Warsaw’s Prague picked among Europe’s hippest districts

Gritty. Bo-ho. Up-and-coming. There are a lot of terms being tossed around to describe Prague (Praga), the eastern district of Warsaw and they’re all fairly apt. Also award-winning lifestyle website theculturetrip.com has picked that borough among Europe’s hippest districts. The website homed in on 11 other European hotspots, including London’s hipster mecca Dalston, Amsterdam-Noord, Berlin’s Kreuzberg and Gracia in Barcelona.

Warsaw’s wild side

Praga, which evaded the destruction meted out to most of the city during WWII, was nevertheless regarded as somewhat beyond the pale until a decade ago. The area used to be Warsaw’s hottest district for all the wrong reasons. It has long been regarded as off-limits to Western visitors thanks to its criminal underclass and imposing tower blocks. Some Varsovians still think that a night out in Prague is a bit too edgy for comfort, remembering the days when the neighbourhood’s soaring crime rate earned it the nickname “the Bermuda Triangle”. For decades, it was home to the poorest of Warsaw’s poor, and the derelict streets were ruled by the criminal underworld. That`s how times have changed. The eastern area hugging the Vistula river has blossomed into one of Europe’s creative hubs with many of its abandoned warehouses and disused factories being transformed into hip bars, clubs, restaurants and art spaces. Today, the district attracts young crowds of boho-types who rightly acknowledge that this up-and-coming district is where the pulse of Warsaw can really be found.

Prague is worth visiting especially if you prefer to see the city’s artsy underbelly and get away from the beaten tracks of Old Town. The borough is still at least five years away from being hipster-soaked Brooklyn or Boho Montmartre, but that’s exactly why now is the time to go: you will see the evolution in progress.

Where Catholics, Orthodox Christians and Jews lived together peacefully

Since 1432 until 1791 Prague was a separate city, attached to Warsaw in the late 18th century. You can still find many original pre-war apartment blocks, pavements and lampposts dotting the district. This was also once a neighbourhood of rich cultural diversity where Catholics, Orthodox Christians and Jews lived together peacefully and throughout the district there are traces of several beautiful places of worship, some still in existence.

Even as the cities of Warsaw and Prague developed during the Renaissance,

… no permanent bridge was ever built between them…

communication was by ferry or by crossing the ice in winter. There are still the elegant, Greek-temple-styled Water Chamber on Kłopotowskiego street, with its bas-relief of Neptune and his horse-drawn chariot, where the toll service for water crossings was managed. The first permanent bridge called Kierbedź Bridge was built in 1864.

There are the only remaining traces of Renaissance Prague on Ratuszowa Street, where the Church of Our Lady of Loreto stands. It was built in the first half of the 17th century, a pink cake-like structure with thick, squat towers framing its Greek temple-styled front face.

Genuinely antique and genuinely decrepit

The scene couldn’t have been more different from polished downtown Warsaw, where the almost total devastation of WWII has ensured that everything – including the “Old Town” – is brand new. Prague is both genuinely antique and genuinely decrepit. The beautiful old buildings are crumbling, rusting iron bars jut out from walls pitted by wartime bullets and the delicate art nouveau facades are thick with grime. But the streets themselves burst with life. This is a neighbourhood of small shops and street markets, where children play unattended in the alleys and every courtyard shelters an icon of the Virgin Mary.

After dark, Prague really shines. Its nightlife, weaving between the cutting-edge and the downright surreal, pulls in revellers from every corner of the city. The walls may be cracking, the furniture rarely matches and there’s a good chance the bartender is a volunteer, but for many, Prague’s bars and clubs fill a void left by Warsaw’s headlong race toward westernisation.

At The Fumes Of The Absurd

“W Oparach Absurdu” in English means “At The Fumes of The Absurd”. This is one of the most iconic bars in town. Owner Elzbieta Komorowska spent months hunting through antique shops and flea markets to decorate her wonderland, and the results are dizzying – religious icons, a plaster pig, Christmas ornaments and Persian carpets leave barely enough room for customers. But they pack them in all the same, and even manage to squeeze the occasional band on to a microscopic stage. There’s no cocktail menu, but be sure to sample Spider Drink, an eerie green-and-red mixture of banana, black currant and vodka that goes down too easily.

“Porto Praga”

“Porto Praga” is the neighbourhood’s most decisive foray into highbrow dining. Warsaw’s cultural elite flock here to enjoy dishes from around the world, from Spanish veal to Balinese tuna tartar, as well as a raft of imaginative cocktails with names like “Strawberry Cheesecake.” Tucked into the last remnants of a 200-year-old steam mill, the restaurant’s interior has been fitted out with art nouveau elegance that provides a stark contrast to the rough tenements outside.

