonym for Publius (or Gaius) Cornelius Tacitus (ca 56 &ndash ca 117 was a senator and a Historian of the Roman Empire. Germania was the Latin Exonym for According to Tacitus, the 1st century Silesia was inhabited by a multi-ethnic league dominated by the Lugii, an East Germanic tribe. Publius (or Gaius) Cornelius Tacitus (ca 56 &ndash ca 117 was a senator and a Historian of the Roman Empire. The 1st century was the Century that lasted from 1 to 100 according the Julian calendar. For Polish place-names see Ługi. The Lugii, Lugi, Lygii, Ligii, Lugiones, Lygians The Germanic tribes referred to as East Germanic constitute a wave of Migrants who may have moved from Scandinavia into the area between the Oder The Silingi were also part of this federation, and most likely a Vandalic people (Germanic) that lived south of the Baltic Sea in the Laba, later Elbe, Oder, and Vistula river areas. The Silings or Silingi (Latin Silingae, Greek Σιλίγγαι - Silingai) were an East Germanic tribe probably part of the larger The Baltic Sea is a Brackish inland sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N Latitude and from 20°E to 26°E Longitude. The Elbe ( die Elbe Low German: de Ilv) is one of the major Rivers of Central Europe. The Oder (known in Czech and Polish as Odra) is a River in Central Europe. Also, other East Germanic tribes inhabited the scarcely populated region. The Germanic tribes referred to as East Germanic constitute a wave of Migrants who may have moved from Scandinavia into the area between the Oder

Middle Ages

After about 500 AD, the migration period had induced the bulk of the East Germanic tribes to continue their migration and leave Silesia towards Southern Europe, while Slavic tribes began to appear and spread including into the Silesian lands. The Migration Period, also called Barbarian Invasions, or sometimes Völkerwanderung ( German for "wandering of peoples" is the English name

Early documents mention a few mostly Slavic tribes probably living in Silesia (Silesian tribes). The Bavarian Geographer (around 845 AD) specifies the following peoples: the Slenzanie, Dzhadoshanie, Opolanie, Lupiglaa, and Golenshitse. The Bavarian Geographer (Geographus Bavarus is a conventional name given by Jan Potocki in 1796 to the author of an anonymous Medieval Ślężanie was a Tribe of West Slavs, specifically of the Lechitic / Silesian groups inhabiting territories of Lower Silesia, near A document of the Bishopric of Prague (1086) also mentions the Zlasane, Trebovyane, Poborane, and Dedositze. Prague (ˈprɑːg Praha (ˈpraɦa see also other names) is the Capital and Largest city of the Czech Republic.

In the 9th and 10th centuries, the Silesia territory came under the political power of the first historically-attested states in the region called Great Moravia, Moravia, and then Bohemia, with the centers in the neighbouring area within today's Czech Republic to the south. Great Moravia (see Name section was a Slavic state that existed in Central Europe from the 9th century to the early 10th century Moravia (Morava; Morawy Moravie Moravia is a historical region in central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, one of the former Czech lands. Bohemia (Čechy; Bohemia Czechy is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands, currently the The Czech Republic ( ˈt͡ʃɛskaː ˈrɛpuˌblɪka short form in Česko ˈt͡ʃɛskɔ also called Czechia, Around year 990 AD, some parts of Silesia were conquered and annexed into the newly-created Polish state by Duke Mieszko I, (see map), although some historians give this date as 999 and the rule of Duke Boleslaus I. Life In 965 Mieszko married Dobrawa (Dobrava Dubrawka daughter of Boleslav I, Duke of Bohemia. During Poland's fragmentation (1138–1320) into duchies ruled by different branches of the Piast dynasty. In the first centuries of its existence the Polish nation was led by a series of strong rulers who converted the Poles to Christendom, created a strong Central European A duchy is a territory fief, or domain ruled by a Duke or Duchess. Piast dynasty is the name used since the 17th century for Polish Royal Dynasty that ruled Poland from its beginnings as Duchy ruled by Mieszko Silesia was ruled by descendants of the former royal family.

In 1146, High Duke Władysław II acknowledged the overlordship of the Holy Roman Empire over his realms, but was driven into exile by Polish nobles who opposed him. This article refers to the 12th century Polish monarch For the 14th century founder of the Jagiellon dynasty see Jogaila, and for other monarchs with similar names The Holy Roman Empire ( HRE; German Heiliges Römisches Reich (HRR, Latin Sacrum Romanum Imperium (SRI was a union of territories in Exile means to be away from one's home (ie city state or country while either being explicitly refused permission to return and/or being threatened by prison or death upon return In 1163, his two sons took possession of Silesia with Imperial backing, dividing the land between them as dukes of Lower and Upper Silesia. They created two main Piast lines in Silesia, Wrocławska (of Wrocław)) and Opolsko-Raciborska (of Opole and Racibórz. Wrocław (Breslau Vratislav Vratislavia or Wratislavia Yiddish: ברעסלוי) is the chief City of the historical region of Lower Silesia Opole (Oppeln is a city in southern Poland on the Oder River (Odra Racibórz (Ratibor Ratiboř is a town in southern Poland with 60218 inhabitants (2006 situated in the Silesian Voivodeship (since 1999 previously in The policy of subdivision continued under their successors, with Silesia being divided into 16 principalities by the 1390s.

In 1241, after raiding Lesser Poland, the Mongols invaded Silesia and caused widespread panic and mass flight. Lesser Poland (also "Little Poland" Polish: Małopolska, Latin: Polonia Minor) is one of the historical regions of Poland The Mongol invasions of Europe, under the leadership of Subutai, centered on the destruction of East Slavic principalities such as Kiev and Vladimir They looted much of the region, but abandoned their siege of the castle of Wrocław, supposedly after being fended off by Blessed Czeslaw's "miraculous fireball. Wrocław (Breslau Vratislav Vratislavia or Wratislavia Yiddish: ברעסלוי) is the chief City of the historical region of Lower Silesia Saint Ceslaus (Czesław (c 1184 &ndash c 1242 was born in Kamień Śląski (Gross Stein in Silesia, Poland, of the noble family of Odrowąż " They then annihilated the combined Polish and German forces at the Battle of Legnica, which took place at Legnickie Pole near Legnica. The Battle of Legnica (Bitwa pod Legnicą also known as the Battle of Liegnitz (Schlacht von Liegnitz or Battle of Wahlstatt (Schlacht bei Wahlstatt was Legnickie Pole (Wahlstatt is a village in Legnica County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. Legnica (Liegnitz is a City on the Kaczawa river in Lower Silesia in south-western Poland. Upon the death of Ögedei Khan, the Mongols chose not to press forward further into Europe, but returned east to participate in the election of a new Grand Khan. Ögedei Khan, (Өгэдэй Ögedei; also Ogotai or Oktay, 窩闊臺 c For other titles related to and uses of Khan, see that article Origin The title

The ruling Silesian lords decided to rebuild their cities according to the latest administrative ideas. They founded or rebuilt some 160 cities and 1,500 towns and introduced the codified German city law (Magdeburg law and Środa Śląska law) in place of the older, customary Slavic and Polish laws. German town law (Deutsches Stadtrecht or German municipal concerns ( Deutsches Städtewesen) concerns Town privileges used by many cities towns and villages Magdeburg Rights (Magdeburger Recht or Magdeburg Law were a set of German town laws regulating the degree of internal autonomy within cities and villages granted with They also made up for the recent population loss by inviting new settlers, mostly German and Dutch colonists from the Holy Roman Empire. The German people (Deutsche are an Ethnic group, in the sense of sharing a common German culture, descent and speaking the German language as The Dutch people ( Dutch:) are the dominant Ethnic group of the Netherlands. Since the end of the 13th century or beginning of the 14th, Silesian dukes invited many German settlers to improve their duchies. Germans settled mostly in cities, as did Jews and some Czechs. PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ Czechs (Češi ˈt͡ʃɛʃɪ archaic Čechové) are a western Slavic people of Central Europe, living predominantly in the Czech Republic In the countryside, especially in Upper Silesia, people of Polish origins still predominated. This policy of inviting Germans to colonize and cultivate the barren lands, and the assimilation of the ruling classes and the German and Slavic inhabitants, gave reason to Polish and German nationalists for ideological tensions between both nations in the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century. The term nationalism can refer to an Ideology, a sentiment, a form of Culture, or a Social movement that focuses on the Nation An ideology is a set of beliefs aims and Ideas especially in politics

In the second half of the 13th century, various knightly orders settled in Silesia — the Knights of the Cross with the Red Star were the first, soon followed by the Hospitaller and the Teutonic Knights. The Knights of the Cross with the Red Star (Křižovnický řád rytířů s červenou hvězdou Kreuzherren mit dem Roten Stern Ordo Militaris Crucigerorum cum Rubea Stella is a The Knights Hospitaller (also known as the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St The Teutonic Order is a German Roman Catholic religious order.

