Wodzisà Âaw à Âlàski (; , , , , ) is a town in Silesian Voivodeship, southern Poland with 47,992 inhabitants (2019). It is the seat of Wodzisà Âaw County.
It was previously in Katowice Voivodeship (1975âÂÂ1998); close to the border with the Czech Republic, about south of Warsaw and about west of Kraków, on the southern outskirts of the metropolitan area known as the Upper Silesian Coal Basin.
Wodzisà Âaw à Âlàski is an urban gmina in the south-eastern part of Upper Silesia, now in Silesian Voivodeship in south Poland, within the south portion of the Upper Silesian Coal Basin. It borders the towns of Pszów, Radlin and villages Marklowice, Mszana, Godów, Gorzyce and Lubomia. It lies between the Vistula and Oder rivers, near Czech border in the foreground Moravian Gate. Several rivers flow through the city, the major two being the Leà Ânica and "Zawadka" rivers. Within of Wodzisà Âaw à Âlàski are the capital cities of six countries: Berlin, Vienna, Prague, Bratislava, Budapest and Warsaw.
The climate of the area is continental humid. The average temperature is (average in January and up to average in July). Yearly rainfall averages at , the most rainy month being July. The area's characteristic weak and medium winds blow at about 4 m/s from the south-west (Moravian Gate).
The town is divided into 9 districts that have its own administrative body:
Being a borderland town, Wodzisà Âaw à Âlàski is a centre of the Wodzisà Âaw County, formed during a historical process lasting many centuries. Rich excavations the oldest finds dated back to the Stone Age give evidence about its ancient inhabitants.
The city's name derives from the Piast Duke Wà Âadysà Âaw of Opole. He located the city and established the Wodzisà Âaw monastery about 1257.
The city's origins can be traced back into the 10th and 11th century, when three Slavic settlements existed on Wodzisà Âaw's present-day territory which eventually merged to form one town. In the course of the medieval eastward migration of Flemish and German settlers (Ostsiedlung), Wodzisà Âaw, as many other Polish settlements, was incorporated (granted city status and right) according to the so-called Magdeburg Law at some point before 1257 (the exact date remains unknown). This, however, is not to be confused with a change in national affiliation; Wodzisà Âaw continued to be part of the Kingdom of Poland, until most of Silesia became a fiefdom of the Bohemian crown in 1327. At that times of Duchess Constance, the town developed fast. Wodzisà Âaw was one of the most populated and richest towns of Upper Silesia. In 14 and 15th century the city continued to grow and developed into a regional trade centre. In the 15th century, the Hussites devastated the city. From 1526, Bohemia, including the fiefdom of Silesia, which Wodzisà Âaw was a part of, came under the authority of the Habsburg crown.
After the end of the Thirty Years' War Wodzisà Âaw was destroyed. Never back to Middle Ages' "golden time". At the beginning of the War of the Austrian Succession between King Frederick II of Prussia (the Great) and the Habsburg empress Maria Theresa of Austria, the greatest part of Silesia, including Wodzisà Âaw, was annexed by the Kingdom of Prussia in 1740, which Austria eventually recognized in 1763. In 1815 the city became part of the Prussian Province of Silesia and was located in the Rybnik district. Coal mining gained importance for Wodzisà Âaw's economy as early as the 19th century.
After the end of World War I in 1918, Polish statehood was restored. Amidst an atmosphere of ethnic unrest, a referendum was organized to determine the future national affiliation of Upper Silesia. In Wodzisà Âaw, out of 2,333 votes, 1,669 (72%) were in favour of Germany and 662 (28%) were in favour of Poland. However, the Rybnik district as a whole voted in favour of Poland with a 65% majority. The town and the largest part of the district were attached to the territory of the Second Polish Republic; Wodzisà Âaw thus became part of a Polish state for the first time since 1335 when Poland had ceded Silesia to Bohemia in the Treaty of Trentschin. The Upper Silesia plebiscite and eventual division of Upper Silesia were accompanied by three Silesian Uprisings of Polish militants. Within the Second Polish Republic of the interwar period, Wodzisà Âaw was part of the Silesian Voivodeship, which enjoyed far-reaching political and financial autonomy.
With the outbreak of World War II in 1939, Wodzisà Âaw was invaded and then occupied by Germany, being in the part of Poland that was directly incorporated into the German state. The population was ethnically categorized and either "re-Germanized" or disfranchised and partially expelled into the General Government as Poles. Two local Polish policemen were murdered by the Russians in the Katyn massacre in 1940.
On 22 January 1945 a death march from Nazi German's Auschwitz concentration camp, away, ended in Wodzisà Âaw à Âlàski, where the prisoners were put on freight trains to other camps. When the Soviet army advanced on Poland, nine days before the Soviets arrived, the Schutzstaffel had marched 60,000 prisoners out of the camp. Approximately 15,000 prisoners died on the way. There are memorials to the victims of the Holocaust from Wodzisà Âaw in Wodzisà Âaw and in the Baron Hirsch Cemetery Staten Island, New York where the Wodzisà Âaw landsmanshaft has a section.
On 26 March 1945 the Soviet army and 1st Czechoslovak Army Corps captured Wodzisà Âaw, which was then restored to Poland. Approximately 80% of the town was destroyed in World War II. The Old Town, including the Market Square, was fully restored after the war.
Wodzisà Âaw à Âlàski is situated at the junction of several major lines of road, railway and air communication.
Only from center the town crossing motorway A1. The town is crossed by one national road 78 ("DK78" from Gliwice to Ostrava) and tree regional roads running from à »ory and JastrzÃÂbie-Zdrój to Racibórz and from Wodzisà Âaw to Krzyà ¼anowice ( "DW932", "DW933", "DW936" ).
The railway junction at "Wodzisà Âaw à Âlàski" is a major transshipment point.
The town is very well connected to three international airports: Katowice â Pyrzowice (about away), Kraków â Balice (about away) and Ostrava â Mosnov (about away).
Wodzisà Âaw à Âlàski is center and capital of the Wodzisà Âaw County. City is situated on the main highway from nord Poland to south Poland and border with Czech Republic.
Wodzisà Âaw à Âlàski is a medium coal and industrial centre. Although there is no coal mines in the town (1 Maja Coal Mine closed in 2001), there are a few in its neighborhood (Radlin â Marcel Coal Mine, Pszów, Ryduà Âtowy â Ryduà Âtowy-Anna Coal Mine, JastrzÃÂbie â Jas-Mos Coal Mine) and a coke manufacture in Radlin. The window factory Eko-Okna is also located in Wodzisà Âaw à Âlàski.
The town has one library, one museum and one cinema.
In contrast to the central part of the Upper Silesian industry area, located a short distance to the north, Wodzisà Âaw enjoys the reputation of a "green" city having a relatively clean environment. While the city is not a centre of tourism, it does have various interesting sights and opportunities for recreation. The Beskidy Mountains, a popular recreational area for skiing, are within one-hour drive also from town along the Odra river are interesting natural reserve and at summer places for swimming.
Sights
In Wodzisà Âaw à Âlàski there are:
Wodzisà Âaw à Âlàski is twinned with: