Vratislavia (full name: Free City Vratislavia; often abbreviated as Free City or just FCV; Polish: Wrocław, pronounced: [ˈvrɔt͡swaf], full name: Wolne Miasto Wrocław; German: Breslau, pronounced [ˈbʁɛslaʊ], full name: Freie Stadt Breslau; Czech: Vratislav, full name: Volny Mesto Vratislav), is an independent city in the region of Silesia, lying on the lying on the banks of Oder river, which forms the border between Poland and Germany. Founded before year 1000, it belonged to Poland, Bohemia and various German states, until 1946, when it was established as a Free City - a separate state in the midst of newly-partitioned Silesia - as a part of post-war peace in Central and Eastern Europe.
As of 2037 it is one of the most populous urban areas in the world, as well as one of the most densly populated: there are over 30 million people living on a little over 1500 square kilometers, giving population density of about 20 000 people per square kilometer.
Vratislavia is a hub of industry, commerce and science for much of Central and Eastern Europe, overshadowing even capitals of nearby countries, such as Warsaw, Munich, Prague and Berlin. The city is home to one of the biggest concentrations of industry in the world, alongside Chinese Guangzhou region. Two of the city's universities - the University of Vratislavia and the Vratislavian University of Technology - are commonly ranked among the world's best 30, providing highly educated specialists for the fledging high-tech industries, and invite the students from all over Europe and the world, boosting the city's population even further. Vratislavia also houses one of the major European stock exchanges, the FCVSE.
Most of the city has been destroyed during the siege by the Soviets in the WW II, and its citizens drove away after the siege was over. It was rebuilt almost from scratch, and almost all people living in the Vratislavia now are immigrants that came after the war ended - sometimes a long time after. Because of low taxes and high degree of personal and economical freedom, it has been a hot spot for immigration since it became a free city. Three major national groups are still Germans, Poles and Czechs, but even combined they add up to about half of the city population. Rest is made up of immigrants from Eastern and Western Europe, East Asia and North Africa.
Political system in Free City is considered to be autocratic. The single most important position is the one of Governor; he holds the entiriety of the executive power, and effectively controls legislative power as well, with the right to veto any bill, even ones that are already in power, as well as propose bills. Even with most unfriendly City Council, the Vratislavia's legislative authority, this means that at worst there will be no new laws except for the Governor's decrees. While City Council is elected, the position of the Governor is appointed by the previous holder of title.
Do you have more questions about Free City? Send me an e-mail to free(dot)city(dot)vratislavia(at)gmail.com, and I will come up with an answer and update the article - or write a new one, as I hope to flesh out the setting in much, much more detail.