Silesian County

Silesian County (Polish: powiat śląski) was an administrative unit (powiat) of both the Kingdom of Poland and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. With seats in the towns of Zator and Oświęcim, it was part of Kraków Voivodeship.

Silesian County was created at the General Sejm in Warsaw, in 1564, when King Sigismund II Augustus merged territories of the Duchy of Zator and the Duchy of Oświęcim, incorporating them into the Kraków Voivodeship of the Polish Crown. The kings retained both ducal titles, and names of both duchies remained in common use. It existed for over 200 years, and was dissolved after the third partition of Poland (1795).

The total area of Silesian County was 2600 sq. kilometers, and in the mid-17th century it had five towns: Wadowice, Żywiec, Kęty, Oświęcim and Zator.