![[Zabrze city flag]](../images/p/pl-sl-zz.gif)
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image by Chrystian Kretowicz, 22 Dec 2008
Zabrze City County, Śląskie Voivodship - German name: Hindenburg in
Oberschlesien (1915-45).
Zabrze is a city in southern Poland with 194,041 inhabitants (2004).
Zabrze is part of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union, the largest
legally-recognized urban entity in Poland with a population of 2.2 million.
The population of the urban area is 3,487,000 (2004). Zabrze is situated
in the Silesian Voivodship (since 1999); previously, it was in Katowice
Voivodship (1975-1998).
Area: 80.47 sq.km (31.1 sq.mi)
Biskupice (Biskupitz), which is now a Zabrze subdivision, was first
mentioned in 1243 as Biscupici dicitur cirka Bitom.
Zabrze (later Old Zabrze) was mentioned in 1295-1305 as Sadbre sive
Cunczindorf. Beginning in the Late Middle Ages, the local Silesian
Piast dukes invited German settlers to the territory resulting in increasing
German settlement of the area.
Zabrze was inherited by the Habsburg Monarchy of Austria in 1526 and
was annexed by the Kingdom of Prussia during the 18th century Silesian
Wars. In 1774 nearby Dorotheendorf settlement was founded. With the first
mine opened in Zabrze in 1790, the town became an important site for mining
in 19th century. When Upper Silesia was partitioned between Poland and
Germany in 1921, Zabrze remained in Germany. The settlement received its
city charter in 1922
Zabrze was renamed Hindenburg in 1915 to honor Generalfeldmarschall Paul von Hindenburg; the new name was used until May 19, 1945. After the city became part of Poland in that year following World War II, the original name, Zabrze, was restored and most of the remaining German inhabitants were expelled according to the Potsdam Conference.
Arms were originally adopted in 1927 after the Prussian Ministry of
Internal Affairs approved the design of Father Alfred Brockel.
The brick towers and the gear wheel were to symbolize the heavy industry
of the city ( the city was often described as a "town of the brick towers"
due to its characteristic architecture).
These Arms were abolished by the Polish communist government in 1948
and from 1960 to 1990 the Arms shown on FOTW.
In 1990, the old Arms were restored (with slight modification) by the
self-governing City Council on September 26 (and the flag was adopted too).
Flag: is composed of three equal horizontal bands: red-blue-yellow with
the Arms in the center of the flag.
Chrystian Kretowicz, 22 Dec 2008
![[Zabrze ceremonial flag]](../images/p/pl-sl_zz.gif)
image by Chrystian Kretowicz, 22 Dec 2008
![[Zabrze new coat of arms]](../images/p/pl-sl}zz.gif)
image by Chrystian Kretowicz, 22 Dec 2008
![[Zabrze city Coat of Arms]](../images/p/pl-sl)zz.jpg)
image from this
website.
