Wałbrzych

Wałbrzych (ˈvawbʐɨx; Waldenburg; Wałbrzich; Walmbrig or Walmbrich; Valbřich or Valdenburk) is a city located in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in southwestern Poland. From 1975–1998 it was the capital of Wałbrzych Voivodeship; it is now the seat of Wałbrzych County. Wałbrzych lies approximately southwest of the voivodeship capital Wrocław and about from the Czech border. Wałbrzych has the status of municipality. Its administrative borders encompass an area of with 110,000 inhabitants, making it the second-largest city in the voivodeship and the 33rd largest in the country. Wałbrzych was once a major coal mining and industrial center alongside most of Silesia. The city was left undamaged after World War II and possesses rich historical architecture; among the most recognizable landmarks is the Książ Castle, the largest castle of Lower Silesia and the third-largest in Poland. In 2015 Wałbrzych became widely known due to the search for an allegedly buried Nazi gold train, which however was not found. According to the city's official website, the early Polish name of the settlement was Lasogród ('forest castle'). The German name Waldenburg (also meaning 'forest castle') referred to the castle Nowy Dwór (German: Burg Neuhaus), whose ruins stand south of the city; the name came to be used for the entire settlement. It first appeared in the 15th century. The modern Polish name Wałbrzych comes from the German name Walbrich, a late medieval variation of the older names Wallenberg or Walmberg. Polish sources indicate the city's predecessor, Lasogród, was an early medieval Slavic settlement whose inhabitants engaged in hunting, honey gathering, and later agriculture. Lasogród eventually developed into a defensive fort, the remains of which were destroyed in the 19th century during expansion of the city. However, some German sources say no archaeological or written records support notions of an early West Slavic or Lechitic settlement nor the existence of a castle before the late 13th century.