Olesno

For similarly named villages, see Olesno, Lesser Poland Voivodeship and Oleśno.

Olesno
Wooden Saint Anne church in Olesno, built in 1518, expanded in 1668-1670
Flag Coat of arms
Olesno
Coordinates: 50°52′30″N 18°25′0″E
Country	Poland
Voivodeship	Opole
County	Olesno County
Gmina	Gmina Olesno
Government
• Mayor	Sylwester Piotr Lewicki
Area
• Total	15.1 km2 (5.8 sq mi)
Elevation	240 m (790 ft)
Population (2006)
• Total	10,106
• Density	670/km2 (1,700/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	46-300
Car plates	OOL
Website	http://www.olesno.pl/

Olesno [ɔˈlɛsnɔ] (German: Rosenberg O.S.) is a town in Opole Voivodship, Poland about 42 kilometres (26 mi) north-east of the city of Opole. It is the capital of Olesno County and seat of the Gmina Olesno.

History

The area near the ancient Amber Road had been settled since the Neolithic era. Olesno was first mentioned in a 1226 deed by Bishop Lorenz (Wawrzyniec) of Wrocław though it may refer to the neighbouring village of Stare Olesno (Old Olesno). In 1229 it was acquired by Duke Henry I the Bearded of Wrocław. Olesno became seat of a Castellan and received town privileges about 1292. It then was a part of the Duchy of Opole which became a fiefdom of the Kingdom of Bohemia in 1327 and was finally incorporated into the Holy Roman Empire by Charles IV in 1355.

After the First Silesian War and the Peace of Breslau in 1742 Olesno became a Prussian town, part of the Province of Silesia from 1815 on. In the Upper Silesia plebiscite of 20 March 1921 3,286 inhabitants voted to remain in Germany, 473 for Poland. Thus Rosenberg remained part of the Weimar Republic. On 21 January 1945 it was taken by the Soviet troops of the 5th Guards Army.

Notable people

• David Rosin, theologian, born May 27, 1823 in Rosenberg, died December 31, 1894 in Breslau
• Hermann Friedberg, physician, born July 5, 1817 in Rosenberg, died March 2, 1884 in Breslau
• Reinhold Saltzwedel, U-boat commander, born November 23, 1889 in Rosenberg, died December 2, 1917 on UB-81, English Channel
• Helmuth von Pannwitz, general, born October 14, 1898 in Botzanowitz, Rosenberg County, died January 16, 1947 in Moscow
• Georg Burgfeld (20 June 1909 – 8 August 1957), highly decorated Hauptmann in the Wehrmacht
• Adam Ledwoń, football player, born January 15, 1974 in Olesno, died June 11, 2008 in Klagenfurt, Austria.
• Franciszek Kokot, nephrologist, born 24 November 1929.

International relations

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Poland

Twin towns — Sister cities

Olesno is twinned with:

• Arnsberg, Germany, since 1992

External links

• Official town webpage
• German page about Olesno
• Jewish Community in Olesno on Virtual Shtetl