Opole

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Opole (pronounce: , German Oppeln) is a town in southern Poland on the Oder River. It has a population of 129,553 and is the capital of the Opole Voivodship. It is the historical capital of Upper Silesia. Opole has a large German minority.

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As a result of regional division of Poland following the death of Boleslaus III the Wrymouth, since 1283 Opole and all adjoining lands were a separate duchy, that initially shared the fate of Poland and then the fate of the rest of Silesia. Although the last ruler to hold the title of Duke of Opole was Jan Kazimierz II, who abdicated in 1668, the duchy continued to be an unit of administrative division until 1742, ruled by the Austrian Habsburgs as Kings of Bohemia.

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German: German may mean:...

Oder River: The Odra or Oder River (Czech/Polish: Odra, German: Oder, Ancient Latin: Viadua, Viadrus, Medieval Latin: Odera, Oddera) is a river in Central Europe. It begins in the Czech Republic and flows through western Poland, later forming the northern 187 km of the border between Poland and Germany, part of...

Opole Voivodship: Opole Voivodship (since 1999) or Opole Silesia (Polish: wojew?dztwo opolskie, ?l?sk Opolski) is a Polish administrative and local government region created on 1 January 1999 out of the former Opole and parts of Czestochowa voivodships as a result of the Local Government Reorganization Act of 1998. T...