Wroclaw, a fascinating city in south-western Poland and the historic capital of Silesia, lies on the Oder River where several tributaries meet. With more than 100 bridges, it is sometimes called the Venice of the North. Poland's fourth-largest city has around 640,000 inhabitants and a history shaped by Polish, Bohemian, Austrian, German and Jewish cultures. This diversity is visible in its architecture, scholarship, literature, art and music.
Between 1741 and 1945 the city was part of Prussia and Germany. The consequences of the Second World War transformed it profoundly. After the war, the German population was expelled and Polish refugees and settlers, many from territories annexed by the Soviet Union, made new homes in the city. For decades Wroclaw symbolised the divisions of Cold War Europe; today it is a lively centre of Polish-German dialogue and European cooperation.
Rebuilt after wartime destruction, Wroclaw is now one of Poland's most attractive destinations. Its magnificent Market Square is among the most beautiful historic squares in Central Europe.
The city was the birthplace of important figures including Edith Stein, later Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. Born into a Jewish family, she became a philosopher, converted to Catholicism and entered the Carmelite order before being murdered at Auschwitz-Birkenau. Pope John Paul II canonised her and proclaimed her a patron saint of Europe.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the Protestant theologian and courageous Christian opponent of National Socialism, was also born in Wroclaw and was executed in a concentration camp. Their lives add profound historical and spiritual significance to the city.
