Oława is a town in south-western
PolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe . Poland is bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
with 31,078 inhabitants (2005). It is situated in
Lower Silesian VoivodeshipLower Silesian Voivodeship is one of the 16 voivodeships into which Poland is currently divided...
(from 1975–1998 it was in the former Wrocław Voivodeship). It is the seat of Oława County, and also of the smaller administrative district of Gmina Oława (although it is not part of the territory of the latter, as the town is an urban
gminaThe gmina is the principal unit of territorial division in Poland. It is usually translated as "commune" or "municipality." As of 2004 there were 2,478 gminas...
in its own right).
Oława began to develop during the early 12th century at a site that was protected by the rivers
OderThe Oder is a river in Central Europe. It begins in the Czech Republic and flows through western Poland, later forming of the border between Poland and Germany, part of the Oder-Neisse line...
and Oława.
Oława is a town in south-western
PolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe . Poland is bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
with 31,078 inhabitants (2005). It is situated in
Lower Silesian VoivodeshipLower Silesian Voivodeship is one of the 16 voivodeships into which Poland is currently divided...
(from 1975–1998 it was in the former Wrocław Voivodeship). It is the seat of Oława County, and also of the smaller administrative district of Gmina Oława (although it is not part of the territory of the latter, as the town is an urban
gminaThe gmina is the principal unit of territorial division in Poland. It is usually translated as "commune" or "municipality." As of 2004 there were 2,478 gminas...
in its own right).
Oława began to develop during the early 12th century at a site that was protected by the rivers
OderThe Oder is a river in Central Europe. It begins in the Czech Republic and flows through western Poland, later forming of the border between Poland and Germany, part of the Oder-Neisse line...
and Oława. It was first mentioned as
Oloua in a document of 1149 confirming its donation to the abbey of St. Vincent in Wrocław. In 1206 Oława became one of the residence towns of the dukes of the Silesian Piast dynasty, who also granted Oława the status of a town in 1234. During its history Oława was destroyed completely three times. In 1241 it was destroyed during the
Mongol invasion of EuropeThe Mongol invasions of Europe, under the leadership of Subutai, centered on the destruction of East Slavic principalities, such as Kiev and Vladimir...
, in 1448 by the Hussites, and again in 1634 during the
Thirty Years' WarThe Thirty Years' War was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history. The war was fought primarily in Germany and at various points involved most of the countries of Europe...
. After the Polish King
Casimir IIICasimir III the Great , last King of Poland from the Piast dynasty , was the son of King Władysław I the Elbow-high and Hedwig of Kalisz.-Royal titles:...
had renounced his rights on
SilesiaSilesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in present-day Poland, with parts in the Czech Republic and Germany....
with the contract of
TrenčínTrenčín is a city in western Slovakia of the central Váh River valley near the Czech border, around from Bratislava. It has a population of more than 56,000, which makes it the ninth largest municipality of the country and is the seat of the Trenčín Region and the Trenčín District...
in 1335, Silesia became until 1806 a part of the
Holy Roman EmpireThe Holy Roman Empire was a union of territories in Central Europe during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period under a Holy Roman Emperor. The first emperor of the Holy Roman Empire was Otto I, crowned in 962. The last was Francis II, who abdicated and dissolved the Empire in 1806 during...
as a Bohemian fief. In 1526, when the
HabsburgThe House of Habsburg or Hapsburg was an important royal house of Europe and is best known for being an origin of all of the formally elected Holy Roman Emperors between 1452 and 1740, as well as rulers of the Austrian and Spanish Empire and several other countries...
s gained the
BohemiaBohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands, currently the Czech Republic...
n crown, Silesia came under
AustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.3 million people in Central Europe. It borders both Germany and the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west...
n sovereignty. In 1527 with the
ReformationThe Protestant Reformation was a Christian reform movement in Europe which is generally deemed to have begun with Martin Luther's Ninety-Five Theses in 1517 although a number of precursors such as Jan Hus predate that event...
High German language came in use and with it the first usage of the version of the town's name("Ohlau") is reported
http://www.um.olawa.pl/index.php?idf=dziejepol. After the death of the last Silesian Piast duke George IV William of Legnica in 1675, Ohlau ceased to be a residence town. Together with most of Silesia, the town became part of the
Kingdom of PrussiaThe Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918, until the defeat of Germany in World War I, was the leading state of the German Empire, comprising almost two-thirds of the area of the empire...
in 1741.
The 18th and 19th centuries were a period of economic growth and Ohlau became well-known as a centre of tobacco-growing. Ethnic Polish traditions and population also remained strong in the area, with a large influx of people from nearby
Congress PolandCongress Poland , officially and formally Kingdom of Poland and informally known as Russian Poland was a constitutional personal union of the Russian Empire created in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna, replaced by the Central Powers in 1915 with the Kingdom of Poland...
, and in 1824 only 10% of people knew the German language
http://www.um.olawa.pl/index.php?idf=dziejepol. In 1842 a railroad between Ohlau and Breslau, the first in Silesia, was opened.
George Gellhorn, father of
Martha GellhornMartha Gellhorn was an American novelist, travel writer and journalist, considered to be one of the greatest war correspondents of the 20th century. She reported on virtually every major world conflict that took place during her 60-year career. Gellhorn was also the third wife of American novelist...
, was born and grew up here.
The historic town of Ohlau did not suffer much damage during
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
, but in
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
about 60% of the town was destroyed. As Oława it became part of
PolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe . Poland is bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
in 1945 and its German population was expelled. After the war, Oława became a garrison town of the
Red ArmyThe Red Army The Red Army The Red Army was the Soviet government’s revolutionary militia beginning in the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the USSR. Since 1946, after the Second World War, it was called the Soviet Army.The 'Red...
Northern Group of ForcesThe Northern Group of Forces was the military formation of the Soviet Army stationed in Poland from the end of Second World War in 1945 until 1993 when they were withdrawn in the aftermath of the fall of Soviet Union.-History:...
and remained so until 1992.
External links
Municipal website