“Skład Butelek”

With a name that translates as “Bottle Warehouse”, Skład is housed in the bowels of a 1913 rubber factory. The bar’s mish-mash of old furniture, candle-lit corners and gregarious bar staff attract those looking to get as far away as possible from the gleam and glitz of central Warsaw.

“M25”

This post-industrial complex hosts big names in techno and electro music, and is reminiscent of the warehouse techno clubs of Berlin.

“11 Listopada no. 22”

This address is home to several bars tucked into a small courtyard. Compared to clubs in the centre of Warsaw, these retro places are much cheaper and charge little or no fee for entry, so understandably their biggest clients are students. Located there are “Hydrozagadka”, “Saturator”, “Zwiążmnie”, and “Skład Butelek”.

“Sen Pszczoły”

The “Bee’s Dream” is a quirky two-floor club, bar, and beer garden where the toilets are in elevators and a bathtub sits lonely amongst the picnic tables outside. Summertime is best for a visit to “Sen”, the beer garden will be in full swing, the outdoor cinema will likely be screening a bizarre foreign film, and the staff will be grilling up sausages and veggies. You can soak up all the vodka for under the equivalent of 3 euro.

Ząbkowska Street

One of the main streets of old Prague, the oldest buildings are from the 19th century. Also one of the prominent landmarks in Warsaw, Zabkowska Street extends from the crossing point of Radzymińska Street and Kawęczyńska Street to Targowa Street. This pretty street has a magical ambience and is flocked by locals and tourists from across the world.

For many people this place is “The Prague Old Town”. Walking along Ząbkowska we can see how the Prague architecture evolved from the second half of the 19th century to now. The oldest surviving house on this street is a small ground-floor house (No. 14), which is from 1866. The house at No. 7 is from 1880 (though it has been restored) and is considered by many to be the most beautiful house of Ząbkowska Street. At No. 2 there is one of the most recognisable buildings in Prague – it’s a four-floor, renovated house, which dates from 1914.

This charming street has a cobbled surface which is why it is also referred to as the Cobbled Street.

The area where Markowska Street and Targowa Street meet housed the Zabkowskie turnpikes from 1770 to 1889. This is where fees were charged for merchants coming from the eastern cities, Bialystok and Grodno. When Szmulowizna (now a part of Prague which has got very bad reputation) was added to Warsaw, the turnpikes were wound up. In 1897, the place where turnpikes used to be was converted to an alcoholic plant which exists even now.

Do not miss out the old, dilapidated house that refused to be grazed down in spite of numerous efforts. The occupants of the terrible looking house were evicted in 1990 and it was only in 1999 that it was successfully demolished. Visit this charming street and enjoy the unique and interesting ambience here.

“Koneser” – old vodka factory

“Koneser” is situated at the heart of Ząbkowska Street. This is a complex of red brick buildings from the late 19th century, in which, for over a hundred years, an alcohol factory was located. It is one of the most valuable examples of industrial architecture, as some of the buildings are inspired by Gothic influences (the front gate often makes visitors think of a castle with a small turret).

This immense complex may look like the set of a Gothic horror film, but inside the old Koneser vodka distillery is a hive of creative activity. Two art galleries now call it a home, as well as a restaurant, a performance space and a small “design” shop selling everything from inflatable chandeliers to porcelain Wellington boots. A collection of wooden pallets out back morphs into an open-air cinema on summer evenings, where young Pragans nestle into fluffy cushions to watch art-house flicks projected on a brick wall.

The recipes of the products being made at the factory date back to the 1920s, and involve some of the best Polish vodkas: “Wyborowa” and “Żubrówka”. Other famous alcoholic products you should try are the lemon and grapefruit flavored vodkas (“Cytrynówka” and “Grejpfrutowka”) as well as the “Klubowy” brandy.

“Fabryka Trzciny” Art Centre

This is the city’s famous private art centre. Housed in a former factory from 1916, which used to produce marmalade, sausages and “pepegi” (a kind of “socialist trainer”). Today, the center consists of, among other things, an auditorium, a meeting room, a theatre and an exhibition halls, spaces used for film festivals, fashion shows, symposiums, conferences, training sessions and events organised for special occasions. This unusual venue is known for its avant-garde style, mixed with tradition and aspects of the original old factory.

The designers found ingenious ways to preserve the factory’s industrial character, and today you can sip cocktails in the “Stove Room,” dominated by an enormous brick stove squatting in the corner, and dance between walls covered in plugs, pressure gauges, rusted pipes and glowing glass bottles. Bands from around the world play here, and the parties go on until dawn.

The Soho Factory

The Soho Factory aspires to create in Warsaw a space for the artistic evolution of an industrial area, outside of the artificial context of a museum, modeled after New York City’s Soho. The project initiated by the Artanimacje association aims to revitalize and aesthetically transform Warsaw’s Prague quarter by introducing different projects such as the Soho Factory. The place hosts educational workshops, performance art exhibitions, music concerts, and other vibrant cultural events.

