Duchy of Pless

In 1407 Nicholas's grandson John II, Duke of Opava and Racibórz, gave the territories of Pszczyna, Bieruń, Mysłowice, and Mikołów as a dowry to his wife Helena, a niece of the Polish king Jogaila.

In the accompanying sales document issued in Czech on 21 February 1517 apart from a castle and city of Pless mentions also 3 towns (Bieruń, Mysłowice, Mikołów) and 50 villages belonging to Pless: Jankowice, Woszczyce,[a] Międzyrzecze, Bojszowy,[a] Brzozówka,[b] v Wieze,[c] Wola, Miedźna, Grzawa, Rudołtowice, Goczałkowice, Łąka, Wisła Wielka, Pawłowice, Zgoń, Brzeźce, Poręba, Stara Wieś, Czarków, Radostowice, Piasek, Studzionka, Szeroka, Krzyżowice, Warszowice, Kryry, Suszec, Kobiór, Wyry, Łaziska Dolne, Łaziska Górne, Smiłowice, Ligota,[d] Stara Kuźnica, Zarzecze, Podlesie, Piotrowice, Tychy, Wilkowyje, Paprocany, Cielmice, Lędziny, Brzęczkowice, Brzezinka, Zabrzeg,[e] Porąbka,[f] Studzienice, Roździeń, Bogucice,[g] Jaźwce,[d][h] Dziećkowice.

In the War of the Austrian Succession most of Silesia was conquered by the Kingdom of Prussia; but the Dukes, and later Princes, of Pless would remain the rulers of the territory.

The Hochbergs, from Fürstenstein near Waldenburg (in Lower Silesia), were father, son and grandson: Hans Heinrich X, XI, and XV;[3] they were among the wealthiest families in the Holy Roman Empire, in part because of the mines of Pless.

[4] The incumbents of state countries (Standesherren) had no sovereignty over their possessions, but held the privileges to supervise religion, charitable endowments, school education, and lower jurisdiction.

But the Prince's power was not absolute; the opposition candidate, the "already semi-canonized" Father Eduard Müller, a priest born in Quilitz near Glogau who was active as Catholic missionary in Protestant Berlin, won anyway.

He was one of the Kaiser's adjutants during the First World War; several important planning conferences were held at Pless itself during the war; and when the Central powers decided to create a Kingdom of Poland as a German-Austrian protectorate, Hans Heinrich (and, according to his wife, his two elder sons) were among the many to be considered for (and decline) the vacant throne, in part because of their Polish descent.

[10] The Prussian Government attempted to Germanize or assimilate the ethnic Poles on its conquered territories, culminating in the Polish Expropriation Act of 1908, which Hans Heinrich XV opposed.