Katowice

Katowice is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, on the Kłodnica and Rawa rivers (tributaries of the Oder and the Vistula respectively). Katowice is located in the Silesian Highlands, about 50 km (31 mi) north of the Silesian Beskids (part of the Carpathian Mountains) and about 100 km (62 mi) southeast of the Sudetes Mountains.

Katowice belong to those Polish cities which do not originate from medieval towns. Downtown City was formed in the mid-19th century when the city was part of the Kingdom of Prussia and had a ethnic-German majority. Established at the time the buildings are decorated eclectic (mostly Renaissance and Baroque) as elements of Art Nouveau style (secesja). At the end of the nineteenth century the center of Katowice, was being referred to as a "little Paris", something which may surprise visitors today. Katowice embodies a mixture of architectural styles. Most of the historical buildings were thoroughly reconstructed. However, some of the buildings from the 19th century that had been preserved in reasonably reconstructible form were nonetheless eradicated in the 1950s-1970s. Mass residential blocks were erected, with basic design typical of Eastern bloc countries.

Picture by Simon.