Greening of Old-Town Market spaces before 1945 in the former Silesia Province in the context of planning green infrastructure and preserving heritage values in Old-Town districts

The author discusses the phenomenon of the presence of greenery in the market squares of historical cities. This issue is highly significant due to the conflict between two “parties”: supporters of planting trees in all old-town squares and streets and advocates of protecting the historic values of urban space. The first part of the article presents the results of research on changes in the development of old town market squares in the years 1740–1945 in the former Province of Silesia. The second part contains conclusions from studies on contemporary standards for introducing “green infrastructure” into old town districts with respect for the historic character of the place, both in Poland and in neighbouring countries. The author presents the history of introducing greenery to old-town squares and its typology using examples from Silesia. He also formulates postulates regarding the design of contemporary green infrastructures in accordance with the historic character of old-town spaces.