Różycki Bazaar (Bazar Różyckiego)

Bazar Różyckiego is the oldest existing market in the city. It was established in the 19th century and founded by Julian Różycki, who was a pharmacist and owner of several pharmacies. The bazaar was constructed in order to be a major trading center in Prague, originally it had seven indoor stalls.

This market played a big social role during WWII and its aftermath, providing people with ammunition and medical equipment. It was also one of the few places where Warsaw residents could buy goods, derived – with a bit of cunning and quite a lot of danger – from the German transport vehicles and stores.

After the war the bazaar really flourished. One could buy goods unavailable in state stores, which in the communist times, were often empty anyway.

Nowadays, around 300 sellers run their businesses at the market, offering various products such as clothes, food, and accessories. In 2008 the market ceased to be publicly owned and was returned to its original owners, the Różycki family.

Former Jewish bathhouse

This small building with a facade of red brick was built between 1910-1914, and designed by Naum Horstein. It originally served as a mikvah, that is a Jewish ritual bath. Before the Sabbath and important religious holidays, Jews cleaned away any spiritual impurity in this ‘special pool’. After the war, many things stood in the building, including Office of the Central Committee of Polish Jews, and then a kindergarten and secondary school. Today the building is owned by the Jewish Community, and houses a multicultural high school, named after Jacek Kuroń.

During its renovation in 2009, in the building’s courtyard was found a perfectly preserved pool, which had been used to store rainwater.

Besides the building is a small square, which until 1961 was the Prague synagogue. On the instructions of the then-authorities the temple was destroyed and the ruins were turned into a small hill, and next to it was built a children’s playground.

Former Water Chamber

This is one of the oldest and most valuable buildings on the right-bank of Warsaw. It’s also called the House of Columns. Built and designed by Antonio Corazzi between 1824-1825, it was for the City Department of Bridges. The building was situated at the entrance to the boat bridge, which was used to cross to the other side of the Vistula River, and it was there that tolls were paid. The chamber performed this function until 1864, when the first permanent crossing of the Vistula River was built – the Kierbedź Bridge. On the building’s facade is a carved relief by Tomasz Accardi, which represents Neptune’s (the god of the sea) chariot drawn by fish-tailed horses, and surrounded by dolphins. Also interesting are the cast-iron plates documenting the record heights of the Vistula’s water levels in 1813, 1839 and 1844.

In 2007-2008 the building underwent a general overhaul, currently, it houses a branch of the Warsaw City Office.

Monument of the Prague Backyard Orchestra (Pomnik Praskiej Kapeli Podwórkowej)

Revealed in 2006, this monument presents a neighbourhood band from the days when such musicians roamed the courtyards of Warsaw, especially in the Prague neighbourhood, and played popular Warsaw tunes. The band consists of an accordion player, violinist, guitarist, drummer, and a banjo player. A small square with benches surrounds the monument, where one can rest and listen to music, including tunes from the pre-war years. Simply send an SMS to 7141 with the text KAPELA along with the track number in the body of the message (100 titles available, track list appears on the drum).

The influence of Napoleon

In addition to a vibrant cultural life, Prague also boasts many beautiful stretches of green parkland. One such spot worth visiting is Park Praski, just outside the Zoological Gardens. In the early 19th century, this area of Prague was razed by Napoleon in preparation for new fortifications. The influence of Napoleon didn’t last long, and by the mid-19th century, city authorities decided to do something more recreational with the space. Today you can wander along vast stretches of pleasant tree-lined lawns, or see an open-air concert at the park’s outdoor stage.

The “Green” Pearl Of Prague

Another pearl of Prague is Skaryszewski Park, a massive stretch of green in the southern part of the district that includes tennis courts, a sports stadium, a rose garden, a children’s playground, a small lake and two picturesque ponds. Unlike many other parks in the city (the royal Łazienki park for example) you can fully enjoy yourself. That means walking on the grass is OK and there are plenty of paths for runners and cyclists. The park is also something of an open-air art gallery, featuring several beautiful works of sculpture created before the war by up-and-coming artists of the time.

Warsaw`s Zoo

Warsaw`s Zoo is home to over 5000 animals from all around the world. The Zoological Garden is big attraction for kids but also for adults as there are some interesting stories for the latters, too. During the war the zoo director Jan Żabiński and his family hid over 200 Jews from the Nazis.

The garden was founded in the year 1928 to house native animals of Poland such as storks, brown bears and otters. There you can also find many exotic animal species such as the Rothschild giraffes, African elephants, gibbons, Indian rhinoceros, reptiles, birds and tropical fish.

