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156-426: It lies in the historic Lower Silesia region, approximately 10 kilometres (6 mi) southeast of Świdnica , and 51 kilometres (32 mi) southwest of the regional capital Wrocław . The village is the site of an International Youth Meeting Centre, which primarily brings Polish and German young people together for dialogue and educational programs. The settlement was first mentioned in 1250 as Krzyzovo , when it

312-726: A fief of the Margraviate of Brandenburg , which in 1307 extended its Pomeranian possessions even further east, taking over the Sławno and Słupsk areas. Pomerelia or Gdańsk Pomerania became independent of the Polish dukes from 1227. In mid-13th century, Bolesław II the Bald granted Lubusz Land to the Margraviate, which made possible the creation of the Neumark and had far reaching negative consequences for

468-479: A camp for kidnapped Polish children up to 5 years of age, who were deemed " racially worthless " in Wąsosz , where many died. Kamieniec Ząbkowicki was the place of Aktion T4 murders of mentally ill children by involuntary euthanasia . The Project Riese construction project, which cost the lives of many forced laborers of various nationalities, was conducted by Germany in the region. The Polish resistance movement

624-587: A chance of overcoming the country's mounting difficulties or succeeding as a ruler. But from the beginning, Casimir acted prudently, and in 1335, he purchased the claims of King John of Bohemia to the Polish throne. In 1343, Casimir settled several high-level arbitration disputes with the Teutonic Order by a territorial compromise that culminated in the Treaty of Kalisz of 1343. Dobrzyń Land and Kuyavia were recovered by Casimir. At that time, Poland started to expand to

780-846: A complex political relationship with the German Holy Roman Empire , as Mieszko was a "friend", ally and vassal of Holy Roman Emperor Otto I and paid him tribute from the western part of his lands. Mieszko fought wars with the Polabian Slavs , the Czechs, Margrave Gero of the Saxon Eastern March in 963–964 and Margrave Odo I of the Saxon Eastern March in 972 in the Battle of Cedynia . The victories over Wichmann and Odo allowed Mieszko to extend his Pomeranian possessions west to

936-778: A dining room (in a former cowshed), a cafeteria, sports rooms and sports fields, conference rooms (with simultaneous translation arrangement) as well as party rooms (with table tennis and pool). A restored castle containing an exhibition on the Kreisau Circle is also located there. Lower Silesia Lower Silesia ( Polish : Dolny Śląsk [ˈdɔlnɨ ˈɕlɔ̃sk] ; Czech : Dolní Slezsko ; German : Niederschlesien [ˈniːdɐˌʃleːzi̯ən] ; Silesian : Dolny Ślōnsk ; Upper Sorbian : Delnja Šleska [ˈdɛlnʲa ˈʃlɛska] ; Lower Sorbian : Dolna Šlazyńska [ˈdɔlna ˈʃlazɨnʲska] ; Lower Silesian : Niederschläsing ; Latin : Silesia Inferior )

1092-523: A government, Poland was ravaged by an anti-feudal and pagan rebellion , and in 1039, there was an invasion by the forces of Bretislaus I of Bohemia . The country suffered territorial losses, and the functioning of the Gniezno archdiocese was disrupted. Poland made a recovery under Mieszko's son, Duke Casimir I (r. 1039–1058), known to history as the Restorer. After returning from exile in 1039, Casimir rebuilt

1248-570: A great loss to Poland) was his success in forcing most of the Piast Silesian principalities, often ambivalent about their loyalties, into allegiance between 1327 and 1329. After the death of Władysław I, the old monarch's 23-year-old son became King Casimir III, later known as Casimir the Great (r. 1333–1370). Unlike his father, the new king demonstrated no attraction for the hardships of military life. Casimir's contemporaries did not give him much of

1404-631: A pilgrim to visit St. Adalbert's grave and lent his support to Bolesław during the Congress of Gniezno ; the Gniezno Archdiocese and several subordinate dioceses were established on this occasion. The Polish ecclesiastical province effectively served as an essential anchor and an institution to fall back on for the Piast state, helping it to survive in the troubled centuries ahead. Bolesław at first chose to continue his father's policy of cooperation with

1560-835: A result of deforestation and cultivation. The largest forest complexes are Bory Dolnośląskie (3,150 km or 1,220 sq mi), Bory Stobrawskie in Stobrawa and Widawa areas, and smaller fragments of forests in Barycz and Oder River valleys. These forests are kind of multi-species deciduous forests, occurring in fertile grounds. The Oder River valley is reach in groups of mixed forests ( beech , oak , hornbeam , sycamore maple , and pine ). These forests, with protected status, are: Zwierzyniec , Kanigóra near Oława , Dublany, Kępa Opatowicka near Wrocław , Zabór near Przedmoście , and Lubiąż . The other forest areas are The Natural Park in Orsk,

1716-618: A result of the Local Government Reorganisation Act of 1998, these four provinces were joined into the Lower Silesian Voivodeship (effective 1 January 1999), whose capital is Wrocław. History of Poland during the Piast dynasty Timeline of Polish history The period of rule by the Piast dynasty between the 10th and 14th centuries is the first major stage of the history of the Polish state . The dynasty

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1872-492: A small Polish-speaking area in the northeastern part of the district of Namslau (Namysłów) , Groß Wartenberg (Syców) and Militsch (Milicz) and a Czech-speaking minority in the rural area around Strehlen (Strzelin) . There were also Polish communities in large cities such as Breslau (Wrocław) and Grünberg (Zielona Góra) . During World War I , the Germans operated at least 24 forced labour camps for Allied prisoners of war in

2028-507: A well-connected Czech bishop in exile and missionary who was killed in 997 while on a mission in Prussia . Bolesław skillfully took advantage of his death: his martyrdom led to his elevation as patron saint of Poland and resulted in the creation of an independent Polish province of the Church with Radim Gaudentius as Archbishop of Gniezno . In the year 1000, the young Emperor Otto III came as

2184-458: Is honey mushroom , with edible specimen , which grows in pulp, between the bark and timber , causing the death of tree. The other damaging fungus is bracket fungus , which destroys roots and trunks from the inside. The honey mushroom devastates the tree within a few months, and the bracket fungus, within a few years, as a result of mechanic changes in wood structure. At the close of the Ice Age ,

2340-678: Is Jezioro Kunickie (95 hectares or 230 acres), Jezioro Koskowickie (50 ha or 120 acres), Jezioro Jaśkowickie (24 ha or 59 acres) and Tatarak (19.5 ha or 48 acres). In contrast to the number of lakes, there are large groups of artificial ponds founded in the Barycz basin, in the Middle Ages. Their total area amounts around 80 square kilometres (31 square miles), and the largest ponds (Stary Staw, Łosiowy Staw, Staw Niezgoda, Staw Mewi Duży, and Grabownica) come to 200–300 ha (490–740 acres). The primeval flora has been transformed significantly as

2496-568: Is a historical and geographical region mostly located in Poland with small portions in the Czech Republic and Germany . It is the western part of the region of Silesia . Its largest city is Wrocław . The first state to have a stable hold over the territory of what will be considered Lower Silesia was the short-lived Great Moravia in the 9th century. Afterwards, in the Middle Ages , Lower Silesia

2652-467: Is formed by species deriving from various geographic regions. Particular regions are represented by: Lower subalpine forest ( Polish : Regiel Dolny ), 450–1,000 m (1,480–3,280 ft), is characterized by deciduous or mixed forest. The fragments of forests similar to natural complexes of pine - fir - beech with admixture of larch , sycamore maple and lime occur near the Szklarski waterfall, in

2808-408: Is located in the northern part, within the hills. The region of the lowlands is coated with a thick layer of glacial elements ( sand , gravel , clay ) that covers more diverse relief of the older ground. Generally flat and wide bottoms of the valleys are padded with river settlements. Slopes of the hills over 180–200 m (590–660 ft) are coated with fertile clays and therefore, to begin with,

