Wałbrzych (Walmbrig, Waldenburg) – from a private town to an industrial powerhouse

For years it had been a small town in the Duchy of Jawor (and the Duchy of Jawor-Świdnica for some time), later it was made a part of the Habsburg realm, but what is imporant is that it was a private town, first it was owned by Szoff family, then by Czettriz and in the end by Hochbrg until 1808. It was also known as a coal-mining and textile centre. However, the town was transformed into a city (although in a somehow irregular shape, because of the landform and the history – the city is formed by a group of former villages located along the mountain rivers) during the XIX and XX century due to the rapid development of industry.