The most dynamic development of Śródmieście dates back to the 1860s - right after Katowice was granted city rights. The interwar architecture of the southern downtown is a beautiful testimony to the modernist style. It is also one of the few pre-war city centers in Poland that has been practically untouched by war. The post-war period was the transformation of Śródmieście into the administrative and service center of Katowice.