2964-563: Is located mostly in the basin of the middle Oder River with its historic capital in Wrocław . The southern border of Lower Silesia is mapped by the mountain ridge of the Western and Central Sudetes , which since the High Middle Ages formed the border between Polish Silesia and the historic Bohemian region of the present-day Czech Republic. The Bóbr and Kwisa rivers are considered being

3120-482: Is shared between Lower Silesian Voivodeship (except for the Upper Lusatian counties of Lubań and Zgorzelec , and former Bohemian Kłodzko ), the southern part of Lubusz Voivodeship (i.e. the counties of Krosno Odrzańskie , Nowa Sól , Świebodzin , Żagań and Zielona Góra with the city of Zielona Góra , as well as western Opole Voivodeship (the counties of Brzeg , Namysłów and Nysa ). The tiny part of

3276-420: Is specific and different for each zone. From the bottoms to the top, plants form groups that are arranged in wide or narrow belts, called floral zones. Subsequently, these zones are divided into narrower belts, called vegetation belts. The zone of mountain forest is divided into two belts: subalpine and lower subalpine forest. Above, there is a forestless zone divided into the subalpine belt with dwarf pine, and

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3432-593: The Dagome iudex act, the most important written document and source of the period is the Gesta principum Polonorum , a chronicle by Gallus Anonymus , a foreign cleric from the court of Bolesław Wrymouth. Bruno of Querfurt was one of the pioneering Western clergymen spreading Church literacy; some of his prominent writings had been produced in eremitic monasteries in Poland. Among the preeminent early monastic religious orders were

3588-559: The Baptism of Poland in 966, which established a major cultural boundary in Europe based on religion. He also completed a unification of the Lechitic tribal lands that was fundamental to the existence of the new country of Poland. Following the emergence of the Polish state, a series of rulers converted the population to Christianity, created a kingdom of Poland in 1025 and integrated Poland into

3744-536: The Baptism of Poland that is considered to be the founding event of the Polish state. In the aftermath of Mieszko's victory over a force of the Velunzani in 967, which was led by Wichmann, the first missionary bishop was appointed: Jordan, bishop of Poland . The action counteracted the intended eastern expansion of the Magdeburg Archdiocese , which was established at about the same time. Mieszko's state had

3900-417: The Battle of Legnica , and Henry IV Probus . In 1295, Przemysł II of Greater Poland became the first Piast duke crowned as King of Poland since Bolesław II, but he ruled over only a part of the territory of Poland (including Gdańsk Pomerania from 1294) and was assassinated soon after his coronation. A more extensive unification of Polish lands was accomplished by a foreign ruler, Václav II of Bohemia of

4056-582: The Benedictines (the abbey in Tyniec founded in 1044) and the Cistercians . The 13th century brought fundamental changes to the structure of Polish society and its political system. Because of constant internal conflicts, the Piast dukes were unable to stabilize Poland's external borders. Western Farther Pomerania broke its political ties with Poland in the second half of the 12th century and from 1231 became

4212-654: The Bronze Age (1700–1500 BC), the evolution of different cultures developed to the existence of Unetice culture that affected the existence of Trzciniec culture . In the next periods since c.  750 BC , it encompasses all of Europe. In the La Tène culture period, Lower Silesia was inhabited by the Celts , who had their main place of cult on the Mount Ślęża . Their stony statues situated on and around this hill were later worshipped by

4368-625: The Brzeg Castle , as the last male member of the Piast dynasty , which founded the Polish state in the 10th century. He was buried in Legnica . Two main routes connecting Warsaw and Dresden ran through the region in the 18th century and Kings Augustus II the Strong and Augustus III of Poland often traveled that route. Most of Lower Silesia, except for the southern part of the Duchy of Nysa, became part of

4524-644: The Diocese of Wrocław , which, together with the Bishoprics of Kraków and Kołobrzeg , was placed under the Archbishopric of Gniezno in Greater Poland , founded by Emperor Otto III at the Congress of Gniezno in the same year. The ecclesial suzerainty of Gniezno over Wrocław lasted until 1821. After a temporary shift to Bohemia in the first half of the 11th century, Lower Silesia continued to be an integral part of

4680-488: The Franciscans were the leading monastic orders at this time, and they interacted closely with the general population. A proliferation of narrative annals characterized the period, as well as other written records, laws and documents. More of the clergy were of local origin; others were expected to know the Polish language. Wincenty Kadłubek , the author of an influential chronicle , was the most recognized representative in

4836-488: The Greater Poland Civil War , the Polish nobility decided that Jadwiga, Louis's youngest daughter, should become the next "King of Poland"; Jadwiga arrived in 1384 and was crowned at the age of eleven. The failure of the union of Poland and Hungary paved the way for the union of Lithuania and Poland . In the 14th century, many large scale brick building projects were undertaken during Casimir's reign, including

Krzyżowa, Świdnica County - Misplaced Pages Continue

4992-506: The Holy Roman Empire but when Emperor Otto III died in 1002, Bolesław's relationship with his successor Henry II turned out to be much more difficult, and it resulted in a series of wars (1002–1005, 1007–1013, 1015–1018). From 1003 to 1004, Bolesław intervened militarily in Czech dynastic conflicts. After his forces were removed from Bohemia in 1018, Bolesław retained Moravia . In 1013,

5148-589: The Hungarian ruling house the Polish throne in the event he dies without male heirs. Casimir, who formally gave up his rights to several Silesian principalities in 1339, unsuccessfully tried to recover the region by conducting military activities against the House of Luxembourg (the rulers of Bohemia) between 1343 and 1348, but then blocked the attempted separation of Silesia from the Gniezno Archdiocese by Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV . Later, until his death, he pursued

5304-669: The January Uprising of 1863–1864 in the Russian Partition of Poland. Local Poles took part in Polish national mourning after the Russian massacre of Polish protesters in Warsaw in February 1861, and also organized several patriotic Polish church services throughout 1861. Secret Polish correspondence, weapons, gunpowder and insurgents were transported through the region. In June 1863 Wrocław

5460-581: The Kaczawskie Mountains ( Skopiec , 724 m or 2,375 ft) with Ostrzyca , 501 m or 1,644 ft - they surround the Jelenia Góra valley , 420–450 m or 1,380–1,480 ft; Ślęża Massif ( Mount Ślęża 718 m or 2,356 ft), massive of Orlické hory , Králický Sněžník south of Kłodzko , Rychlebské hory and Jeseníky (English: Ashes mountains ; Praděd , 1,492 m or 4,895 ft). The adjacent Silesian Lowland includes

5616-818: The Kingdom of Prussia after the First Silesian War by the 1742 Treaty of Breslau . In 1813, several battles of the War of the Sixth Coalition were fought in the region, including the Battle of the Katzbach . In 1815, it became part of the Prussian Silesia Province , which was divided into the three Lower Silesian administrative regions ( Regierungsbezirke ) of Liegnitz , Breslau and Reichenbach  [ de ] , and Upper Silesian Oppeln (including

5772-702: The Kingdom of Prussia in the Treaty of Berlin , except for the southern part of the Duchy of Neisse . Within the Prussian kingdom, the region became part of the Province of Silesia . In 1871, the Prussian-controlled portion of Lower Silesia was integrated into the German Empire . After World War I , Lower Silesia was divided, as small parts were reintegrated with Poland and Czechoslovakia, which both regained independence. In

5928-463: The Kingdom of Saxony after the Napoleonic Wars , as well as some small areas transferred from Crossen ( Rothenburg an der Oder , Polnisch Nettkow , Drehnow ); the exclave of Schwiebus in the north, as well as few other small exclaves in the west, were transferred to Brandenburg Province . The formerly Bohemian County of Kladsko , which had been annexed along with Silesia in 1742, was attached to