Beach on the Vistula (Plaża nad Wisłą)

The Vistula is nowhere near safe enough for swimming, but there are a few river-side getaways, particularly on the wilder, undeveloped right bank, that can successfully trick us into thinking we’re on a sparkling beach – and the view onto downtown Warsaw can’t be beaten.

The beach is several hundred meters long, and open only during summer. It hosts loads of visitors due to numerous attractions: lawn chairs, wicker baskets, volleyball and badminton fields, and in the evening, concerts and DJ’s. There is also the undeniable added charm of being able to get an unparalleled view of the Old Town, in all its splendor. On the Vistula River there are four other beaches, located on the Cypel Czerniakowski and Wał Miedzeszyński Street, which runs level with Kryniczna Street, Poniatówka near National Stadium, Żoliborz beach (ul. Wybrzeże Gdyńskie 2).

National Stadium – Rondo Waszyngtona

The stadium has a seating capacity of 58,145 which makes it the largest association football arena in Poland. Its construction started in 2008 and finished in November 2011. It is located on the site of the former 10th-Anniversary Stadium, on Aleja Zieleniecka in Praga Południe district, near the city center. The National Stadium hosted the opening match (a group match), the 2 group matches, a quarterfinal, and the semifinal of the UEFA Euro 2012, co-hosted by Poland and Ukraine. The stadium is equipped with a heated pitch, training pitch, façade lighting, and underground parking. It is a multipurpose venue able to host sporting events, concerts, cultural events, and conferences. The official stadium opening took place on 19 January 2012, and the first football match was played on 29 February 2012. The match between the Polish national football team and the Portuguese team ended with a 0–0 draw.

***

Prague is a perfect example of the change that’s taking place in the Warsaw of today – a city that’s prepared to revitalize traces of the old with currents of the new. The borough is still at least five years away from being hipster-soaked Brooklyn or Boho Montmartre but it`s closer and closer year by year. That`s why you must see the old Prague. It`s really worth visiting.

See you there!

The text was previously published at http://www.communications-unlimited.nl/warsaws-prague-picked-among-europes-hippest-districts/#prettyPhoto

A wall altar

Koneser: old vodka factory, a hive of creative activities

Cathedral of St. Michael the Archangel and Florian the Martyr – Minor Basilica

Former Water Chamber, now The Registry Office.

Former Jewish bathhouse, now multicultural high school, named after Jacek Kuroń, one of the democratic leaders of opposition in the People’s Republic of Poland.

Monument of the Prague Backyard Orchestra. There were backyard orchestras in Warsaw both before and after the war.

One of the Pragan murals which were very popular after the war. There are lots of wall paintings, remains of the past.

The world’s largest castle comes from Poland

The Malbork castle is the mightiest fortress of medieval Europe. It is the largest brick castle in the world measured by land area. The immense castle was begun in the 13th century and built by the Teutonic Knights in stages. During the next century, when Malbork became the capital of the Order’s state, the fortress was expanded considerably by the addition of the Great Refectory and the Grand Master’s Palace.

UNESCO designated the “Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork” and the Malbork Castle Museum as World Heritage Site in December 1997. It is one of two World Heritage Sites in the region with origins in the Teutonic Order. The other is the “Medieval Town of Toruń”, founded in 1231 as the site of the castle Thorn.

Fine example of a medieval brick castle

The castle was built by the Teutonic Order after the conquest of Old Prussia. Its main purpose was to strengthen their own control of the area following the Order’s 1274 suppression of the Great Prussian Uprising of the Baltic tribes. No contemporary documents relating to its construction survived from early Poland, so instead the castle’s phases have been worked out through the study of architecture and the Order’s administrative records and later histories. The work lasted until around 1300, under the auspices of Commander Heinrich von Wilnowe.

This 13th-century fortified monastery belonging to the Teutonic Order was substantially enlarged and embellished after 1309, when the seat of the Grand Master moved here from Venice. A particularly fine example of a medieval brick castle fell into decay, but it was meticulously restored in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Under the pretext of converting old Prussians to Christianity

Teutonic knights’ heritage is mixed, both negative and positive. In the eyes of Poles Teutonic knights were seen negatively. The Polish people believed they were cruel fighters dressed in white coats with black crosses and to many of them they were just the symbols of war and destruction. The Teutonic knights basically eradicated old Prussians, the Baltic people, under the pretext of converting them to Christianity. Nevertheless, the name “Prussia” was not forgotten since it was accepted as a name of the 19th century Prussian empire.

The strict Teutonic rule did not allow Teutonic travelers to spend the night outside of the castle

Teutonic knights brought not only the disaster but also the technological progress. They built the network of 120 castles during 200 years of their reign. The castles are situated one from the other not further than 30 km away which was one day of the horse ride, since the strict Teutonic rule did not allow Teutonic travelers to spend the night outside of the castle. The tight network of castles also simplified the communication between the knights in different castles. The knights could send light signals between the castles in the case of danger. Building so many castles is quite an achievement of these medieval times, more than one new castle during 2 years. It is also the reflection of the order power and engineering art.

