Background
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Wroclaw in Poland is the capital of the Dolnoslaskie province. The city was formerly called Breslau. It is on the Oder River, about 180 miles (290 km) southwest of Warsaw, in Upper Silesia, a region rich in coal and other minerals. Wroclaw is a river port, a railway center, and a major industrial city. It is also a trading center for the surrounding agricultural area. Processed foods, textiles, machinery, and railway cars are produced in the city. Wroclaw has a university established in 1811.[Background]
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The origins of Wroclaw are associated with the settlement, which has grown up in a convenient spot for crossing the Oder, on the crossroads of important and old routes that run from southern Europe to the north, towards the Baltic Sea and from the west, east, in the Black Sea region. In the first half of the tenth century in Silesia came under the dominion of the Czech state and the settlement, then probably border area of a city received the name of the Bohemian duke Vratislav. In the last decade of the tenth century Silesia became part of the Polish state.[Background]
