Brzeszcze

The "Old Municipality Building"

Coat of arms

Brzeszcze

Coordinates: 50°0′N 19°9′E / 50.000°N 19.150°E

Country

Poland

Established

15th century

Town rights

1962

Government

• Mayor

Cecylia Ślusarczyk

Area

• Total

19.17 km² (7.40 sq mi)

Population (2006)

• Total

11,730

• Density

610/km² (1,600/sq mi)

Time zone

CET (UTC+1)

• Summer (DST)

CEST (UTC+2)

Postal code

32-620

Area code(s)

+48 32

Car plates

KOS

Website

http://www.brzeszcze.pl

Brzeszcze [ˈbʐɛʂt͡ʂɛ] is a town in Oświęcim County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship in southern Poland, near Oświęcim. As of 2006^[update], Brzeszcze has about 12,000 citizens. The history of the town dates back to the 15th century, and it was probably founded by Flemish settlers. Brzeszcze lies along regional roads nr. 933 and nr. 949, and its name comes from the brzost (Ulmus glabra) trees, which once were abundant in the Sola river valley. In the past the town was spelled Brzescie, Breszcze, Brescze, Brzeszce, and Brzesczye.

Brzeszcze lies in the Northern Carpatian Foothills, on the Vistula river, in western Lesser Poland. The town is part of the Upper Silesian Coal Basin. The distance to Kraków is 79 kilometres (49 miles), and the distance to Czech border crossing at Cieszyn, 50 km (31 mi). The town has three rail stations - Brzeszcze, Brzeszcze-Kopalnia, and Brzeszcze-Jawiszowice. All three are located along rail line nr. 93, which goes from Trzebinia to Zebrzydowice.

First documented mention of Brzeszcze comes from 1438, when the village was part of the Duchy of Oświęcim, a fee of the Kingdom of Bohemia. In 1457 Jan IV of Oświęcim agreed to sell the duchy to the Polish Crown, and in the accompanying document issued on 21 February the village was mentioned as Brzescze. The territory of the Duchy of Oświęcim was eventually incorporated into Poland in 1564 and formed Silesian County of Kraków Voivodeship.

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Wikipedia