Many of the conservation techniques now accepted as standard were evolved in the Castle of Teutonic Order in Malbork

The Malbork Castle is the most complete and elaborate example of the Gothic brick castle complex in the characteristic and unique style of the Teutonic Order, which evolved independently from the contemporary castles of western Europe and the Near East. The spectacular fortress represents the phenomenon of the monastic state in Prussia, founded in the 13th century and developed in the 14th century by the German communities of military monks who carried out crusades against the pagan Prussians on the south Baltic coast. The fortified monastery on the River Nogat represents the drama of Christianity in the late Middle Ages, stretched between extremes of sanctity and violence.

The castle was expanded several times to house the growing number of Knights. Soon, it became the largest fortified Gothic building in Europe, on a nearly 21-hectare (52-acre) site. The castle has several subdivisions and numerous layers of defensive walls. It consists of three separate castles: the High, Middle and Lower Castles, separated by multiple dry moats and towers. The castle once housed approximately 3,000 “brothers in arms”.

The outermost castle walls enclose 21 ha (52 acres), four times the enclosed area of Windsor Castle

The Castle is an architectural work of unique character. Many of the methods used by its builders in handling technical and artistic problems greatly influenced not only subsequent castles of the Teutonic Order but also other Gothic buildings in a wide region of north-eastern Europe. The castle also provides perfect evidence of the evolution of modern philosophy and practice in the field of restoration and conservation. It is a historic monument to conservation itself, both in its social aspect and as a scientific and artistic discipline.

History of more than 800 years

The Teutonic Order or in its full name the Order of the Teutonic Knights of St. Mary’s Hospital in Jerusalem looks back on a long and eventful history of more than 800 years. Formally established as hospital brotherhood near the seaport Acre in the Holy Land in 1190, during the third crusade. In the prologue of the Order’s Book it reads: “Real knighthood does not only know the time-bound form of swordplay, which has passed; the actual composure of chivalrous men is rather expressed in their commitment for the Lord’s kingdom, for protecting the defenceless, for helping the maltreated, those beset, the condemned and those in need.” It is the pronounced goal of the Knights, Brothers and Sisters of the German Order to jointly implement this composure, abiding by the Order’s motto “Helping and Healing”.

About 1128 a wealthy German, having participated in the siege and capture of Jerusalem, settled there, and soon began to show pity for his unfortunate countrymen among the pilgrims who came, receiving some of them into his own house to be cared for. When the work became too demanding for him there, he built a hospital, in which he devoted himself to nursing sick pilgrims, to whose support he likewise gave all his wealth. Still the task outgrew the means at his command, and in order to increase his charity he began to solicit alms. While he took care of the men, his wife performed a like service for poor women pilgrims. Soon they were joined by many of their wealthier countrymen who had come to fight for the Holy Land. Presently they “banded themselves together, after the pattern of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, and united the care of the sick and poor with the profession of arms in their defence, under the title of Hospitalers of the Blessed Virgin.” These Teutonic Hospitalers continued their work, in hospital and field, until the capture of Jerusalem by Saladin in 1187, and the conqueror, in recognition of their benevolent services, consented that some of them should remain there and continue their work. Out of these lowly beginnings grew one of the most powerful and widespread of the military religious orders. It was during the siege of Acre, 1189-1191, that the Teutonic Order received its final and complete organization as one of the great military religious orders of Europe.

A monopoly on the trade of amber

The favourable position of the castle on the river Nogat allowed easy access by barges and trading ships arriving from the Vistula and the Baltic Sea. During their governance, the Teutonic Knights collected river tolls from passing ships, as did other castles along the rivers. They controlled a monopoly on the trade of amber. When the city became a member of the Hanseatic League, many Hanseatic meetings were held there.

Teutonic support for one of the sides in the internal power struggle

In 1230, the Teutonic Knights, a crusading military order, moved to the Kulmerland (today within the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship) and, upon the request of Konrad I, king of the Masovian Slavs, launched the Prussian Crusade against the pagan Prussian clans. With support from the Pope and Holy Roman Emperor, the Teutons conquered and converted the Prussians by the 1280s and shifted their attention to the pagan Grand Duchy of Lithuania. For about a hundred years the Knights fought the Lithuanian Crusade raiding the Lithuanian lands, particularly Samogitia (Żmudź) as it separated the Knights in Prussia from their branch in Livonia (once the land of the Finnic Livonians inhabiting the principal ancient Livonian County Metsepole, nowadays the Republic of Estonia). The border regions became uninhabited wilderness, but the Knights gained very little territory. The Lithuanians first gave up Samogitia during the Lithuanian Civil War (1381–84) in the Treaty of Dubysa (consisted of three legal acts formulated on 31 October 1382 between Jogaila, Grand Duke of Lithuania, with his brother Skirgaila and Konrad von Wallenrode, Marshal of the Teutonic Order). The territory was used as a bargaining chip to ensure Teutonic support for one of the sides in the internal power struggle.

