a government in the Prussian province of Silesia, between the governments of Liegnitz and Oppeln. It is divided into 22 circles, having 56 cities, 7 market-towns, and 2224 villages. Area 5252 square miles. Pop. in 1849, 1,174,679, of whom 698,436 were Protestants, 464,178 Roman Catholics, and 12,059 Jews.

capital of the above government, as well as of the government of Silesia, is situated on the Oder, at the influx of the Ohlau, and on the railway from Berlin to Vienna, 190 miles S.E. of the former. Lat. of observatory 51° 6' 57", N. Long. 17° 2' 33" E. With the exception of Berlin, it is the most populous city of Prussia. Pop. in 1849, 110,702, of whom 68,514 were Protestants, 34,801 Roman Catholics, and 7384 Jews. It consists of the old and new towns, with several suburbs and islands in the Oder connected together by numerous bridges. The old fortifications have been converted into beautiful promenades. The streets in the old town are mostly narrow, but otherwise generally good, with numerous handsome public buildings and magnificent squares. Among the principal buildings are the old cathedral, founded in the twelfth century, the collegiate church, St Elizabeth's church, built in the thirteenth century, with a spire 364 feet in height, and one of the finest organs in Silesia, several other churches richly ornamented, the palace, now the government house, built by Frederick the Great, the episcopal palace, townhouse, mint, exchange, university buildings, barracks, new theatre, and market. In one of the squares is a colossal bronze statue of Blücher.

Breslau is celebrated for its educational and literary institutions. The university, founded in 1702, had, in 1849, 819 students, of whom 21 were foreigners. It has faculties of arts, law, medicine, and Protestant and Roman Catholic theology. The library contains upwards of 200,000 volumes. In 1849 Breslau had 40 elementary schools, with 8312 scholars; a higher girls' school with 314 scholars; 2 higher burgh schools with 1099 scholars; 4 gymnasia with 2028 scholars; and a normal school with 202 scholars. It has also a deaf-mute and blind institution, 4 public libraries, botanical garden, school of arts and manufactures, and numerous literary and scientific societies, observatory, 5 orphan asylums, 10 hospitals, and numerous other charitable institutions. It is the seat of various provincial courts, a council of the mines, a Roman Catholic bishopric, and a Protestant consistory. It has numerous and extensive manufactures, among which are linen, cotton, woollen, and silk goods, soap, plate, jewellery, earthenware, &c., with numerous breweries and distilleries. It forms the principal mart for the linen and cotton products of Silesia, and for wool; and has four great annual fairs of eight days each; one of these, that for wool, is the greatest of its kind in Germany. The produce of the mines, timber, flax, hemp, corn, wines, are brought here in large quantities from other parts.