Silesian duchies

Many Piast dukes tried to reincorporate Silesia into the Polish kingdom and reunite Poland during the time of divisions. The first significant attempts were made by Duke Henryk IV Probus of Silesia, but he died in 1290 before realizing his goal. Henry IV nicknamed Probus ( Latin for righteous) ( Polish: Henryk Probus, German: Heinrich von Breslau; Duke Przemysł II of Greater Poland united two of the original provinces and was crowned in 1295, but was murdered in 1296. Premislas II (also given in English and Latin as Premyslas or Premislaus, Przemysł or less properly pl Przemysław) (14 October 1257 – 8 February Greater Poland or Great Poland, Polish Wielkopolska (Großpolen Latin: Polonia Maior) is a historical region of west-central Poland According to his will, Greater Poland was supposed to be inherited by Duke Henryk Głogowski (of Głogów) who also aspired to unite Poland and even claimed the title Duke of Poland. Głogów (Hlohov (rare Glogau rarely Groß-Glogau) is a Town in southwestern Poland. However, most nobles of Greater Poland supported another candidate from the Kuyavian line of Piasts, Duke Władysław I the Elbow-high. Władysław the Short or Elbow-high (or Ladislaus I of Poland) ( Władysław I Łokietek) (1261 - March 2 1333 was a King of Poland. Władysław eventually won the struggle because of his broader support. In the meantime, King Wenceslaus II of Bohemia decided to extend his rule and was crowned as King of Poland in 1300. Wenceslaus II Premyslid (Václav II Wacław II Czeski September 27, 1271 &ndash June 21, 1305) was King of Bohemia (1278 - 1305 The next half century was rife with wars between Władysław (later his son Casimir III the Great) and a coalition of Bohemians, Brandenburgers and Teutonic Knights trying to divide Poland. Casimir III the Great (Kazimierz Wielki April 30 1310 – November 5 1370 last King of Poland from the Piast dynasty (1333–1370 was the son of King Władysław The Teutonic Order is a German Roman Catholic religious order. During this time, most Silesian dukes, despite their ties with Poland, ruled small realms that were unable to unite with Poland and thus fell under the influence of neighboring Bohemia. A duke is a member of the Nobility, historically of highest rank below the Sovereign, and historically controlled a Duchy or a Dukedom

In 1327, Duke Henry VI of Breslau and the Upper Silesian dukes recognized the overlordship of King John I of Bohemia, while in 1335 King Casimir III of Poland accepted Bohemian incorporation of most of Silesia (Treaties of Trenčín and Visegrád). John the Blind ( Luxembourgish: Jang de Blannen; German: Johann der Blinde von Luxemburg Casimir III the Great (Kazimierz Wielki April 30 1310 – November 5 1370 last King of Poland from the Piast dynasty (1333–1370 was the son of King Władysław Trenčín ( also known under alternative names) is a city in western Slovakia of the central Váh River valley near the Czech Visegrád Group Visegrád is a small Castle town in Pest County, Hungary. Over the following centuries, the lines of the Piast dukes of Silesia died out and were inherited by the Bohemian crown:

• Opolska (of Opole)in 1314;
• Świdnicka (of Świdnica) in 1368;
• Oleśnicka (Oleśnica and Głogów) in 1476;
• Żagańska (of Żagań) in 1504;
• Woitowitz (of Woitowitz, Wrocław) in 1532 ;
• Cieszyńska (of Cieszyn) in 1625;
• and Brzesko-Legnicka (of Brzeg and Legnica) in 1675. Opole (Oppeln is a city in southern Poland on the Oder River (Odra Świdnica (Schweidnitz Svídnice is a Town in south-western Poland. Oleśnica (Oels or Öls) is a Town in the Trzebnickie Hills in southwestern Poland with 38900 inhabitants (1995 Głogów (Hlohov (rare Glogau rarely Groß-Glogau) is a Town in southwestern Poland. Żagań ( French and Sagan is a Town in western Poland, with 26665 inhabitants (2004 Cieszyn Lublin Voivodeship Cieszyn (Těšín Teschen is a town and the seat of Cieszyn County, Silesian Voivodeship, southern Poland. Brzeg (Brieg is a Town in southwestern Poland with 38496 inhabitants ( 2004) situated in Silesia in the Opole Voivodeship Legnica (Liegnitz is a City on the Kaczawa river in Lower Silesia in south-western Poland.

Although Friedrich Wilhelm, the last male Silesian Piast Duke of Teschen (Cieszyn) died in 1625, rule of the duchy passed to his sister Elisabeth Lucretia, wife of the duke of Liechtenstein, until her death in 1653 after which it reverted to the Bohemian crown under the Habsburg rulers. Piast dynasty is the name used since the 17th century for Polish Royal Dynasty that ruled Poland from its beginnings as Duchy ruled by Mieszko The Duchy of Teschen or Duchy of Cieszyn or Duchy of Těšín (Těšínské knížectví Herzogtum Teschen Ducatus Tessinensis Księstwo Cieszyńskie was

By the end of the 14th century, the country had been split up into 18 principalities: Wrocław, Brzeg, Głogów, Jawor, Legnica, Ziębice, Oleśnica, Świdnica and Ścinawa in Lower Silesia; Bytom, Niemodlin, Koźle, Nysa, Opole, Racibórz, Strzelce Opolskie, Cieszyn and Opava in the upper district. Wrocław (Breslau Vratislav Vratislavia or Wratislavia Yiddish: ברעסלוי) is the chief City of the historical region of Lower Silesia Głogów (Hlohov (rare Glogau rarely Groß-Glogau) is a Town in southwestern Poland. Jawor (Jauer is a town in south-western Poland with 24347 inhabitants ( 2006) Ziębice (Münsterberg is a town in Ząbkowice Śląskie County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. Oleśnica (Oels or Öls) is a Town in the Trzebnickie Hills in southwestern Poland with 38900 inhabitants (1995 Świdnica (Schweidnitz Svídnice is a Town in south-western Poland. Ścinawa (Steinau an der Oder is a town and municipality in Poland, in Lower Silesia, on the Oder River. Bytom (Beuthen is a City in southern Poland with 188234 inhabitants (2007 Niemodlin (Falkenberg is a town in Opole County, Opole Voivodeship, Poland, with 6911 inhabitants (2004 Koźle Łódź Voivodeship Koźle (German Kosel) is a district of the town of Kędzierzyn-Koźle and a former town itself Nysa (Neisse or Neiße) is a Town in southwestern Poland on the Nysa Kłodzka river with 47545 inhabitants (2006 official estimate situated Opole (Oppeln is a city in southern Poland on the Oder River (Odra Racibórz (Ratibor Ratiboř is a town in southern Poland with 60218 inhabitants (2006 situated in the Silesian Voivodeship (since 1999 previously in Strzelce Opolskie (Groß Strehlitz is a town in south-western Poland with 19628 inhabitants (2006 situated in the Opole Voivodeship. Cieszyn Lublin Voivodeship Cieszyn (Těšín Teschen is a town and the seat of Cieszyn County, Silesian Voivodeship, southern Poland. Opava ( pronounced; Troppau Opawa is a city in the northern Czech Republic on the Opava River, located to the north-west of Ostrava. The petty rulers of these sections wasted their strength with internecine quarrels and proved quite incompetent to check the lawlessness of their feudal vassals. Save under the vigorous rule of some dukes of Lower Silesia, such as Henry I and Bolko I, and the above-named Henry II and IV, who succeeded in reuniting most of the principalities under their sway, the country fell into a state of growing anarchy. Bolko I (born between 1252 and 1256 - died 9 November 1301) was a grandson of Henry the Pious and second oldest son of Bolesław II the Duke of Legnica

