BRIEG, a town of Germany, in Prussian Silesia, on the left bank of the Oder, 27m. S.E. of Breslau. Pop. (193o) 29,816. Brieg (Civitas Altae Ripae), obtained municipal rights in 1250 from Duke Henry III. of Breslau, and was fortified in 1297; its name is derived from the Polish Brzeg (shore). Burned by the Hussites in 1428, but soon rebuilt, it was again fortified by Joachim Frederick, duke of Brieg, in 1595, and suffered severely in the wars of the subsequent centuries. From 1311 to 1675 Brieg was the capital of an independent line of dukes, by one of whom the castle was built in 1341. On the death of the last duke in 1675 the duchy was annexed by Austria, and eventually fell to Prussia with Silesia in 1742. The fortifications of the town, now marked by handsome promenades, were destroyed by the French in 1807. It has a Renaissance castle, formerly the resi dence of the counts of Brieg. It is an agricultural centre with important cattle-markets. Metal-work, soap, wire-goods, cement and pianos are also produced.