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Wrocław (Polish: [ˈvrɔt͡swaf] ⓘ; [a] ‹See Tfd› German: Breslau [ˈbʁɛslaʊ] ⓘ; also known by other names) is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia.
At the end of the German Empire Breslau had become the economic, cultural and administrative centre of Eastern Germany. While Breslau itself was mostly Protestant the city also housed the Roman Catholic Diocese of Breslau, the second-largest diocese in the world, and thus became entangled in Bismarcks Kulturkampf.
- Overview
- History
- The contemporary city
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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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Wrocław, also known as Breslau, is a city in southwestern Poland with a rich and turbulent history. Learn about its origins, development, culture, and attractions from Britannica's editors.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
- Old Town. During the Siege of Breslau Wrocław was almost flattened, which only makes the skyline of church spires and Baroque gabled townhouses all the more astonishing.
- Rynek (Market Square) At 3.8 hectares, Wrocław’s Market Square is among the largest, not just in Poland but all of Europe. Like the rest of the Old Town, the Market Square has almost the same layout as it did when it was planned in the middle of the 13th century.
- Ostrów Tumski (Cathedral Island) The oldest part of Wrocław cropped up on what used to be an island in the Oder. By the 19th century the arm of the river separating it from the bank was closed off to prevent flooding.
- Old Town Hall. Standing at an angle on the Market Square, the Old Town Hall is a group of Gothic buildings bundled together in one complex. As Wrocław developed from the end of the 13th century, new wings were fixed on to account for the political and economic changes taking place in the city over the next 250 years.
Sep 29, 2023 · After the 1245 A.D. Mongol invasion the town of Breslau was partly populated by German settlers who would gradually become its dominant ethnic group. The city council used Latin and German, and “Breslau”, the Germanized name of the city, appeared for the first time in written records.
Wrocław (pronounced VROHTS-wahf; also known as Breslau, its German name, and English name until 1945) is the largest city in Lower Silesia in Poland. It is home to 674,000 people within the city limits (2022) and the metropolitan area has a population of 1.3 million making it the largest city in Western Poland.
John Malkovich on a film set in Wroclaw [INTERVIEW] One of the most interesting American actors, the star of numerous films (Dangerous Liaisons, In the Line of Fire, Being John Malkovich) or TV series (Billions, The New Pope) appeared in Wroclaw to take part in the shooting of A Winter’s Journey directed by Alex Helfrecht.