In 1385, Grand Duke Jogaila of Lithuania (Władysław II Jagiełło) proposed to marry reigning Queen Jadwiga of Poland in the Union of Krewo (the union was a decisive moment in the histories of Poland and Lithuania; it marked a beginning of the four centuries of shared history between two nations). Jogaila converted to Christianity and was crowned as the King of Poland thus creating a personal union between the Kingdom of Poland and Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The official Lithuanian conversion to Christianity removed the religious rationale for the Order’s activities in the area. However the Knights responded by publicly contesting the sincerity of Jogaila’s conversion, bringing the charge to a papal court. The territorial disputes continued over Samogitia, which was in Teutonic hands since the Peace of Raciąż of 1404. Poland also had territorial claims against the Knights in Dobrzyń Land and Danzig (Gdańsk), but the two states were largely at peace since the Treaty of Kalisz (1343). The conflict was also motivated by trade considerations: the Knights controlled lower reaches of three largest rivers (Neman/Niemen, Vistula/Wisła and Daugava/Dźwina) in Poland and Lithuania.

Polish-Lithuanian-Teutonic War

The Order lost its main purpose in Europe with the Christianisation of Lithuania. The Order got involved in campaigns against its Christian neighbours, the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the Novgorod Republic (after assimilating the Livonian Order). The Teutonic Knights had a strong economic base, hired mercenaries from throughout Europe to augment their feudal levies, and became a naval power in the Baltic Sea.

In May 1409 an uprising in Teutonic-held Samogitia began. Lithuania supported it and the knights threatened to invade. Poland announced its support for the Lithuanian cause and threatened to invade Prussia in return. As Prussian troops evacuated Samogitia, Teutonic Grand Master Ulrich von Jungingen declared war on the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania on 6 August 1409. The Knights hoped to defeat Poland and Lithuania separately, and began by invading Greater Poland and Kuyavia, catching the Poles by surprise. The Knights burned the castle at Dobrin (Dobrzyń nad Wisłą), captured Bobrowniki after a 14-day siege, conquered Bromberg (Bydgoszcz) and sacked several towns. The Poles organized counterattacks and recaptured Bydgoszcz. The Samogitians attacked Memel (Klaipėda). However, neither side was ready for a full-scale war.

Wenceslaus, King of the Romans, agreed to mediate the dispute. A truce was signed on 8 October 1409 and was set to expire on 24 June 1410. Both sides used this time to prepare for war, gathering troops and engaging in diplomatic maneuvering. Both sides sent letters and envoys accusing each other of various wrongdoings and threats to Christendom. Wenceslaus, who received a gift of 60,000 florins from the knights, declared that Samogitia rightfully belonged to the knights and only Dobrzyń Land should be returned to Poland. The knights also paid 300,000 ducats to Sigismund of Hungary, who had ambitions regarding the Principality of Moldavia, for mutual military assistance. Sigismund attempted to break the Polish–Lithuanian alliance by offering Vytautas the Great (Witold Kiejstutowicz, Wielki Książę Litewski) a king’s crown. Vytautas’s acceptance would have violated the terms of the Ostrów Agreement and created Polish-Lithuanian discord. At the same time, Vytautas managed to obtain a truce from the Livonian Order.

In 1410, a Polish-Lithuanian army decisively defeated the Order and broke its military power

By December 1409 Władysław II Jagiełło and Vytautas (Witold) had agreed on a common strategy: Their armies would unite into a single massive force and march together towards Marienburg (Malbork), capital of the Teutonic Knights. The Knights, who took a defensive position, did not expect a joint attack and were preparing for a dual invasion by the Poles along the Vistula River towards Danzig (Gdańsk) and the Lithuanians along the Neman River towards Ragnit (Neman/Nieman). To counter this perceived threat, Ulrich von Jungingen concentrated his forces in Schwetz (Świecie), a central location from where troops could respond to an invasion from any direction rather quickly. Sizable garrisons were left in the eastern castles of Ragnit, Rhein (Ryn – a town in Poland) near Lötzen (Giżycko – a town in northeastern Poland), and Memel (Klaipėda – a city in Lithuania on the Baltic Sea coast). To keep their plans secret and mislead the knights, Władysław II Jagiełło and Vytautas organised several raids into border territories, thus forcing the knights to keep their troops in place.