6084-582: The Late Middle Ages the region fell under the overlordship of the Bohemian Crown , but large parts remained under the rule of local Polish dukes of the Piast, Jagiellonian and Sobieski dynasties, some up to the 17th and 18th century. Briefly under the suzerainty of the Kingdom of Hungary , it fell to the Austrian Habsburg monarchy in 1526. In 1742, Austria ceded nearly all of Lower Silesia to

6240-650: The Migration Period , a number of new peoples arrived in Silesia from Sarmatia , Asia Minor , and the Asian steppes from the beginning of the sixth century. The Bavarian Geographer ( c.  845 ) referred to the West Slavic Ślężanie (the other possible source of the region's Śląsk and later Silesia name), centered on Niemcza , and Dziadoszanie tribes, while a 1086 document issued by Bishop Jaromir of Prague listed

6396-462: The Paleozoic era, they became the lands for people to settle and cultivate intensively. The later form of the economy caused almost complete deforestation of the slopes. Not only fertile grounds, but also the mild climate is conductive to the development of agriculture and market gardening. The annual average temperature of the Wrocław area is 9.5  °C (49.1  °F ). The average temperature of

Krzyżowa, Świdnica County - Misplaced Pages Continue

6552-618: The Potsdam Agreement , in which the Soviet Union annexed eastern Poland, Lower Silesia went to the Republic of Poland . These border shifts were agreed on pending a final peace conference with Germany which eventually never took place. Germany retained the small portion of the former Prussian Province of Lower Silesia to the west of the Oder-Neisse line . The remaining German population

6708-414: The Přemyslid dynasty , who married Przemysł's daughter Richeza and became King of Poland in 1300. Václav's heavy-handed policies soon caused him to lose whatever support he had earlier in his reign; he died in 1305. An important factor in the unification process was the Polish Church, which remained a single ecclesiastical province throughout the fragmentation period. Archbishop Jakub Świnka of Gniezno

6864-407: The Reichenbach region in 1818, becoming part of the central Breslau region upon Reichenbach 's dissolution in 1820. The Polish secret resistance movement was active in the region in the 19th century. On 5 May 1848, a convention of Polish activists from the Prussian and Austrian partitions of Poland was held in Wrocław. Wrocław was the seat of a Polish uprising committee before and during

7020-735: The Silesian Lowlands and the Silesian-Lusatian Lowlands . These two lowlands are separated with each other by Dolina Kaczawy , and from the Sudetes by a steep morphological edge located along the Sudeten Marginal Fault, extended from Bolesławiec (the Northwest) to Złoty Stok (the Southeast). The southern part of the Lowland includes The Sudeten Foreland , consisting of quite low Wzgórze Strzegomskie , 232 m or 761 ft, Grupa Ślęży ( Mount Ślęża , 718 m or 2,356 ft), and Wzgórza Niemczańsko-Strzelińskie ( Gromnik Mountain , 392 m or 1,286 ft). Lower hills occur also in areas of Obniżenie Sudeckie, Świdnik , and Kotlina Dzierżoniowska . The eastern part of Silesian Lowland consists of

7176-418: The Slavic tribes that came here around the sixth century AD. Magna Germania (second century) records that between the Celtic and the Slavic period, Lower Silesia was inhabited by a number of Germanic tribes . Among them, are the Vandals , the Lugii , and the Silingi , who might have given the Silesia region its name, though it is unclear and thus disputed. With the Germanic tribes leaving westward during

7332-399: The Statutes of Casimir the Great (the Piotrków–Wiślica Statutes) from 1346 to 1362. Accordingly, conflict resolution relied on legal proceedings domestically, while bilateral or multilateral negotiations and treaties were increasingly important in international relations. By this time, the network of cathedral and parish schools had become well developed. In 1364, Casimir the Great established

7488-429: The Teutonic Knights to help him fight the pagan, Baltic Old Prussians , who lived in a territory adjacent to his lands; substantial border warfare was taking place and Konrad's province was suffering from Prussian invasions. On the other hand, the Old Prussians themselves were at that time being subjected to increasingly forced, but largely ineffective Christianization efforts, including Northern Crusades sponsored by

7644-421: The Veleti tribes acting in cooperation with the Saxon exile Wichmann the Younger . Under Mieszko's rule ( c.  960 to 992), his tribal state accepted Christianity and became the Polish state. The viability of the Mieszko's emerging state was assured by the persistent territorial expansion of the early Piast rulers. Beginning with a very small area around Gniezno (before the town itself existed),

7800-459: The Zlasane , Trebovane , Poborane , and Dedositze . At the same time, Upper Silesia was inhabited by the Opolanie , Lupiglaa , and Golenshitse tribes. In the late 9th century, the territory was subject to the Great Moravian realm of Prince Svatopluk I and from about 906 came under the rule of the Přemyslid duke Spytihnev I of Bohemia and his successors Vratislaus I , the alleged founder of Wrocław ( Czech : Vratislav ), and Boleslaus

7956-405: The 1220s. The German, Polish and other new rural settlements represented a form of feudal tenancy with legal immunity and German town laws were often utilized as its legal bases. German immigrants were also important in the rise of the cities and the establishment of the Polish burgher (city dwelling merchants) class; they brought with them West European laws ( Magdeburg rights ) and customs that

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8112-459: The 12th and 13th centuries, Christianization of the populace was accomplished on a larger scale. Intellectual and artistic activity was concentrated around the institutions of the Church, the courts of the kings and dukes, and emerged around the households of the rising hereditary elite. Written annals began to be generated in the late 10th century; leaders such as Mieszko II and Casimir the Restorer were considered literate and educated. Along with

8268-406: The 14th century. King Casimir received Jewish refugees from Germany in 1349. Władysław I the Elbow-high (r. 1305–1333), who began as an obscure Piast duke from Kuyavia , pursued a lifelong, persistently challenging struggle with powerful adversaries with persistence and determination. When he died as the king of a partially reunited Poland, he left the kingdom in a precarious situation. Although

8424-434: The 17th and 18th century. In 1469, Lower Silesia passed to Hungary , and in 1490 it fell back to Bohemia, then ruled by the Jagiellonian dynasty . In 1476, the Duchy of Krosno (Crossen) became part of the Margraviate of Brandenburg , when the widow of the Piast ruler, Barbara von Brandenburg, daughter of Elector Albert Achilles , inherited Crossen. This made the area around Schwiebus (Świebodzin) an exclave separated from

8580-421: The Cruel . Meanwhile, the West Slavic Polans had established the first duchy under the Piast dynasty in the adjacent Greater Polish lands in the north. About 990 Silesia was conquered and incorporated into the first Polish state by the Piast duke Mieszko I , who had gained the support of Emperor Otto II against the Bohemian duke Boleslaus II . In 1000 his son and successor Bolesław I Chrobry founded

8736-507: The Elbow-high and his son Casimir III, "the Great" were the last two rulers of the Piast dynasty, who ruled over a reunified kingdom of Poland in the 14th century. Their rule was not a return to the Polish state as it existed before the period of fragmentation, because of the loss of internal cohesion and territorial integrity. The regional Piast princes remained strong, and for economic and cultural reasons, some of them gravitated toward Poland's neighbors. The kingdom lost Pomerania and Silesia,

8892-413: The German part, and already in 1920 a Polish consulate in Wrocław was attacked and demolished by German nationalists. In the 1930s Poles and Jews were increasingly persecuted in the German-controlled part of the region. Many place names were Germanized in order to erase traces of Polish origin, even streets, squares, buildings and enterprises with the name Piast were forced to change their names (including

