Silesia

Silesia, region of central Europe, mostly in Poland but extending to the Czech Republic and eastern Germany. Known for the mineral and coal deposits of heavily industrialized Upper Silesia, the region is heavily forested and traversed by the Oder River. The Sudetes Mountains rise in the south. The largest cities are Polish: Wroclaw and Katowice. Silesia became part of Poland in the 10th century. It was later conquered by Austria (1526) and Prussia (1742). The present borders were redrawn at the end of World Wars I and II.