The inheritance of the Silesian duchies by Bohemia incorporated the region into the Holy Roman Empire. The Kingdom of Bohemia (České království Königreich Böhmen Regnum Bohemiae was a country in Central Europe. The Holy Roman Empire ( HRE; German Heiliges Römisches Reich (HRR, Latin Sacrum Romanum Imperium (SRI was a union of territories in Under Emperor Charles IV, Silesia and especially Wrocław (Vratislav, Breslau) gained greatly in importance, as many great buildings and large Gothic churches were built. Charles IV ( Czech: Karel IV, German: Karl IV, Hungarian: IV Károly; 14 May 1316 &ndash Wrocław (Breslau Vratislav Vratislavia or Wratislavia Yiddish: ברעסלוי) is the chief City of the historical region of Lower Silesia See also Gothic art Gothic architecture is a style of Architecture which flourished during the high and late medieval period. From the 13th century onward the population of the region became increasingly Germanized through the arrival of more German settlers and the assimilation of local rulers and peasants within this new German majority. Germanisation (also spelled Germanization) is either the spread of the German language, people and culture either by force or Assimilation

Between 1425 and 1435, devastation was caused by the Hussite Wars in Bohemia. The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars involved the military actions against and amongst the followers of Jan Hus in Bohemia in the period 1420 The Hussites turned against the German population, and some regions, especially Upper Silesia, became partly Slavic-speaking again. The Hussites were a Christian movement following the teachings of Czech reformer Jan Hus or John Huss (c Upper Silesia (Horní Slezsko Oberschlesien Latin: Silesia Superior; Górny Śląsk Silesian: Gůrny Ślůnsk) is the southeastern part Despite the widespread nature of the conflagration, Silesia remained largely Catholic, excluding Cieszyn Silesia where Hussite ideas became popular.

Under later rulers, the connection with Bohemia brought the Silesians no benefit, but involved them in the destructive Hussite wars. The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars involved the military actions against and amongst the followers of Jan Hus in Bohemia in the period 1420 At the outbreak of this conflict in 1420, they gave ready support to their king Sigismund against the Bohemian Hussites, whom they regarded as dangerous to their German nationality, but by this act they exposed themselves to a series of invasions (1425-1435) by which the country was severely devastated. In consequence of these raids, the German element of population in Upper Silesia permanently lost ground; a complete restitution of the Slavonic nationality seemed imminent on the appointment of the Hussite, George Podiebrad, to the Bohemian kingship in 1457. George of Kunštát and Poděbrady ( April 23, 1420 - March 22, 1471) also known as Poděbrad or Podiebrad Though most of the Silesian dynasts seemed ready to acquiesce, the burghers of Breslau fiercely repudiated the new suzerain, and before he could enforce his claims to homage he was ousted by the Hungarian king, Matthias Corvinus, who was readily recognized as overlord (1469). Matthias Corvinus ( Matthias the Just; February 23 1443 &ndash April 6 1490) was King of Hungary and

Matthias enforced his authority by the vigorous use of his mercenaries and by wholesale confiscations of the lands of turbulent nobles. By instituting a permanent diet of Silesian princes and estates to co-operate with his vicegerent, he took an important step towards the abolition of particularism and the establishment of an effective central government. In Politics, a diet is a formal Deliberative assembly. The term is derived from Medieval Latin dietas, and ultimately comes from In spite of these reforms the Silesians, who felt severely the financial exactions of Matthias, began to resent the control of the Bohemian crown. Profiting by the weakness of Matthias' successor Vladislaus II, they extorted concessions which secured them a practical autonomy. They still retained these privileges at the outset of the religious Reformation, which the Silesians, in spite of their Catholic zeal during the Hussite wars, accepted readily and carried out with singularly little opposition from within or without. The Protestant Reformation was a reform movement in Europe that began in 1517 though its roots lie further back in time

But a drastic change in their government was imposed upon them by the Bohemian king, Ferdinand I, who had been prevented from interference during his early reign by his wars with the Turks, and who showed little disposition to check the Reformation in Silesia by forcible means, but subsequently reasserted the control of the Bohemian crown by a series of important enactments. Ferdinand I may refer to Ferdinand I of León, the Great (ca 1000-1065 king from 1037 Ferdinand I of Portugal and the He abolished all privileges which were not secured by charter and imposed a more rigidly centralized scheme of government in which the activities of the provincial diet were restricted to some judicial and financial functions, and their freedom in matters of foreign policy was withdrawn altogether. Henceforth, too, annexations of territory were frequently carried out by the Bohemian crown on the extinction of Silesian dynasties, and the surviving princes showed an increasing reluctance to exercise their authority. Accordingly the Silesian estates never again chose to exercise initiative save on rare occasions, and from 1550 Silesia passed almost completely under foreign administration.

Protestant Reformation

Upper Silesia's historical coat of arms

The Protestant Reformation of the 16th century took an early hold in Silesia, and 9/10 of all inhabitants became Lutheran. The Protestant Reformation was a reform movement in Europe that began in 1517 though its roots lie further back in time Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the teachings of the sixteenth-century German reformer Martin Luther Thus large parts of Silesia became closer attached to the center of the Protestant Reformation, Brandenburg and Saxony, whereas the ties to the Catholic regions of Bohemia and Southern Germany waned. Brandenburg ( Lower Sorbian: Bramborska; Upper Sorbian: Braniborska) is one of the sixteen states of Germany. The Free State of Saxony (Freistaat Sachsen ˈzaksən Swobodny Stat Sakska is the easternmost federal state of Germany.

After the death of King Louis II of Hungary and Bohemia in 1526, Ferdinand I of the Habsburg dynasty was elected King of Bohemia. Ferdinand I Holy Roman Emperor ( Alcalá de Henares (near Madrid) Kingdom of Castile (now Spain) 10 March 1503 &ndash In the same year, he made the formerly elected Bohemian crown an inherited possession of the Habsburg dynasty. An elective monarchy is a Monarchy ruled by someone generally from a Royal house, who is elected by a group In 1537, the Piast Duke Frederick II of Brzeg concluded a treaty with Elector Joachim II of Brandenburg, whereby the Hohenzollerns of Brandenburg would inherit the duchy upon the extinction of the Piasts, but the treaty was rejected by Ferdinand. Brzeg (Brieg is a Town in southwestern Poland with 38496 inhabitants ( 2004) situated in Silesia in the Opole Voivodeship The Prince-Electors (or simply Electors) of the Holy Roman Empire ( German: Kurfürst ( pl Joachim II Hector (Joachim II Hector or Hektor; 13 January 1505 &ndash 3 January 1571) was a Prince-elector of the Brandenburg ( Lower Sorbian: Bramborska; Upper Sorbian: Braniborska) is one of the sixteen states of Germany.