9048-521: The German political structures, settler colonization and gradual Germanization of the Polish ruling circles. The lower Vistula was controlled by the Teutonic Order. Masovia was not to be fully incorporated into the Polish state in the near future. Casimir stabilized the western and northern borders, tried to regain some of the lost territories, and partially compensated the losses by new eastern expansion that placed within his kingdom regions that were East Slavic , thus ethnically non-Polish. Despite

9204-408: The Jagniątkowski complex, and Chojnik Mountain. Particular species of trees have different climatic requirements. The lowest parts are covered with oak and ash, up to 500 m (1,600 ft). On the level of 500–600 m (2,000 ft) occurs pine; in the higher parts, up to 800 m (2,600 ft), there occurs European larch ; and above 800 m, fir and beech. Despite transformation of

9360-416: The Knights confronted Poland and Lithuania , then the last pagan state in Europe. Teutonic wars with Poland and Lithuania continued for most of the 14th and 15th centuries. The Teutonic state in Prussia, increasingly populated by German settlers beginning in the 13th century, but still retaining a majority Baltic population, had been claimed as a fief and protected by the popes and Holy Roman Emperors. As

9516-596: The Lower Silesian districts of Neisse and Grottkau ). Reichenbach , which covered the southern part of Lower Silesia, was dissolved and its territories split between Liegnitz and Breslau in 1820; Breslau , which thereafter covered the central part of Silesia is sometimes also referred to as Middle Silesia . The western Liegnitz region was enlarged by the incorporation of the Upper Lusatian Landkreise (districts) of Lauban  [ de ] ( Lubań ), Görlitz  [ de ] , Rothenburg and, after 1825, Hoyerswerda  [ de ] , all seized from

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9672-399: The Oder River beyond Lower Silesian borders. The majority of the rivers is regulated and their basins are improved, which is conductive to the proper water economy. The characteristic feature of the landscape of the lowland is the lack of lakes. The region of Legnica is the only place where a dozen or so of small lakes survived, but the majority of them is already disappearing. The largest one

9828-433: The Piast castles in Brzeg and Wołów ). In September 1939, at the start of World War II , Germany invaded and occupied the Polish part of the region. Already in 1939, the Germans carried out the first expulsions of Poles , and some died during their deportation to the more-eastern part of German-occupied Poland. During the war, the Germans established the Gross-Rosen concentration camp with around 100 subcamps in

9984-411: The Piast expansion lasted throughout most of the 10th century and resulted in a territory approximating that of present-day Poland. The Polanie tribe conquered and merged with other Slavic tribes and first formed a tribal federation, then later a centralized state. After the addition of Lesser Poland , the country of the Vistulans , and of Silesia (both taken by Mieszko from the Czech state during

10140-420: The Poles adopted. From that time, the Germans, who created early strong establishments (led by patriciates ) especially in the urban centers of Silesia and other regions of western Poland, were an increasingly influential minority in Poland. In 1228, the Acts of Cienia were passed and signed into law by Władysław III Laskonogi . The titular Duke of Poland promised to provide a "just and noble law according to

10296-426: The Polish claim to Silesia legally by petitioning the pope; his successors did not continue his efforts. Allied with Denmark and Western Pomerania (Gdańsk Pomerania was granted to the Order as an "eternal charity"), Casimir was able to impose some corrections on the western border. In 1365, Drezdenko and Santok became Poland's fiefs , while the Wałcz district was taken outright in 1368. The latter action severed

10452-424: The Polish monarchy and the country's territorial integrity through several military campaigns: in 1047, Masovia was taken back from Miecław , a Polish noble who tried to detach the region from the rule of the Polish monarch, and in 1054 Silesia was recovered from the Czechs. Casimir was aided by recent adversaries of Poland, the Holy Roman Empire and Kievan Rus', both of whom disliked the chaos in Poland left after

10608-398: The Polish state until the end of its fragmentation period when all Polish claims on this land were finally renounced in favor of the Bohemian kingdom in 1348. Various Polish defensive battles against the invading Germans took place in the region in the Middle Ages, including the victorious battles of Niemcza in 1017 and Głogów and Psie Pole in 1109. In the early 12th century, Wrocław

10764-406: The Silesian duchies were ruled by the Silesian Piast dukes under the feudal overlordship of the Bohemian kings , and thus became part of the Crown of Bohemia within the Holy Roman Empire , though in 1341–1356 Poland regained control of the towns of Byczyna , Kluczbork , Namysłów and Wołczyn . Many duchies remained Polish-ruled under the houses of Piast, Jagiellon and Sobieski , some up to

10920-599: The Sudetes comprises the Jizera Mountains (highest peak: Wysoka Kopa , 1,126 metres or 3,694 feet), where the tripoint with Upper Lusatia and Bohemia is located near the Smrk summit, along with the adjacent Giant Mountains (highest: border peak of Sněžka Śnieżka – highest mountain of Czech Republic, 1,602 m or 5,256 ft); Rudawy Janowickie ( Skalnik , 945 m or 3,100 ft); Owl Mountains ( Wielka Sowa , 1,015 m or 3,330 ft); Stone Mountains ( Waligóra 936 m or 3,071 ft); Wałbrzych Mountains ( Borowa 853 m or 2,799 ft) and

11076-402: The alpine belt without shrubs. This vegetation is glacial ; the former vegetation—from the Tertiary —was destroyed by the climate of the Ice Age . Along with glaciation from the North, some tundra plants appeared, for example downy willow ( Salix lapponum ) and cloudberry (Rubus chamaemorus). The flora of Lower Silesia is strongly influenced by geological and climatic history. The vegetation

11232-493: The area under King Władysław's control was limited and many unresolved issues remained, he may have saved Poland's existence as a state. Supported by his ally Charles I of Hungary , Władysław returned from exile and challenged Václav II and his successor Václav III in the period 1304–1306. Václav III's murder in 1306 terminated the Bohemian Přemyslid dynasty and its involvement in Poland. Afterwards, Władysław completed

11388-449: The area. The greatest rivers are Nysa Kłodzka , which is the source of drinking water for Wrocław (the water is drawn by special channel); Stobrawa , Oława , Ślęza , Bystrzyca with its tributaries— Strzegomka and Piława ; Widawa , Średzka Woda , Kaczawa with Nysa Szalona and Czarna Woda . There is also the largest right-bank tributary of the area, Barycz . The other quite large rivers, Bóbr, Kwisa, and Lusatian Neisse, flow into

11544-548: The areas of Jodłowice, Wzgórze Joanny near Milicz, and Gola near Twardogóra. Such types of forest like those which are the mainstay for wild game or nurseries, are inaccessible because of permanent fire hazard. Territories partly accessible (marked specially) are located in areas of Góra Śląska, Oborniki Śląskie, Wołowa, in the Oder River valley, and in Wzgórza Niemczańsko-Strzelińskie. The flora of Lower Silesia

11700-835: The basic tree vegetation, the same form of undergrowth survived. There occurs: daphne mezereum , red elderberry , hazel , platanthera bifolia , sweet woodruff , Herb Paris , cranberry , wood sorrel , chickweed wintergreen , Common Cow-wheat and lily of the valley . The parts over 800 m are mainly covered with grasses, purple small-reeds, cranberries, and willow gentian . In highlighted places, on meadows, and along roads, there occurs: spotted orchid , bugleweed , yellow archangel , arnica montana , sword-leaved helleborine , rosebay willowherb , groundsel , and foxglove . Along riversides, there occurs white butterbur . Pine forests are rich in spruces, which are permanently weakened by atmospheric factors. Frayed roots are easily infected by harmful fungus and insects . The most damaging

