Lublin is the ninth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest city of historical Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the center of Lublin Voivodeship (Lublin Province) with a population of 339,784 (December 2019). Lublin is the largest Polish city east of the Vistula River and is about 170 km (106 mi) to the southeast of Warsaw by road.

One of the events that greatly contributed to the city's development was the Polish-Lithuanian Union of Krewo in 1385. Lublin thrived as a centre of trade and commerce due to its strategic location on the route between Vilnius and Kraków; the inhabitants had the privilege of free trade in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The Lublin Parliament session of 1569 led to the creation of a real union between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, thus creating the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Lublin witnessed the early stages of Reformation in the 16th century. A Calvinist congregation was founded and groups of radical Arians appeared in the city, making it an important global centre of Arianism. At the turn of the century, Lublin was recognised for hosting a number of outstanding poets, writers, and historians of the epoch.

Until the partitions at the end of the 18th century, Lublin was a royal city of the Crown Kingdom of Poland. Its delegates and nobles had the right to participate in the royal election. In 1578, Lublin was chosen as the seat of the Crown Tribunal, the highest appeal court in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, and for centuries, the city has been flourishing as a centre of culture and higher learning, with Kraków, Warsaw, Poznan, and Lwów.

Although Lublin was not spared from severe destruction during World War II, its picturesque and historical Old Town has been preserved. The district is one of Poland's official national historic monuments (Pomnik historii), as designated May 16, 2007, and tracked by the National Heritage Board of Poland.

The city is viewed as an attractive location for foreign investment, and the analytical Financial Times Group has found Lublin to be one of the best cities for business in Poland. The Foreign Direct Investment ranking placed Lublin second among larger Polish cities in the cost-effectiveness category. Lublin is noted for its green spaces and a high standard of living.

Lublin is the largest city in eastern Poland and serves as an important regional cultural capital. Since then, many important international events have taken place here, involving international artists, researchers and politicians. The frescos at the Holy Trinity Chapel in Lublin Castle are a mixture of Roman Catholic motifs with eastern Byzantine styles, reinforcing how the city connects the west with the east.