The religious conflicts and wars of the Reformation and Counter Reformation in the 17th century led many Silesian Protestants to seek refuge in the neighbouring countries of Brandenburg, Saxony and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The Counter-Reformation (also Catholic Reformation denotes the period of Catholic revival from the pontificate of Pope Pius IV in 1560 to the close of the Protestantism refers to the forms of Christian faith and practice that originated in the 16th century Protestant Reformation. Brandenburg ( Lower Sorbian: Bramborska; Upper Sorbian: Braniborska) is one of the sixteen states of Germany. The Free State of Saxony (Freistaat Sachsen ˈzaksən Swobodny Stat Sakska is the easternmost federal state of Germany. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, officially the Commonwealth of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania also known as the Most Serene Republic Protestant Silesians often also circumvented restrictive laws by building their churches on the soil of these countries, the so called "border churches" (German: Grenzkirchen).

Thirty Years' War

Lower Silesia's historical coat of arms

The second "Defenestration of Prague" in 1618 sparked the Thirty Years' War, caused by King Ferdinand II's attempts to restore Catholicism and stamp out Protestantism within Bohemia, carried out with the help of the Jesuits. The Defenestrations of Prague were two incidents in the history of Bohemia. For the Mauritanian Thirty Years' War see Char Bouba war. For the band see The 30 Years War. Ferdinand II Holy Roman Emperor ( July 9, 1578 &ndash February 15, 1637) of the House of Habsburg, reigned as Ferdinand II The Society of Jesus ( Latin: Societas Iesu, SJ and SI or SJ, SI) is a Catholic religious order

Although Ferdinand requested assistance from the mostly Catholic Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Polish szlachta sympathized with the Bohemian and Hungarian nobility despite their religious differences and refused King Sigismund III Vasa's attempt to assist the Habsburgs. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, officially the Commonwealth of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania also known as the Most Serene Republic Szlachta ( refers to the noble class in the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (since 1569 semi-federal semi-confederal The Kingdom of Hungary (short form Hungary) was a considerable state in Central Europe that existed from 1001 to 1918 then from 1919 to 1946 Sigismund III Vasa (Zygmunt III Waza ( 20 June 1566 Finally, Sigismund decided to help the Habsburgs by sending an unemployed mercenary group called the Lisowczycy in late 1619, hoping to regain parts of Silesia in exchange. Lisowczycy (also known as Straceńcy ('lost men' or ' Forlorn hope ' or Chorągiew elearska (company of elears or in singular form The Lisowczycy's support would prove decisive during the Battle of White Mountain in 1620. The Battle of White Mountain, November 8, 1620 ( Bílá hora is the name of White Mountain in Czech was an early Battle in the However, as the Habsburgs' situation improved, Emperor Ferdinand II did not agree to any concessions in Silesia, nor did he help in Poland's war against the Ottoman Empire, and the Polish kings never received anything except a vague set of promises and several brides to keep them favourably inclined to the Habsburg dynasty. Ferdinand II Holy Roman Emperor ( July 9, 1578 &ndash February 15, 1637) of the House of Habsburg, reigned as Ferdinand II

After the end of the Thirty Years' War with the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648, the Habsburgs greatly encouraged Catholicism and succeeded in reconverting to Catholicism about 60% of the population of Silesia. The term Peace of Westphalia refers to the two peace treaties of Osnabrück and Münster, signed on May 15 and October 24 of By 1675 the last Silesian Piast rulers had died out.

Kingdom of Prussia

Superior Silesia
Upper Silesia map of 1746

In 1740, the annexation of Silesia by King Frederick II (the Great) of Prussia was welcomed by many Silesians, not only by Protestants or Germans. Frederick II (Friedrich II January 24 1712 August 17 1786) was a King of Prussia (1740&ndash1786 from the The Kingdom of Prussia (Königreich Preußen was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918 and from 1871 was the leading state of the German Empire, comprising Frederick based his claims on the Treaty of Brieg and began the War of the Austrian Succession (1740-1748). The War of the Austrian Succession (1740-1748 involved nearly all the powers of Europe By war's end, the Kingdom of Prussia had conquered almost all of Silesia, while some parts of Silesia in the extreme southeast, like the Duchy of Cieszyn and Duchy of Opava, remained possessions of the Crown of Bohemia and Habsburg Monarchy. The Duchy of Teschen or Duchy of Cieszyn or Duchy of Těšín (Těšínské knížectví Herzogtum Teschen Ducatus Tessinensis Księstwo Cieszyńskie was The Principality or Duchy of Troppau (Herzogtum Troppau Opavské vévodství was based for centuries in the city of Troppau ( Opava) in Moravia. Habsburg Monarchy (alternatively Habsburg Empire) refers to the territories ruled by the Austrian branch of the House of Habsburg, and then by the successor The Seven Years' War (1756-1763) confirmed Prussian control over most of Silesia, and the Prussian Province of Silesia became one of the most loyal provinces of Prussia. The Seven Years' War (1756&ndash1763 involved all of the major European powers of the period causing 900000 to 1400000 deaths The Province of Silesia (Provinz Schlesien Prowincja Śląsk was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1815 to 1919 the territory had been conquered from In 1815, the area around Görlitz, formerly part of Saxony, was incorporated into the province after the Napoleonic Wars. Görlitz ( is a town in Germany on the Lusatian Neisse River in the Bundesland The Free State of Saxony (Freistaat Sachsen ˈzaksən Swobodny Stat Sakska is the easternmost federal state of Germany. The Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815 involved Napoleon's French Empire and a shifting set of European allies and opposing coalitions By this time, German had become the only popular language in Lower Silesia, while dialects of Polish and Czech were used in most of the countryside of Upper Silesia. Lower Silesia (Niederschlesien Silesia Inferior Dolny Śląsk is the northwestern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia; Upper Silesia is to Upper Silesia (Horní Slezsko Oberschlesien Latin: Silesia Superior; Górny Śląsk Silesian: Gůrny Ślůnsk) is the southeastern part German was the most common language in most Silesian cities.

Silesia in Germany and Austria

Imperial German Silesia 1905

As a Prussian province, Silesia became part of the German Empire during the unification of Germany in 1871. The Province of Silesia (Provinz Schlesien Prowincja Śląsk was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1815 to 1919 the territory had been conquered from The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification The unification of Germany took place on January 18, 1871, when Prussian Chief Minister Otto von Bismarck managed to unify a number of independent There was considerable industrialization in Upper Silesia, and many people moved there at that time. is a process of social and economic change whereby a human group is transformed from a Pre-industrial society into an industrial one The overwhelming majority of the population of Lower Silesia was by then German-speaking and many were Lutheran, including the capital Breslau. Lower Silesia (Niederschlesien Silesia Inferior Dolny Śląsk is the northwestern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia; Upper Silesia is to Wrocław (Breslau Vratislav Vratislavia or Wratislavia Yiddish: ברעסלוי) is the chief City of the historical region of Lower Silesia There were areas such as the District of Oppeln (then Regierungsbezirk Oppeln) and rural parts of Upper Silesia, however, where a larger portion or even majority of the population was Slavic-speaking and Roman Catholic. Germany is divided into 413 administrative districts; these consist of 301 rural districts ( Landkreise) listed fully here and 112 urban districts ( Opole (Oppeln is a city in southern Poland on the Oder River (Odra A Regierungsbezirk is a type of government region of Germany, a subdivision of certain federal states ( ''Bundesländer'') In Silesia as a whole, ethnic Poles comprised about 30% of the population, and most of them lived around Katowice in the southeast of Upper Silesia. The Polish people, or Poles, (Polacy) are a Western Slavic Ethnic group of Central Europe, living predominantly in Poland. Katowice (Katovice Kattowitz is a City in Silesia in southern Poland, on the Kłodnica In whole Upper Silesia Poles made 61,1 % of population in 1829, but due to state's policy of forced germanization their numbers decreased to 58,6 % of population 1849 ^[2]. Germanisation (also spelled Germanization) is either the spread of the German language, people and culture either by force or Assimilation The Kulturkampf set Catholics in opposition to the government and sparked a Polish revival, much of it fostered by Poles from outside of Germany, in the Upper Silesian parts of the province. The German term (literally "culture struggle" refers to German policies in relation to Secularity and the influence of the Roman Catholic Church, enacted The first conference of Hovevei Zion groups took place in Kattowitz (Katowice), German Empire in 1884. Hovevei Zion is also a popular Israeli musical group Hovevei Zion (חובבי ציון also known as Hibbat Zion (חיבת ציון Katowice (Katovice Kattowitz is a City in Silesia in southern Poland, on the Kłodnica The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification

At the same time, the areas of Ostrava and Karviná in Austrian Silesia became increasingly industrialized. Ostrava ( pronounced, Ostrau Ostrawa is the third largest city in the Czech Republic, however it is the second largest urban agglomeration after Prague Karviná ( pronounced, Polish:, Karwin is a city in Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic, on the Olza River. Significant portion of the Polish-speaking people there, however, were Lutherans in contrast to the German-speaking Catholic Habsburg dynasty ruling Austria-Hungary.