11856-568: The beginning of the general sejm , the dominant bicameral parliament of the future. During the reign of Louis I, Poland formed a Polish-Hungarian union . In the pact of 1374 (the Privilege of Koszyce ), the Polish nobility was granted extensive concessions and agreed to extend the Anjou succession to Louis's daughters, as Louis had no sons. Louis's neglect of Polish affairs resulted in the loss of Casimir's territorial gains, including Halych Rus' , which

12012-562: The capital of the realm for several centuries. Casimir's son Bolesław II the Bold , also known as the Generous (r. 1058–1079), developed Polish military strength and waged several foreign campaigns between 1058 and 1077. As an active supporter of the papacy in its Investiture Controversy with the German emperor, Bolesław crowned himself king in 1076 with the blessing of Pope Gregory VII . In 1079, there

12168-618: The centre was officially opened. Those attending the opening ceremony included the widow of Helmuth James Graf von Moltke, Freya von Moltke , and the initiator Helmut Kohl. The center is known as the Międzynarodowe Centrum Spotkań Młodzieży in Polish, and as the Internationale Jugendbegegnungsstätte Kreisau in German. The property has several hectares of grounds, many comfortable guestrooms for youth groups as well as for private guests,

12324-453: The city's patrician leadership seeking rule by the House of Luxembourg was put down. This event may have had a limiting impact on the emerging political power of towns. In 1313–1314, Władysław conquered Greater Poland . In 1320, he became the first king of Poland crowned in Kraków's Wawel Cathedral instead of Gniezno . The coronation was hesitantly agreed to by Pope John XXII in spite of

12480-456: The construction of Gothic churches, castles, urban fortifications and homes of wealthy city residents. The most notable examples of architecture from the medieval period in Poland are the many churches representing the Polish Gothic style; medieval sculpture, painting and ornamental smithery are best revealed in the furnishings of churches and liturgical items. Polish law was first codified in

12636-442: The council of bishops and barons." Such legal guarantees and privileges included the lower level land owners and knights, who were evolving into the lower and middle nobility class known later as szlachta . The period of fragmentation weakened the rulers and established a permanent trend in Polish history, whereby the rights and role of the nobility were expanded at the monarch's expense. In 1226, Duke Konrad I of Masovia invited

12792-402: The country found itself under the unstable rule of his younger brother Władysław I Herman (r. 1079–1102). Władysław was strongly dependent on Count Palatine Sieciech , an advisor from the ranks of the Polish nobility who acted much as the power behind the throne. When Władysław's two sons, Zbigniew and Bolesław , finally forced Władysław to remove his hated protégé, Poland was divided among

12948-527: The country into five principalities: Silesia , Greater Poland , Masovia , Sandomierz and Kraków . The first four provinces were given to his four sons, who became independent rulers. The fifth province, the Seniorate Province of Kraków, was to be added to the senior among the princes who, as the Grand Duke of Kraków, was the representative of the whole of Poland. This principle broke down already within

13104-450: The death of Mieszko II), a task begun by his father Władysław I Herman and completed by Bolesław around 1123. Szczecin was subdued in a bloody takeover and Western Pomerania up to Rügen , except for the directly incorporated southern part, became Bolesław's fief , to be ruled locally by Wartislaw I , the first duke of the Griffin dynasty . At this time, Christianization of the region

13260-598: The disadvantages of political division were becoming increasingly apparent in various segments of the society, some of the Piast dukes began to make serious efforts aimed at the reunification of the Polish state. Important among the earlier attempts were the activities of the Silesian dukes Henry I the Bearded , his son Henry II the Pious , who was killed in 1241 while fighting the Mongols at

13416-451: The dismemberment of the country beginning in the reign of Mieszko II. Casimir introduced a more mature form of feudalism and relieved the burden of financing large army units from the duke's treasury by settling his warriors on feudal estates. Faced with the widespread destruction of Greater Poland after the Czech incursion, Casimir moved his court to Kraków and replaced the old Piast capitals of Poznań and Gniezno; Kraków would function as

13572-457: The east and through a series of military campaigns between 1340 and 1366, Casimir annexed the Halych – Volodymyr area of Rus' . The town of Lviv there attracted newcomers of several nationalities, was granted municipal rights in 1356, and had thus begun its career as Lwów , the main Polish centre in the midst of a Rus' Orthodox population. Supported by Hungary, the Polish king in 1338 promised

13728-721: The entire pre-war German population was expelled in accordance with the Potsdam Agreement . Poles displaced from the former Polish lands incorporated into the USSR settled in Lower Silesia after the war, as well as Polish settlers from other parts of Poland. The region is known for an abundance of historic architecture of various styles, including many castles and palaces, well preserved or reconstructed old towns , numerous spa towns , and historic burial sites of Polish monarchs and consorts (in Wrocław, Legnica and Trzebnica ). Lower Silesia

13884-560: The expansionist politics of his father. His actions reinforced old resentment and hostility on the part of Poland's neighbors, and his two dispossessed brothers took advantage of it by arranging for invasions from Germany and Kievan Rus' in 1031. Mieszko was defeated and forced to leave Poland. Mieszko's brother Bezprym was murdered in 1032, whereas his brother Otto died in unclear circumstances in 1033, events that permitted Mieszko to recover his authority partially. The first Piast monarchy then collapsed with Mieszko's death in 1034. Deprived of

14040-589: The first man appeared at the Silesian Lowland . In the Mesolithic (7,000 years ago), the first nomadic people settled in Lower Silesia, living in caves and primitive chalets. They were collectors, hunters, and fishers, and used weapons and other tools made of stone and wood. In the Upper Paleolithic , the oldest human remains of the nomadic people, which were 40,000 years old, were found in a tomb in Tyniec on

14196-505: The first-ever text printed in the Polish language . In 1526 Silesia became part of the Habsburg monarchy when Archduke Ferdinand I of Austria succeeded King Louis II of Hungary and Bohemia . Brandenburg contested the inheritance, citing a treaty made with Frederick II of Legnica , but Silesia largely remained under Habsburg control until 1742. In 1675 Duke George William of Legnica died at

14352-466: The formal act was negotiated in Buda in 1355. After his coronation, Louis returned to Hungary; he left his mother and Casimir 's sister Elizabeth in Poland as regents . With the death of Casimir the Great, the period of hereditary (Piast) monarchy in Poland came to an end. The land owners and nobles did not want a strong monarchy; a constitutional monarchy was established between 1370 and 1493 that included

14508-618: The former Duchy of Żagań on the western shore of the Neisse is today part of the Krauschwitz municipality in the Görlitz district of Saxony , the larger Upper Lusatian parts of Prussian Silesia ("Silesian Upper Lusatia") west of the Neisse comprised the town of Görlitz and the former district of Hoyerswerda , which today forms the northern part of the Saxon Görlitz and Bautzen districts as well as

14664-439: The fragmentation period. From the time of the conversion of Poland's ruling elite to Christianity in the 10th century, foreign churchmen had been arriving and the culture of early Medieval Poland was developing as a part of European Christendom . However, it would be a few generations from the time of Mieszko's conversion until significant numbers of native clergymen appeared. After the establishment of numerous monasteries in

14820-593: The generation of Bolesław III's sons, when Władysław II the Exile , Bolesław IV the Curly , Mieszko III the Old and Casimir II the Just fought for power and territory in Poland, and in particular over the throne of Kraków. The external borders left by Bolesław III at his death closely resembled the borders left by Mieszko I ; this original early Piast monarchy configuration had not survived

14976-588: The hottest month (July) is 19 °C (66 °F), and −0.5 °C (31.1 °F) of the coldest month (January). The average amount of rainfall is 500–620 millimetres (20–24 inches ), with its maximum in July and minimum in February. The snow layer disappears after 45 days. The winds, similar to those appearing in the West side of Poland, are West and Southwest. Sudeten rivers are characterized by changeable water rates, and high pollution resulting from large industrialization of