In 1410, a Polish-Lithuanian army decisively defeated the Order and broke its military power at the Battle of Grunwald (Tannenberg). In 1515, Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I made a marriage alliance with Sigismund I (Zygmunt I Stary) of Poland-Lithuania. Thereafter the Empire did not support the Order against Poland. In 1525, Grand Master Albert of Brandenburg resigned and converted to Lutheranism, becoming Duke of Prussia. Estonia and Livonia soon followed, and also the Order’s holdings in Protestant areas of Germany.

The major objects of European fascination with medieval history

Over a span of 200 years, since the 18th Century, the Malbork Castle has remained one of the major objects of European fascination with medieval history and its material remains. It also became a sign of the tendency to treat history and its monuments as instruments in the service of political ideologies.

From the 19th century onwards Malbork Castle has been the subject of restoration that contributed in an exceptional way to the development of research and conservation theory and practice. At the same time many forgotten medieval art and craft techniques were rediscovered. Extensive conservation works were carried out in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Following the severe damage that it incurred in the final stage of World War II, the castle was restored once again, using the detailed documentation prepared by earlier conservators.

Unforgettable memories

Today you can admire the castle in different light. If you ever get to Malbork, take a night tour. The exceptional journey through Malbork Castle, where the magic of illuminated medieval walls will surely leave unforgettable memories. Accompanied by a guide in a Teutonic Knight outfit you will visit: courtyards, terraces, cloisters as well as the chosen castle interiors. It`s really worth visiting.

Photos: Michał Stanisławski, Asia Rumińska

The text was previously published at http://www.communications-unlimited.nl/the-worlds-largest-castle-comes-from-poland/

 

Malbork and activities for kids

Kraków, a city where tradition meets modernity in full harmony…

… where the care for centuries-old heritage is accompanied by the development of modern technologies, and where the creative invention of people living and working here, the manifold opportunities for spending free time and Kraków’s genius loci cause that it is a city for good living and work.

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Kraków next to such monuments as Egyptian pyramids and the Great Wall of China

The Wieliczka Salt Mine, Auschwitz, Calvary Sanctuary in Kalwaria Zebrzydowska, Wooden Churches of Małopolska and Kraków Old Town Historical District has been listed by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) as the world heritage sites.

One of those sites is located at the heart of early country`s capital. Poland’s prime tourist attraction, Kraków boasts numerous landmarks. Its historic area’s grid of streets with the huge central Grand Square.

Europe’s largest in the Middle Ages…

… dates from 1257 and seems the last stage in the perfection of medieval city planning. It is also the best example of that art.

Kraków’s main market square (Rynek) serves as the city’s gravitational centre, and is the natural start and finish point for any tour of the city. Originally designed in 1257 – the year Kraków was awarded its charter – the grid-like layout of the Old Town and its central square has changed little in the years that have followed. Measuring 200 metres square, the Rynek ranks as one of the largest medieval squares in Europe, and is surrounded by elegant townhouses, all with their own unique names, histories and curiosities. Through the centuries it was in Kraków’s Rynek that homage to the king was sworn and public executions held. Most famously it was here that …

… Tadeusz Kościuszko roused the locals to revolt against foreign rule.

On March 24th 1794, a veteran of the American Revolutionary War, announced the general uprising and assumed the powers of the Commander in Chief of all of the Polish forces. He also vowed

not to use these powers to oppress any person, but to defend the integrity of the borders of Poland, regain the independence of the nation, and to strengthen universal liberties.

In order to strengthen the Polish forces, Kościuszko issued an act of mobilisation, requiring that every 5 houses in Lesser Poland delegate at least one able male soldier equipped with carbine, pike, or an axe. Kościuszko’s Commission for Order in Kraków recruited all males between 18 and 28 years of age and passed an income tax. The difficulties with providing enough armament for the mobilised troops made Kościuszko form large units composed of peasants armed with scythes, called the “scythemen”.

The Rynek has always been the natural stage for public celebrations…

… with everything from parades of sausage dogs to Christmas crib competitions taking place. Not all the events have had been happy affairs however, and back in the 17th century King John Sobieski III (Jan III Sobieski) was privy to a firework display which ended in bloodshed when some of the explosives were accidentally fired into the crowd.

The center of the square is dominated by the Cloth Hall (Sukiennice). Built in the 14th century this huge hall was effectively …

… the first shopping mall in the world.

Rebuilt in 1555 in the Renaissance style, topped by a beautiful attic or Polish parapet decorated with carved masks. On one side of the cloth hall is the Town Hall Tower (Wieża ratuszowa), on the other the 10th century Church of St. Adalbert and 1898 Adam Mickiewicz Monument. Rising above the square are the Gothic towers of St. Mary’s Basilica (Kościół Mariacki). Kraków Main Square does not have a town hall, because it has not survived to the present day.

More recently the market square was subjected to a Nazi rally attended by Der Führer himself when the square’s name was changed to ‘Adolf Hitler Platz’ during German occupation. Fortunately the moniker didn’t last long and today the Rynek occupies itself by hosting annual Christmas and Easter markets, as well as numerous festivals and outdoor concerts.