In 1900, the population of Austrian Silesia numbered 680,422, which corresponds to 342 inhabitants per square mile (132/km²). The Germans formed 44. 69% of the population, 33. 21% were Poles and 22. 05% Czechs and Slavs. According to religion, 84% were Roman Catholics, 14% Protestants and the remainder were Jews. The local diet was composed of 31 members, and Silesia sent 12 deputies to the Reichsrat at Vienna. In Politics, a diet is a formal Deliberative assembly. The term is derived from Medieval Latin dietas, and ultimately comes from For administrative purposes Silesia was divided into 9 districts and 3 towns with autonomous municipalities: Opava (Troppau), the capital, Bielsko-Biała (Bielitz) and Frýdek-Místek (Friedeck). Opava ( pronounced; Troppau Opawa is a city in the northern Czech Republic on the Opava River, located to the north-west of Ostrava. Bielsko-Biała (Bielitz-Biala Bílsko-Bělá is a city in southern Poland with 176987 inhabitants (2006 Frýdek-Místek (ˈfriːdɛk ˈmiːstɛk Frydek-Mistek Friedeck-Mistek is a city in Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. Other principal towns were: Cieszyn/Těšín (Teschen), Slezská Ostrava (Polnisch-Ostrau) – the eastern part of Ostrava, Krnov (Jagerndorf), Karviná (Karwin), Bruntál (Freudenthal), Jeseník (Freiwaldau) and Horní Benešov (Bennisch). Cieszyn Lublin Voivodeship Cieszyn (Těšín Teschen is a town and the seat of Cieszyn County, Silesian Voivodeship, southern Poland. Slezská Ostrava (Śląska Ostrawa lit Silesian Ostrava) till 1919 Polnisch Ostrau (Polská Ostrava Polska Ostrawa lit Ostrava ( pronounced, Ostrau Ostrawa is the third largest city in the Czech Republic, however it is the second largest urban agglomeration after Prague Krnov (ˈkr̩nof Jägerndorf new- Polish: Krnów, old- Polish: Karniów, Carnovia is an Upper Silesian city in the northeastern Karviná ( pronounced, Polish:, Karwin is a city in Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic, on the Olza River. Bruntál (ˈbruntaːl Freudenthal Bruntal Latin: Vallis Gaudiorum, Vrudental) is a town located near the western boundary of Moravian-Silesian Region Jeseník ('jɛsɛɲik ( Czech: Frývaldov ('frivaldof until 1948 German: Freiwaldau) is a city and a district in the Olomouc Horní Benešov (ˈɦorɲi ˈbɛnɛʃof Czech: Benešov until 1926 German: Bennisch) is a small town in the Moravian-Silesian Region

In the Treaty of Versailles after the defeat of Imperial Germany and Austria-Hungary in World War I, it was decided that the population of Upper Silesia should hold a plebiscite in order to determine the future of the province, with the exception of a 333 km² area around Hlučín (Hultschiner Ländchen), which was granted to Czechoslovakia in 1920 despite having a German majority. The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Hlučín (ˈɦlutʃiːn Hultschin Hulczyn is a Town in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. Czechoslovakia may also refer to what is now the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The plebiscite, organised by the League of Nations, was held in 1921. The League of Nations was an International organization founded as a result of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919–1920 In Cieszyn Silesia firstly there was an interim deal between Polish Rada Narodowa Księstwa Cieszyńskiego and Czech Národní výbor pro Slezsko about partition of past lands of the Duchy of Cieszyn according to ethnic lines. The Duchy of Teschen or Duchy of Cieszyn or Duchy of Těšín (Těšínské knížectví Herzogtum Teschen Ducatus Tessinensis Księstwo Cieszyńskie was However, that deal was not approved by the Czechoslovak government in Prague. Prague (ˈprɑːg Praha (ˈpraɦa see also other names) is the Capital and Largest city of the Czech Republic. Poland held general elections in the entire disputed area, and on 23 January 1919, Czech troops invaded the lands of Cieszyn Silesia and stopped on 30 January 1919 on the Vistula River near Skoczów. Events 393 - Roman Emperor Theodosius I proclaims his nine year old son Honorius co-emperor Year 1919 ( MCMXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 1648 - Eighty Years' War: The Treaty of Münster is signed ending the conflict between the Netherlands and Spain Year 1919 ( MCMXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Skoczów (Skotschau Skočov is a town and the seat of Gmina Skoczów in Cieszyn County, Silesian Voivodeship, southern Poland with 14783 ^[3][4] The planned plebiscite was not organised and the division of Cieszyn Silesia was decided on 28 July 1920 by the Spa Conference, which instituted the present-day border between Poland and the Czech Republic. Events 1540 - Thomas Cromwell is executed at the order of Henry VIII of England on charges of Treason. Year 1920 ( MCMXX) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display 1920 of the Gregorian calendar The Spa Conference was a meeting between the members of the Entente, and of Poland, Germany, and Czechoslovakia that took place in the town of The Czech Republic ( ˈt͡ʃɛskaː ˈrɛpuˌblɪka short form in Česko ˈt͡ʃɛskɔ also called Czechia,

Interwar period

Military band walks under the sign made by Polish people of Karwina during the 1938 annexation of Zaolzie by Poland. Karviná ( pronounced, Polish:, Karwin is a city in Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic, on the Olza River. (Zaolší (Zaolží Zaolzie Śląsk zaolziański literally Trans- Olza River Silesia, Olsa-Gebiet is an area in the present-day Czech Republic, which was The sign reads "We've been waiting for you for 600 years".

After the referendum, there were three Silesian Insurrections instigated by Polish inhabitants of the area, as a result of which the League of Nations decided that the province should be split with areas where majority voted for Poland going to Poland and areas where majority voted for Germany going to Germany. The Silesian Uprisings (Aufstände in Oberschlesien Powstania śląskie were a series of three armed uprisings of the Poles and Polish Silesians The League decided that the eastern-most Upper Silesian areas where majority voted for Poland, should become an autonomous area within Poland organised as the Autonomous Silesian Voivodeship (Autonomiczne Województwo Śląskie) and with Silesian Parliament as a constituency and Silesian Voivodship Council as the executive body. The Autonomous Silesian Voivodeship (Autonomiczne Województwo Śląskie Autonome Woiwodschaft Schlesien was an autonomous region of the Poland created as the Silesian Parliament or Silesian Sejm (Sejm Śląski was the governing body of the Autonomous Silesian Voivodeship, an Autonomous Voivodeship One of the central political figures that stirred these changes was Wojciech Korfanty.