15132-474: The integrity of the western border. In the south-east, Leszek the White was unable to preserve Poland's supremacy over the Halych area of Rus' , a territory that had changed hands on a number of occasions. The social status was becoming increasingly based on the size of feudal land possessions. Those included the lands controlled by the Piast princes, their rivals the great lay land owners and church entities, and

15288-463: The intellectual sphere. Perspectiva , a treatise on optics by Witelo , a Silesian monk, was one of the finest achievements of medieval science . The construction of churches and castles in the Gothic architecture style predominated in the 13th century; native elements in art forms were increasingly important, with significant advances taking place in agriculture, manufacturing and crafts. Władysław I

15444-524: The interbellum, the Polish population of the region was persecuted in the German-controlled part of the region. After Germany's defeat in World War II in 1945, most of the region became once again part of Poland, while a smaller part west of the Oder-Neisse line became part of East Germany and Czech Lower Silesia (Jesenicko and Opavsko regions) remained as a part of Czechoslovakia . By 1949, almost

15600-520: The knightly class. The work force ranged from hired "free" people to serfs attached to the land, to slaves (either purchased, forced into slavery after capture in war or forced into slavery as prisoners). The upper layer of the feudal lords, first the Church and then others, was able to acquire economic and legal immunity , which it exempt to a significant degree from court jurisdiction and economic obligations such as taxation that had previously been imposed by

15756-621: The land connection between Brandenburg and the Teutonic state and connected Poland with Farther Pomerania . Casimir the Great considerably solidified the country's position in both foreign and domestic affairs. Domestically, he integrated and centralized the reunited Polish state and helped develop what was considered the " Crown of the Polish Kingdom ": the state within its actual boundaries, as well as past or potential boundaries. Casimir established or strengthened kingdom-wide institutions (such as

15912-497: The later part of the 10th century), Mieszko's state reached its mature form, including the main regions regarded as ethnically Polish. The Piast lands totaled about 250,000 km (96,526 sq mi) in area, with an approximate population of under one million. Initially a pagan, Mieszko I was the first ruler of the Polans tribal union known from contemporary written sources. A detailed account of aspects of Mieszko's early reign

16068-491: The marriage between Bolesław's son Mieszko and Richeza of Lotharingia , the niece of Emperor Otto III and future mother of Casimir I the Restorer , took place. The conflicts with Germany ended in 1018 with the Peace of Bautzen on favorable terms for Bolesław. In the context of the 1018 Kiev expedition , Bolesław took over the western part of Red Ruthenia . In 1025, shortly before his death, Bolesław I finally succeeded in obtaining

16224-475: The most highly developed and economically important regions of the original ethnically Polish lands, which left half of the Polish population outside the kingdom's borders. The western losses had to do with the failure of the unification efforts undertaken by the Silesian Piast dukes and the German expansion processes. These included the Piast principalities developing (or falling into) dependencies in respect to

16380-567: The new powerful kingdom of Poland that was to follow. The tribe of the Polans ( Polanie , lit. "people of the fields") in what is now Greater Poland gave rise to a tribal predecessor of the Polish state in the early part of the 10th century , with the Polans settling in the flatlands around the emerging strongholds of Giecz , Poznań , Gniezno and Ostrów Lednicki . Accelerated rebuilding of old tribal fortified settlements, construction of massive new ones and territorial expansion took place during

16536-589: The north from the Bolesławiec-Zgorzelec road. From the North, the lowlands are delimited by Wał Trzebnicki, consisting of hills that are 200 km (120 mi) long and over 150 m (490 ft) high, in comparison to neighboring lowlands, Kobyla Mountain, 284 m (932 ft). The range of hills includes Wzgórza Dalkowskie, Wzgórza Trzebnickie, Wzgórza Twardogórskie, and Wzgórza Ostrzeszowskie. Obniżenie Milicko-Głogowskie, with Kotlina Żmigrodzka and Milicka,

16692-555: The north, Upper Silesia in the east, Moravia in the south-east, Bohemia and Kłodzko Land in the south, and Lusatia in the west. The Sudetes are a geologically diverse mountain range that stretches for 280 kilometres (170 miles) from the Lusatian Highlands in the west and to the Moravian Gate in the east. They are topographically divided into Western , Central and Eastern Sudetes . The Lower Silesian section of

16848-491: The opposition of King John of Bohemia , who had also claimed the Polish crown. John undertook an expedition aimed at Kraków in 1327, which he was compelled to abort; in 1328, he waged a crusade against Lithuania, during which he formalized an alliance with the Teutonic Order. The Order was in a state of war with Poland from 1327 to 1332 (see Battle of Płowce ). As a result, the Knights captured Dobrzyń Land and Kujawy . Władysław

17004-606: The original western border with the Lusatias , however, the Silesian Duchy of Żagań reached up to the Neisse river, including two villages ( Pechern and Neudorf) on the western shore, which became Silesian in 1413. The later Silesian Province of Prussia further comprised the adjacent lands of historic Upper Lusatia ceded by the Kingdom of Saxony after the Napoleonic Wars in 1815, its westernmost point could be found as far west as

17160-511: The papacy. The Teutonic Order soon overstepped their authority and moved beyond the area granted them by Konrad ( Chełmno Land or Kulmerland ). In the following decades, they conquered large areas along the Baltic Sea coast and established their own monastic state . As virtually all of the Western Baltic pagans became converted or exterminated (the Prussian conquests were completed by 1283),

17316-491: The papal permission to crown himself, and he became the first king of Poland . Bolesław's expansionist policies were costly to the Polish state and were not always successful. He lost, for example, the economically crucial Farther Pomerania in 1005 together with its new bishopric in Kołobrzeg ; the region had previously been conquered with great effort by Mieszko. King Mieszko II Lambert (r. 1025–1034) tried to continue

17472-538: The period c.  920 –950. The Polish state developed from these tribal roots in the second half of the century. According to the 12th-century chronicler Gallus Anonymus , the Polans were ruled at this time by the Piast dynasty . In existing sources from the 10th century, Piast ruler Mieszko I was first mentioned by Widukind of Corvey in his Res gestae saxonicae , a chronicle of events in Germany. Widukind reported that Mieszko's forces were twice defeated in 963 by

17628-508: The plan failed and a long period of fragmentation was ushered in. For nearly two centuries, the Piasts would spar with each other, the clergy, and the nobility for the control over the divided kingdom. The stability of the system was supposedly assured by the institution of the senior or high duke of Poland, based in Kraków and assigned to the special Seniorate Province that was not to be subdivided. Following his concept of seniorate, Bolesław divided

17784-401: The powerful state treasury) independent of the regional, class, or royal court-related interests. Internationally, the Polish king was very active diplomatically; he cultivated close contacts with other European rulers and was a staunch defender of the interests of the Polish state. In 1364, he sponsored the Congress of Kraków , in which a number of monarchs participated, which was concerned with

17940-461: The prevailing culture of Europe . Mieszko's son Bolesław I the Brave established a Roman Catholic Archdiocese in Gniezno , pursued territorial conquests and was officially crowned in 1025 as the first king of Poland . The first Piast monarchy collapsed with the death of Mieszko II Lambert in 1034, followed by its restoration under Casimir I in 1042. In the process, the royal dignity for Polish rulers

18096-686: The promotion of peaceful cooperation and political balance in Central Europe. Immediately after Casimir's death in 1370, the heirless king's nephew Louis of Hungary of the Capetian House of Anjou assumed the Polish throne. As Casimir's actual commitment to the Anjou succession seemed problematic from the beginning (in 1368 the Polish king adopted his grandson, Casimir of Słupsk ), Louis engaged in succession negotiations with Polish knights and nobility starting in 1351. They supported him, exacting in return further guarantees and privileges for themselves;

