Cracow, Poland
| Name of the Inscribed Sector | Cracow's Historic Centre |
| Year of inscription on the World Heritage List | 1978 |
| Location and site | Between the Carpathian Mountains and the Baltic Sea, Kraków is located on the left bank of the Vistula in an undulating plain. It was located on Europe's terrestrial trade route as well as on the route of the great invasions. |
| Historical Function | Politics, trade and culture. |
| Administrative Status | Provincial capital. |
| Foundation | 10th century A.D. |
| Population | 751300 |
History
- The Wawel Hill, which overlooks the Vistula, marks the original site of Kraków. During the 10th century, a fortified castle and a cathedral were erected on its summit and a market town, also protected by fortifications, developed at its base. Under the Piast Dynasty, the country became unified and converted to Christianity of Roman persuasion. In the 11th century, Kraków became the seat of power for the State.
- In 1241, Kraków was the victim of the first Mongolian invasions. Its reconstruction in 1257 was an imposing project that was organized around a central market. In 1259, more Mongolian invasions were followed by a second reconstruction program and the construction of fortifications.
- In 1335, Casimir The Great, the last king of the Piast Dynasty and the great restorer of Poland, founded the new city of Kazimierz near Kraków.
- During this period, which included the 13th and 14th centuries, the city of Kraków established the basic elements of its layout in a series of stages, and at the same time enjoyed a golden era.
- During the 16th century, in the midst of a period of prosperity and intellectual enlightenment, Kraków was supplanted by Warsaw, which became the capital of Poland in 1596.
Urban Morphology
The market square, which measures 200 m. x 200 m., is the key element of the rigorous rectilinear plan which led to the development of streets right up to the edge of the city wall; today these have been replaced by a greenbelt. The urban nodes which were created over the course of the city's history come together in a settlement whose centre is the old city of 1257 and its market square.
Red brick and stone are used throughout. The old city is very rich: the principal market, which includes the famous cloth hall, is surrounded by churches and cloisters, the belfry and the square tower. At the perimeter are a series of bourgeois residences constructed during the 17th and 18th centuries. Elsewhere in the city, which is dominated by church steeples, are other middle-class dwellings of Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque inspiration.
Inscription Criteria
Kraków is an example of a Medieval European capital whose urban development was characterised by the successive creation of two new cities at the foot of a fortified ensemble. (IV)