The Silesian Uprisings 1919-1921:

• First Silesian Uprising: 16 August 1919-26 August 1919
• Second Silesian Uprising: 19 August 1920-25 August 1920
• Third Silesian Uprising: 2 May 1921-5 July 1921

The major part of Silesia, remaining in Germany, was reorganised into the two provinces of Upper Silesia and Lower Silesia. The Silesian Uprisings (Aufstände in Oberschlesien Powstania śląskie were a series of three armed uprisings of the Poles and Polish Silesians Year 1919 ( MCMXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Year 1921 ( MCMXXI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full 1921 calendar of the Gregorian calendar The Silesian Uprisings (Aufstände in Oberschlesien Powstania śląskie were a series of three armed uprisings of the Poles and Polish Silesians Events 1384 - The Hongwu Emperor of Ming China, Emperor Dong hears a case of a couple who tore paper money bills while fighting Year 1919 ( MCMXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 1071 - Battle of Manzikert: The Seljuk Turks defeat the Byzantine Army at Manzikert. Year 1919 ( MCMXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common The Silesian Uprisings (Aufstände in Oberschlesien Powstania śląskie were a series of three armed uprisings of the Poles and Polish Silesians Events 43 BC - Octavian, later known as Augustus compels the Roman Senate to elect him Consul. Year 1920 ( MCMXX) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display 1920 of the Gregorian calendar Events 1248 - The Dutch city of Ommen receives city rights and fortification rights from Otto III the Year 1920 ( MCMXX) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display 1920 of the Gregorian calendar The Silesian Uprisings (Aufstände in Oberschlesien Powstania śląskie were a series of three armed uprisings of the Poles and Polish Silesians Events 1194 - King Richard I of England gives Portsmouth its first Royal Charter. Year 1921 ( MCMXXI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full 1921 calendar of the Gregorian calendar Events 1295 - Scotland and France form an alliance the beginnings of the Auld Alliance, against England. Year 1921 ( MCMXXI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full 1921 calendar of the Gregorian calendar The term Weimar Republic ( ˈvaɪmarɐ repuˈbliːk is used by historians to signify the democratic and Republican period of Germany from 1919 to 1933 The Province of Upper Silesia (Provinz Oberschlesien Górny Śląsk Silesian: Górny Ślonsk) was a province of the Free State of Prussia created The Province of Lower Silesia (Provinz Niederschlesien was a province of the Free State of Prussia from 1919 to 1945 In Silesia the synagogues in modern day Wrocław (German:Breslau) and in many other cities were destroyed during the Kristallnacht of 1938. Wrocław (Breslau Vratislav Vratislavia or Wratislavia Yiddish: ברעסלוי) is the chief City of the historical region of Lower Silesia Kristallnacht ( literally "Crystal night" or the Night of Broken Glass was a Pogrom in Nazi Germany on November 9–10 1938 In October 1938, Zaolzie (part of Cieszyn Silesia, the disputed area west of the Olza River - 876 km² with 258,000 inhabitants), was taken by Poland from Czechoslovakia following the Munich Agreement that surrendered border areas of Czechoslovakia to Nazi Germany. (Zaolší (Zaolží Zaolzie Śląsk zaolziański literally Trans- Olza River Silesia, Olsa-Gebiet is an area in the present-day Czech Republic, which was (Olše or Olza, Olsa is a River in Poland and the Czech Republic, the right Tributary of the Oder River. The Munich Agreement (Mnichovská dohoda Mníchovská dohoda Münchner Abkommen Accords de Munich was an agreement regarding the Sudetenland, which were areas along borders Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers Czech Silesia with Slezská Ostrava was incorporated into the Sudetenland Gau, while Hultschin was incorporated into Upper Silesia province. Czech Silesia (České Slezsko is one of the three Czech lands and a section of the Silesian historical region Slezská Ostrava (Śląska Ostrawa lit Silesian Ostrava) till 1919 Polnisch Ostrau (Polská Ostrava Polska Ostrawa lit Sudetenland ( Czech and Polish: Sudety) is the German name used in English in the first half of the 20th century for the western regions of Hlučín (ˈɦlutʃiːn Hultschin Hulczyn is a Town in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic.

World War II

The German Reich retook possession of these mostly Polish parts of Upper Silesia (lost as a result of WWI) along with Sosnowiec (Sosnowitz), Będzin (Bendzin, Bendsburg), Chrzanów (Krenau), and Zawiercie (Warthenau) counties and parts of Olkusz (Ilkenau) and Zywiec (Saybusch) counties in 1939, when the invasion of Poland marked the beginning of World War II. Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers Sosnowiec is a city located in the south of Poland. A county capital neighbouring Katowice, and a mining and industrial region it was one of the largest cities Będzin ( Bendin בענדין Bendzin is a town in Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland. Chrzanów is a town in south Poland with 39704 inhabitants (2006 Zawiercie (zavʲertɕə is a City in the Silesian Voivodeship of southern Poland with 55800 inhabitants (2005 Olkusz is a town in south Poland with 37696 inhabitants (2004 Żywiec (Saybusch Saubusch is a Town in south-central Poland with 32078 inhabitants (2006 The Invasion of Poland (1939 precipitated World War II. It was carried out by Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union, and a small German-allied World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The local German populations frequently welcomed the Wehrmacht and saw it as a liberation much like in the Sudetenland. Wehrmacht (literally "defense force" was the name of the unified Armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945 Later, many thousands of Silesians were conscripted to the Wehrmacht.

In 1940, the Germans started to construct the Auschwitz concentration camp, which was later used as a death camp during the Holocaust. "Auschwitz" redirects here For the town see Oświęcim Auschwitz-Birkenau () was the largest of Nazi Germany The Holocaust (from the Greek el ''ὁλόκαυστον'' (el-Latn holókauston holos, "completely" and kaustos, "burnt" also known as The Groß-Rosen concentration camp, which had subcamps in many Silesian cities, was also constructed in 1940. KL Gross-Rosen (Groß-Rosen was a German Concentration camp, located in Gross-Rosen, Lower Silesia (now Rogoźnica, Poland The Riese Project was later implemented, during which thousands of prisoners died.

Silesia after World War II

In 1945, all of Silesia was occupied by the Soviet Red Army and Polish People's Army, in the course of the Silesian Offensives as part of the invasion of Eastern Germany. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 The Red Army ( Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия R aboche- K rest'yanskaya K rasnaya A rmiya Ludowe Wojsko Polskie (Pronounced 'vɔjskɔ 'pɔlskʲe}} lit Peoples' Army of Poland, LWP was the second formation of the Polish Armed This is an article about a WWII offensives For WWI offensive see Silesian Offensive. By then a large portion of the German population had fled or were evacuated from Silesia out of fear of revenge by Soviet soldiers, but many returned after the German capitulation. World War II evacuation and expulsion refers to forced deportation mass evacuation and displacement of peoples spurred on by the hostilities between Axis and Allied powers and the border Under the terms of the agreements at the Yalta Conference and the Potsdam Agreement, both in 1945, German Silesia east of the rivers Oder and Lusatian Neisse was transferred to Poland (see Oder-Neisse line). The Yalta Conference, sometimes called the Crimea Conference and Codenamed the Argonaut Conference, was the wartime meeting from 4 February The Potsdam Agreement was an agreement on policy for the occupation and reconstruction of Germany and other nations after fighting in the European Theatre of World War II The Oder (known in Czech and Polish as Odra) is a River in Central Europe. Neisse redirects here for other meanings see Neisse (disambiguation The Lusatian Neisse (Lužická Nisa Lausitzer Neiße Nysa Łużycka The Oder-Neisse line (Granica na Odrze i Nysie Łużyckiej Oder-Neiße-Grenze was drawn in the aftermath of World War II as the eastern border of Germany and Most of the remaining Silesian Germans, who before World War II amounted to more than four million inhabitants, were forcibly expelled, some of them imprisoned in labour camps, e. The expulsion of Germans after World War II was the Forced migration and Ethnic cleansing of German nationals ( Reichsdeutsche) and ethnic g. Lamsdorf (Łambinowice) and Zgoda labour camp. Łambinowice (Lamsdorf is a village in western Poland in the voivodeship of Opole, close to the town of Nysa. The Zgoda labour camp was a Concentration camp for Germans and Silesians in Communist Poland operated in 1945 in Świętochłowice Many perished in those camps and many more during the flight towards the Soviet Occuapation Zone across the Oder(future East Germany). More than 30,000 Silesian men (majority of German roots, some having partially Polish roots) were deported to Soviet mines and Siberia, the majority of whom never returned. Mining is the extraction of valuable Minerals or other geological materials from the earth usually (but not always from an Ore body Siberia (Сиби́рь Sibir) is the name given to the vast region constituting almost all of Northern Asia and for the most part currently serving Others were driven out in the years after the war by the Polish government who took on a very nationalistic anti-German policy in what they deemed the Regained Territories, (see German exodus from Eastern Europe). Recovered or Regained Territories (Ziemie Odzyskane was the official term used by the Polish post-war authorities to denote those territories which were transferred The German exodus from Eastern Europe refers to the exodus of ethnic German populations from lands to the east of present-day Germany and Austria.