18252-599: The property was used as a farm, and still today the single houses carry names like cowshed or stable. On 12 November 1989, the Polish Prime Minister Tadeusz Mazowiecki and the German Federal Chancellor Helmut Kohl held a reconciliation meeting there and decided to redevelop the property as an International Youth Meeting Centre. The renovation was predominantly financed by the "Endowment for German-Polish Understanding". In 1998

18408-488: The region, as well as various subcamps of the Stalag VIII-B/344 POW camp. POWs of various nationalities were held in those camps, including Poles, Frenchmen , Belgians , Britons , Italians , Canadians , Americans , Greeks , Yugoslavians , Russians , Australians , New Zealanders , South Africans , Norwegians , Lithuanians , Slovaks , etc. There were also several Nazi prisons, other forced labour camps and

18564-419: The region, in which around 125,000 people of various nationalities, among them mostly Jews , Poles and citizens of the Soviet Union , were imprisoned, and around 40,000 died. Also several German prisoner-of-war camps , including Stalag VIII-A , Stalag VIII-C , Stalag VIII-E , Stalag Luft III , Oflag VIII-A, Oflag VIII-B, Oflag VIII-C, Oflag VIII-F , with numerous forced labour subcamps were located in

18720-681: The region. After the war, the bulk of Lower Silesia remained within Germany, the Bohemian part was included within Czechoslovakia , and a small part with Rychtal was reintegrated with Poland , which just regained independence. The German part was re-organized into the Province of Lower Silesia of the Free State of Prussia consisting of the Breslau and Liegnitz regions. In the interwar period , there were multiple instances of anti-Polish violence in

18876-506: The rest of Silesia. Crossen remained an important center of Polish culture. In 1475 Głogów -born Polish printer Kasper Elyan  [ pl ] founded the Drukarnia Świętokrzyska  [ pl ] ( Holy Cross Printing House ) in Wrocław, which published the Statuta synodalia episcoporum Wratislaviensium  [ pl ] , the first incunable in Lower Silesia, which also contains

19032-488: The river Ślęża . In the Neolithic (4000–1700 BC), began the process of transformation into a settled way of life. The first rural settlements were made, as people began to farm and breed animals. Mining, pottery, and weaving are dated to this period. Serpentinite quarries came into existence, of which Silesian hatchets were made, and near Jordanów Śląski , people extracted nephrite that was transformed into diverse tools. In

19188-500: The ruling dukes. Civil strife and foreign invasions, such as the Mongol invasions in 1240/1241 , 1259/1260 and 1287/1288 , weakened and depopulated many of the small Polish principalities, as the country was becoming progressively more subdivided. Depopulation and increasing demand for labor caused a massive immigration of West European peasants into Poland, mostly German settlers ; the early waves from Germany and Flanders occurred in

19344-520: The small village of Lindenau (now belonging to the German state of Brandenburg ). To the north, Lower Silesia originally stretched up to Świebodzin and Krosno Odrzańskie , which was acquired by the Margraves of Brandenburg in 1482. The Barycz river forms the border with historic Greater Poland in the northeast, the Upper Silesian lands lie to the southeast. Administratively Polish Lower Silesia

19500-639: The southern part of the Oberspreewald-Lausitz district in Brandenburg. The southern part of the former Duchy of Nysa, which fell to Austrian Silesia in 1742, namely the Jeseník District and Heřmanovice , Mnichov and Železná, as well as parts of Vrbno pod Pradědem in the Bruntál District , today belongs to the Czech Republic . Lower Silesia is bordered by Greater Poland and Lubusz Land in

19656-468: The takeover of Lesser Poland , entering Kraków, and took the lands north of there, through Kuyavia all the way to Gdańsk Pomerania . In 1308, Pomerania was conquered by the Brandenburg state. In a recovery effort, Władysław agreed to ask for help from the Teutonic Knights; the Knights brutally took over Gdańsk Pomerania and kept it for themselves. In 1311–1312, a rebellion in Kraków instigated by

19812-403: The territorial truncation, 14th-century Poland experienced a period of accelerated economic development and increasing prosperity. This included further expansion and modernization of agricultural settlements, the development of towns and their greater role in briskly growing trade, mining and metallurgy. A great monetary reform was implemented during the reign of Casimir III. Jewish settlement

19968-403: The three of them from 1098, and after the father's death, from 1102 to 1106, it was divided between the two brothers. After a power struggle, Bolesław III Wrymouth (r. 1102–1138) became the duke of Poland by defeating his half-brother Zbigniew in 1106–1107. Zbigniew had to leave the country, but received support from Holy Roman Emperor Henry V , who attacked Bolesław's Poland in 1109. Bolesław

20124-565: The vicinity of the Oder River and its mouth. After the death of Otto I, and then again after the death of Holy Roman Emperor Otto II , Mieszko supported Henry the Quarrelsome , a pretender to the imperial crown . After the death of Doubravka in 977, Mieszko married Oda von Haldensleben , daughter of Dietrich , Margrave of the Northern March , ca. 980. When fighting the Czechs in 990, Mieszko

20280-580: The wide Silesian Lowlands , located along banks of the Oder River . The eastern part includes also Równina Wrocławska with its surrounding lands: Równina Oleśnicka, Wysoczyzna Średzka, Równina Grodkowska and Niemodlińska. Dolina Dolnej Kaczawy (Kotlina Legnicka) separates the Silesian Lowlands from the Silesian-Lusatian Lowlands, which includes Wysoczyzna Lubińsko-Chocianowska, Dolina Szprotawy, and wide areas of Bory Dolnośląskie, located to

20436-582: Was divided among his sons . The resulting internal fragmentation eroded the initial Piast monarchical structure in the 12th and 13th centuries and caused fundamental and lasting changes. Konrad I of Masovia invited the Teutonic Knights to help him fight the Baltic Prussian pagans, which led to centuries of Poland's warfare with the Knights and the German Prussian state . In 1320, the kingdom

20592-440: Was able to defend his realm due to his military abilities, determination and alliances, and also because of a societal mobilisation across the social spectrum (see Battle of Głogów ). Zbigniew, who later returned, died in mysterious circumstances, perhaps in the summer of 1113. Bolesław's other major achievement was the conquest of all of Mieszko I's Pomerania (of which the remaining eastern part had been lost by Poland from after

20748-642: Was active in the region, including the Home Army and Olimp organization. In the final stages of the war it was the site of several death marches perpetrated by Nazi Germany. In view of Polish claims to the area, a memorandum prepared by the United States Department of State in May 1945 recommended that the area stay with Germany because there was "no historic or ethnic justification" for granting this land to Poland. However, according to Soviet insistence at

20904-595: Was an anti-Bolesław conspiracy or conflict that involved the Bishop of Kraków. Bolesław had Bishop Stanisław of Szczepanów executed; subsequently Bolesław was forced to abdicate the Polish throne due to pressure from the Catholic Church and the pro-imperial faction of the nobility. Stanisław would become the second martyr and patron saint of Poland (known in English as St. Stanislav), canonized in 1253. After Bolesław's exile,

21060-413: Was an ardent proponent of Poland's reunification; he performed the crowning ceremonies for both Przemysł II and Wenceslaus II . Świnka supported Władysław I Łokietek at various stages of the duke's career. Culturally , the social impact of the Church was considerably broader in the 13th century, as networks of parishes were established and cathedral-type schools became more common. The Dominicans and

21216-478: Was created in the region. In the Middle Ages , gold (Polish: złoto ) and silver (Polish: srebro ) were mined in the region, which is reflected in the names of the former mining towns of Złotoryja , Złoty Stok and Srebrna Góra . The city of Bolesławiec is a major center of pottery production since the Middle Ages, which the tradition of production of Bolesławiec pottery , also referred to as Polish pottery, cultivated to this day. The Duchy of Silesia