The industry of Silesia, in particular the substantial industry of Upper Silesia, suffered comparatively little damage during World War II due to its relative inaccessibility to Allied bombing, a Soviet Army enveloping maneuver in January 1945^[5], and perhaps Albert Speer's slowness or refusal to implement the scorched earth policy. The Allies of World War II were the countries officially opposed to the Axis powers during the Second World War. Strategic bombing during World War II was greater in scale than any wartime attack the world had previously witnessed The pincer movement or double envelopment is a basic element of Military strategy which has been used to some extent in many Wars and is considered Berthold Konrad Hermann Albert Speer, commonly known as Albert Speer ( 19 March 1905 - 1 September 1981 was an Architect, author and for part of World A scorched earth policy is a military strategy or operational method (possibly more often referred to as a tactic but this is not entirely correct as there is a difference between This generally intact industry now played a critical role in the post-war reconstruction and industrialization of Poland. That industry that was damaged or destroyed (mostly in Opole and Lower Silesia) was rebuilt after the war. After the war, businesses (large and small alike) were nationalized and operated, with relatively minor changes or investments, till 1989. At the fall of communism in 1989, the most industrialized parts of Silesia were in decline. "Fall of Communism" redirects here For the fall of the Soviet Union itself see History of the Soviet Union (1985–1991. Since 1989, Silesia has been transitioning to a more diverse, service-based economy.

After the World War II, the region was substantially repopulated by Poles, many of whom had themselves been expelled from eastern Polish areas annexed by the Soviet Union and transferred to the Soviet Ukraine. Today, a small German-speaking remnant indigenous population exists in the region around Opole (Oppeln), as well as some Slavic speaking and bilingual remnants of the pre-1945 population of Upper Silesia. Opole (Oppeln is a city in southern Poland on the Oder River (Odra In the official Polish census, 153,000 people declared German nationality, though up to 500,000 or more are of German ancestry. The German-Polish silesian minority is active in politics and has pressed for the right to again freely use the German language in public which has been largely successful.

In 1945 following World War II, the communist parliament of Poland took control of the German Silesian territory, as well as the Autonomous Silesian Voivodeship. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The Autonomous Silesian Voivodeship (Autonomiczne Województwo Śląskie Autonome Woiwodschaft Schlesien was an autonomous region of the Poland created as the After the fall of communism in 1989, the parliament of Poland did not return autonomy to Polish Silesia. Since 1991, the Silesian Autonomy Movement has tried peaceful dialogue to convince the Polish parliament to return autonomy, though so far their efforts have been unsuccessful. Ruch Autonomii Śląska ( Silesian: Ruch Autonůmije Ślůnska, Silesian Autonomy Movement, RAŚ is a movement officially declaring its support for the

Natural resources

Silesia is a resource-rich and populous region. Bituminous and lignite coal is abundant, and a substantial manufacturing industry is present, particularly in Upper Silesia. Manufacturing (from Latin manu factura, "making by hand" is the use of tools and labor to make things for use or sale Lower Silesia features large copper mining and processing between the cities of Legnica, Głogów, Lubin and Polkowice. Copper (ˈkɒpɚ is a Chemical element with the symbol Cu (cuprum and Atomic number 29 Legnica (Liegnitz is a City on the Kaczawa river in Lower Silesia in south-western Poland. Głogów (Hlohov (rare Glogau rarely Groß-Glogau) is a Town in southwestern Poland. Recently, the estimate of lignite reserves near Legnica has been upgraded to about 35 billion tonnes, making them some of the largest in the world. Lignite, often referred to as brown coal, or Rosebud coal by Northern Pacific Railroad, is a soft brown fuel with characteristics that put it somewhere ^[6]

The following minerals have also been mined in Silesia: zinc, silver, cadmium, lead, gold, methane, iron ore, limestone, marl, marble, and basalt. Zinc (ˈzɪŋk from Zink is a Metallic Chemical element with the symbol Zn and Atomic number 30 Silver (ˈsɪlvɚ is a Chemical element with the symbol " Ag " (argentum from the Ancient Greek: ἀργήντος - argēntos gen Cadmium (ˈkædmiəm is a Chemical element with the symbol Cd and Atomic number 48 Characteristics Lead has a dull luster and is a dense, Ductile, very soft highly Gold (ˈɡoʊld is a Chemical element with the symbol Au (from its Latin name aurum) and Atomic number 79 Methane is a Chemical compound with the molecular formula. It is the simplest Alkane, and the principal component of Natural gas. Iron ores are rocks and Minerals from which Metallic Iron can be economically extracted Limestone is a Sedimentary rock composed largely of the Mineral Calcite ( Calcium carbonate: CaCO3 Marl or Marlstone is a Calcium carbonate or lime -rich mud or Mudstone which contains variable amounts of Clays and Aragonite Marble is a nonfoliated Metamorphic rock resulting from the Metamorphism of Limestone, composed mostly of Calcite (a crystalline form of Basalt (bəˈsɔːlt ˈbeisɔːlt ˈbæsɔːlt is a common Extrusive Volcanic rock. Historically, also uranium used to be mined. ^[7]

In post-communist times, however, the outdated nature of many facilities has led to environmental problems and substantial transition away from the resource-based to service-based economy.

The region also has a thriving agricultural sector, which produces cereals (wheat, rye, barley, oats, corn), potatoes, rapeseed, sugar beets and others. Agriculture refers to the production of goods through the growing of plants and fungi and the raising of domesticated Animals The study of agriculture The potato is a Starchy Tuberous crop Vegetable from the perennial Solanum tuberosum of the Solanaceae Rapeseed ( Brassica napus) also known as rape, oilseed rape, rapa, rapaseed and (in the case of one particular group of Sugar beet ( Beta vulgaris L a member of the Chenopodiaceae family is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of Sucrose. Milk production is well developed. The Opole Silesia has for decades occupied the top spot in Poland for their indices of effectiveness of agricultural land use^[13].

Mountainous parts of southern Silesia feature many significant and attractive tourism destinations (e. g. , Karpacz, Szczyrk, Wisła). Karpacz ( German Krummhübel) is a Spa town and Ski resort in Jelenia Góra County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship Szczyrk (Schirk is a town in the Beskid Śląski mountains of southern Poland, situated in the valley of the Żylica river Wisła (Weichsel is a town in Cieszyn County, Silesian Voivodeship, southern Poland, with a population of about 11810 (2006 near the border with

Silesia is generally well forested. This is because greenness is generally highly desirable by the local population, particularly in the highly industrialized parts of Silesia.

Demographics

Modern Silesia is inhabited by Poles, Germans, Czechs and slavic Silesians. The Polish people, or Poles, (Polacy) are a Western Slavic Ethnic group of Central Europe, living predominantly in Poland. This article is about the German diaspora See Germans for the German ethnicity in general Czechs (Češi ˈt͡ʃɛʃɪ archaic Čechové) are a western Slavic people of Central Europe, living predominantly in the Czech Republic Silesians ( Silesian: Ślůnzoki; Ślązacy Slezané Schlesier are the inhabitants of Silesia in Poland, Germany and the The last Polish census of 2002 showed that the Silesians are the largest national minority in Poland, Germans being the second; both groups are located mostly in Upper Silesia. The Czech part of Silesia is inhabited by Czechs, Moravians, and Poles.

Before the Second World War, Silesia was inhabited mostly by Germans and Poles, in addition to German and Polish Jews and Czechs. In 1905, a census showed (in Upper Silesia) that 75% of the population was German and 25% Polish. Most Jews were murdered in the Holocaust in the German concentration camps. The vast majority of German Silesians fled or were expelled from Silesia during and after World War II. Most ethnic German Silesians today live in the territory of the Federal Republic of Germany, many of them working as miners in the Ruhr area, like their ancestors did in the Silesian mines. The Ruhr Area, ( German Ruhrgebiet, colloquial Ruhrpott, Kohlenpott or Revier) is an Urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia In order to smooth their integration into West German society after 1945, they were organized into officially recognized organisations, like the Landsmannschaft Schlesien, financed from the federal German budget. West Germany ( Inf German: Westdeutschland or West-Deutschland) was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany ( The Landsmannschaft Schlesien - Nieder- und Oberschlesien eV ("Territorial Association of Silesia - Lower and Upper Silesia" is an Organization of Germans born One of its most notable but controversial spokesmen was the CDU politician Herbert Hupka. The Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands) is the largest Political party in Germany. Herbert Hupka ( August 15, 1915 &ndash August 24, 2006) was a German Journalist and Politician ( CDU The prevailing public opinion in Germany is that these organisations will achieve reconciliation with the Polish Silesians, which is gradually occurring. Many of the pre-war Germanised Slavic Silesians living in Upper Silesia have remained culturally bound to and have sought work in the Federal Republic of Germany after 1990, along with their ethnic German Silesian countrymen. Upper Silesia (Horní Slezsko Oberschlesien Latin: Silesia Superior; Górny Śląsk Silesian: Gůrny Ślůnsk) is the southeastern part Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. This article is about the German diaspora See Germans for the German ethnicity in general Examples of mixed Polish-German Silesians include Miroslav Klose; fellow teammate Lukas Podolski who is also Silesian. Miroslav Klose ( born as Mirosław Marian Kloze on June 9, 1978) is a German footballer who plays as a Striker. Lukas Podolski ( (born as pl Łukasz Podolski on June 4, 1985 nicknamed (Prinz Poldi) is a German footballer who plays as a Both are stars of the German national football team. The German national football team (Die deutsche Fußballnationalmannschaft From 1950 to 1990 the team was also informally called West Germany in English as since

Silesia has always been different than ruling it countries^[14]. Also stereotyping of Silesians and by Silesians has been common^[15]. The Silesian people are perceived to traditionally exhibit exceptional working ethics, high technical aptitude, dedication to family, team-work orientation, and skepticism to politics and media. The stereotypical way for Silesian men to spend their free time would include pigeon keeping, bee keeping, soccer, gardening, home upgrades, beer drinking, or magazine reading, while stereotypical housewife would prefer to play with kids, chat with a neighbour, or bake elaborate pastry (possibly a poppy-seed cake). Pigeon keeping is the art and science of breeding domestic pigeons. Beekeeping (or apiculture, from Latin apis, Bee) is the maintenance of Honey bee colonies commonly in Hives Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a Team sport played between two teams of eleven players and is widely considered Gardening is the practice of growing Plants for their attractive flowers or foliage and Vegetables or Fruits for consumption Below is a list of dishes found in Polish cuisine Soups barszcz - Beetroot soup ubiquitous among Slavic nations

Cities in Silesia

By far, the largest urban center in Silesia (and in Poland) is the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union, which is a voluntary union of a 14 neighbouring cities. Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union, USMU also known under official name Metropolitan Association of Upper Silesia MAUS (Górnośląski Związek Metropolitalny is a Union However, it struggling to gain recognition in Poland, and is sometimes not even shown on Polish maps^[16].

The following table lists the (official) cities in Silesia with a population greater than 100,000 (2006):

Wrocław

Katowice

Ostrava

Bielsko-Biała

Opole

Görlitz

		Official name	Population	Area	Administrative	Country
1		Wrocław	635 932	293 km²	Lower Silesian V.
2		Katowice	317 220	165 km²	Silesian Voivodeship
3		Ostrava	309 531	214 km²	Moravian-Silesian R.
4		Gliwice	199 451	134 km²	Silesian Voivodeship
5		Bytom	187 943	69 km²	Silesian Voivodeship
6		Zabrze	191 247	80 km²	Silesian Voivodeship
7		Bielsko-Biała	176 864	125 km²	Silesian Voivodeship
8		Ruda Śląska	146 658	78 km²	Silesian Voivodeship
9		Rybnik	141 580	148 km²	Silesian Voivodeship
10		Tychy	131 153	82 km²	Silesian Voivodeship
11		Opole	128 268	97 km²	Opole Voivodeship
12		Wałbrzych	126 465	85 km²	Lower Silesian V.
13		Zielona Góra	118 221	58 km²	Lubusz Voivodeship
14		Chorzów	114 686	33 km²	Silesian Voivodeship
15		Legnica	105 750	56 km²	Lower Silesian V.

See also

• Autonomous Silesian Voivodeship
• List of Silesians
• Architecture of Silesia
• Silesian language
• Silesian uprisings
• Silesians
• Union of Poles in Germany
• History of Germany
• Expulsion of Germans after World War II

Footnotes

References

• Długajczyk, Edward (1993). Tajny front na granicy cieszyńskiej. Wywiad i dywersja w latach 1919-1939. Katowice: Śląsk. Katowice (Katovice Kattowitz is a City in Silesia in southern Poland, on the Kłodnica ISBN 83-85831-03-7.  
• Zahradnik, Stanisław; and Marek Ryczkowski (1992). Korzenie Zaolzia. Warszawa - Praga - Trzyniec: PAI-press. Warsaw (Warszawa; also known by other names) is the Capital and Largest city of Poland. Prague (ˈprɑːg Praha (ˈpraɦa see also other names) is the Capital and Largest city of the Czech Republic. Třinec ( pronounced, Polish:, Trzynietz is a town in Frýdek-Místek District, Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic.  

This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain. The Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition (1910–1911 is a 29-volume reference work that marked the beginning of the Encyclopædia Britannica The public domain is a range of abstract materials &ndash commonly referred to as Intellectual property &ndash which are not owned or controlled by anyone

Further reading

• Documents on British Foreign Policy 1919-1939, 1st Series, volume XI, Upper Silesia, Poland, and the Baltic States, January 1920-March 1921, edited by Rohan Butler, MA, J. P. T. Bury, MA, & M. E. Lambert, MA, Her Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO), London, 1961 (amended edition 1974), ISBN 0-11-591511-7*

• Documents on British Foreign Policy 1919-1939, 1st Series, volume XVI, Upper Silesia, March 1921 - November 1922, edited by W. The Office of Public Sector Information ( OPSI) is the body responsible for the operation of Her Majesty's Stationery Office (usually abbreviated as HMSO N. Medlicott, MA, D. Lit. , Douglas Dakin, MA, PhD, & M. E. Lambert, MA, HMSO, London, 1968. The Office of Public Sector Information ( OPSI) is the body responsible for the operation of Her Majesty's Stationery Office (usually abbreviated as HMSO

• Microcosm, Portrait of a Central European City, by Norman Davies and Roger Moorhouse (Jonathan Cape, 2002) ISBN 0-224-06243-3

• Dehio - Handbuch der Kunstdenkmäler in Polen: Schlesien, Herder-Institut Marburg and Krajowy Osrodek Badan i Dokumentacji Zabytkow Warszawa, Deutscher Kunstverlag 2005, ISBN 342203109X*

External links

• Republic of Silesia page
• Silesian Autonomy Movement page
• Map of Silesia in 1763
• Old postcards from Silesian towns
• Photos from Silesian towns, villages and communities before 1946
• Map of Silesia as of 2000
• Silesia in maps of Europe
• Combined European History Exhibit by Germans, Poles, Czech, Slovaks and Hungarians