21372-424: Was divided into as many as 17 duchies . Main duchies of Lower Silesia: In 1319, Duchy of Jawor , the southwesternmost duchy of Lower Silesia and fragmented Poland, under Duke Henry I of Jawor , expanded westward, reaching the towns of Zgorzelec , Zły Komorów (Senftenberg), Żytawa (Zittau) and Ostrowiec (Ostritz). With the 1335 Treaty of Trentschin ( Trenčín ) and the 1348 Treaty of Namysłów , most of

21528-776: Was expelled from the bulk of Lower Silesia east of the Neisse in accordance with the Potsdam Agreement. Poles from Central Poland and the Polish areas annexed by the Soviet Union came to the region. From 1945 to 1975 Lower Silesia was administered within the Wrocław Voivodeship . As a result of the Local Government Reorganisation Act (1975), Poland's administration was reorganized into 49 voivodeships , four of them in Lower Silesia: Jelenia Góra , Legnica , Wałbrzych , and Wrocław Voivodeships (1975–1998). As

21684-402: Was first split into lower and upper parts in 1172 during the period of Poland's feudal fragmentation , when the land was divided between two sons of former High Duke Władysław II . The elder Bolesław the Tall ruled over Lower Silesia with his capital in Wrocław, and younger Mieszko Tanglefoot ruled over Upper Silesia with his capital at first in Racibórz , from 1202 in Opole . Later Silesia

21840-435: Was forfeited, and the state reverted to the status of a duchy. Duke Casimir's son Bolesław II the Bold revived the military assertiveness of Bolesław I, but became fatally involved in a conflict with Bishop Stanislaus of Szczepanów and was expelled from the country. Bolesław III , the last duke of the early period, succeeded in defending his country and recovering territories previously lost. Upon his death in 1138, Poland

21996-421: Was founded by a series of dukes listed by the chronicler Gall Anonymous in the early 12th century: Siemowit , Lestek and Siemomysł . It was Mieszko I , the son of Siemomysł, who is now considered the proper founder of the Polish state at about 960 AD. The ruling house then remained in power in the Polish lands until 1370. Mieszko converted to Christianity of the Western Latin Church in an event known as

22152-404: Was given by Ibrâhîm ibn Ya`qûb , a Jewish traveler, according to whom Mieszko was one of four Slavic "kings" established in central and southern Europe in the 960s. In 965, Mieszko, who was allied with Boleslaus I, Duke of Bohemia at the time, married the duke's daughter Doubravka , a Christian princess. Mieszko's conversion to Latin Christianity followed on 14 April 966, an event known as

22308-424: Was granted such rights in 1211 by Henry the Bearded . Medieval municipal rights modeled after Lwówek Śląski and Środa Śląska , both established by Henry the Bearded, became the basis of municipal form of government for several cities and towns in Poland, and two of five local Polish variants of medieval town rights. In the 13th century the Book of Henryków , a chronicle containing the oldest known text in Polish,

22464-403: Was helped by his alliances with Hungary (his daughter Elizabeth was married to King Charles I in 1320) and Lithuania (in a pact of 1325 against the Teutonic State and the marriage of Władysław's son Casimir to Aldona , daughter of the Lithuanian ruler Gediminas ). After 1329, a peace agreement with Brandenburg also assisted his efforts. A lasting achievement of King John of Bohemia (and

22620-416: Was helped by the Holy Roman Empire. By about the year 990, when Mieszko I officially submitted his country to the authority of the Holy See ( Dagome iudex ), he had transformed Poland into one of the strongest powers in central-eastern Europe . One of the most important concerns of Bolesław's early reign was building up the Polish church. Bolesław cultivated Adalbert of Prague of the Slavník family ,

22776-406: Was initiated in earnest, an effort crowned by the establishment of the Pomeranian Wolin Diocese after Bolesław's death in 1140. Before he died, Bolesław III Wrymouth divided the country, in a limited sense, among four of his sons . He made complex arrangements intended to prevent fratricidal warfare and preserve the Polish state's formal unity, but after Bolesław's death, the implementation of

22932-449: Was named one of the three major cities of the Polish Kingdom alongside Kraków and Sandomierz in the oldest Polish chronicle, Gesta principum Polonorum . One of the largest battles of medieval Poland, the Battle of Legnica , during the first Mongol invasion of Poland was fought in the region 1241. Also a leading region of medieval Poland. The first-ever granting of town privileges in Polish history happened there, when Złotoryja

23088-408: Was officially confirmed as the seat of secret Polish insurgent authorities. The Prussian police arrested a number of members of the Polish insurgent movement. From 1871, Lower Silesia was part of the German Empire . As a result of long lasting German colonization and Germanisation , by the beginning of the 20th century Lower Silesia had a majority German-speaking population, with the exception of

23244-409: Was part of Piast-ruled Poland . It was one of the leading regions of Poland, and its capital Wrocław was one of the main cities of the Polish Kingdom. Lower Silesia emerged as a distinctive region during the fragmentation of Poland in 1172, when the Duchies of Opole and Racibórz , considered Upper Silesia since, were formed of the eastern part of the Duchy of Silesia, and the remaining, western part

23400-412: Was part of fragmented Piast -ruled Poland. Its name is of Polish origin and comes from the word krzyż , which means "cross". In a 1335 deed, when located in the Piast-ruled Duchy of Jawor -Świdnica, it was mentioned under the Latinized name Crissovo . Like most of Silesia, the Krzyżowa area had been annexed by the Prussian king Frederick the Great after the First Silesian War in 1742. The manor

23556-472: Was purchased by the Prussian field marshal Helmuth von Moltke the Elder after the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, and from that time on this extensive property was the family seat of the Moltke noble family until 1945. The members of the anti-Nazi resistance group Kreisau Circle met on the property, hosted by Helmuth von Moltke's great-grandnephew Helmuth James Graf von Moltke , who was executed for treason against Germany in January 1945. After World War II

23712-417: Was recovered by Queen Jadwiga in 1387. In 1396, Jadwiga and her husband Jagiełło (Jogaila) forcefully annexed the central Polish lands separating Lesser Poland from Greater Poland , previously granted by King Louis to his Silesian Piast ally Duke Władysław of Opole . The Hungarian-Polish union lasted for twelve years and ended in war. After Louis's death in 1382 and a power struggle that resulted in

23868-401: Was restored under Władysław I the Elbow-high , then strengthened and expanded by his son Casimir III the Great . The western provinces of Silesia and Pomerania were lost after the fragmentation, and Poland began expanding to the east. The period ended with the reigns of two members of the Capetian House of Anjou between 1370 and 1384. The consolidation in the 14th century laid the base for

24024-426: Was since considered Lower Silesia. During the Ostsiedlung , German settlers were invited to settle in the region, which until then had a Polish majority. As a result, the region became largely Germanised in the following centuries. Nonetheless, it remained a pioneering center of Polish culture, where the oldest Polish writing and first Polish print were created, and the first town rights were granted. In

24180-421: Was taking place in Poland since very early times. In 1264, Duke Bolesław the Pious of Greater Poland granted the privileges of the Statute of Kalisz , which specified a broad range of freedoms of religious practices, movement, and trading for the Jews. It also created a legal precedent for the official protection of Jews from local harassment and exclusion. The act exempted the Jews from enslavement or serfdom and

24336-428: Was the foundation of future Jewish prosperity in the Polish kingdom; it was later followed by many other comparable legal pronouncements. Following a series of expulsions of Jews from Western Europe, Jewish communities were established in Kraków , Kalisz and elsewhere in western and southern Poland in the 13th century. Another series of communities were established at Lviv , Brest-Litovsk and Grodno further east in

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