To this day it is still crammed with merchant stalls selling amber, lace, woodwork and assorted tourist tat.

Kraków is also one of the oldest cities in Poland, archaeological evidence proves that …

… there were settlements in the Kraków area as early as the Palaeolithic period…

with stone tools found on Wawel Hill dating back to 50,000BC. Archaeological excavations prove that Wawel Hill was inhabited as early as the Old Stone Age. It was supposedly formed about 150 million years ago at the time of forming Earth. Legend attributes the city’s founding to Krakus, the mythical ruler who vanquished the Wawel Dragon (Smok Wawelski) and built it above a cave occupied by dreadful lizard. The Mounds of Krakus and Wanda, another legendary ruler, probably come from the 7th century. However, historians date the settlement of Kraków’s Old Town slightly later in the 8th century, crediting it to a tribe of pagan Slavs known as the Vistulans.

In the pre-Piast period two dates related to the history of the City appear. Between 876 and 879 the Great Moravian Prince Svatopluk captured the future Lesser Poland, and after 955 Prince Boleslav the Cruel, brother of St. Wenceslas, introduced the Czech rule.

The first documented reference to Kraków can be found in records from 965 of the Cordova merchant Abraham ben Jacob. He mentioned a rich burg city situated at the crossing of trade routes and surrounded by woods. By 966, the date of the Christianisation of Poland, Kraków had already grown into a busy commercial centre, thanks in part to the amber trade. It was incorporated into the principality of the Piast dynasty in the 990s, thus creating the Kingdom of Poland although it is difficult to verify whether it took place during the reign of Mieszko I in 990 or Boleslav the Brave in 999.

Princess Wanda was the daughter of Krakus, mentioned legendary founder of Kraków. Upon her father’s death, she became queen of the Poles, but committed suicide to avoid an unwanted marriage. And the legend says that …

… once upon a time …

… there was a good, old king Krak who ruled the city of Cracow and the lands around it. He was very popular among his subjects, as a man of honour and kind, loving heart.

His wife had long been dead and he had no son who would take the throne after his death, but he had a beautiful and brave daughter called Wanda. She was in love with a young prince, who ruled the lands close to the Baltic Sea. Even though they were often separated by the long miles of thick forests, the two happy people did not despair and kept making plans for the future together.

Unfortunately, the time finally came when the old king died. The nobles of Cracow started thinking how to ensure the safety and stability of the land. They thought that the best way would be to marry the princess off to some brave knight who could protect the land and its people.

They sent their messengers to all neighbouring kingdoms and soon a mighty knight from a fighters’ tribe, very hostile towards Wanda’s nation, came to the Cracow castle and demanded Wanda’s hand in marriage. Wanda, scared of the knight’s brutality, refused, especially that she was still hopeful to hear from her seaside prince.

The knight, however, was not so easily discouraged. “I will now go back to my land”, he said, “but I will be back soon, with my numerous, well trained and well armed hosts. If you do not agree to have me as your husband, we will destroy your country with swords and fire and slay all your subjects. The choice is yours.” With these words, the knight left. Poor Wanda had never felt so lonely and helpless in her life before. Her prince gave no sign of life and day by day people came to her castle, begging her to marry the cruel knight and save her land. She knew, however, that under such a rule, her people would never again feel safe and free.

Finally, the day came when the knight and his army were approaching Cracow. Wanda knew that her prince would not come in time to protect her and her land. She knew she had to save her people without anybody’s help. She put on her most beautiful dress and picked up some flowers. She went to the top of the Wawel Hill and looked around to admire her lands for the last time. “If I cannot marry the man my heart has chosen then I shall marry no one,” she said with a sad smile. “And I will never give anyone a reason to attack my country and hurt my people. If this is my destiny, let it be so.”

With these words she plunged down the cliff, straight to the Wisla River.

Source: „Once upon a time in Poland” Polka NZ Ltd

Early capital of Poland

The city developed rapidly, acquiring its own bishopric in 1000, and in 1038 Kraków became the capital of Poland, with Wawel Royal Castle becoming the residence of Polish kings. The 13th century was marked by incessant Mongol invasions, the first occurring in 1241 when the city was almost entirely destroyed, but it was dutifully rebuilt. The high duke Bolesław V the Chaste following the example of Wrocław, introduced city rights modelled on the Magdeburg law allowing for tax benefits and new trade privileges for the citizens in 1257. Two years later, the city was ravaged again and one more time in 1287. Following this last embarrassment, Kraków was surrounded by 3 kilometres of defensive walls, towers and gates which would be modernised over the next few centuries. The third attack in 1287 was repelled thanks in part to the new built fortifications.

Kraków particularly flourished under the rule of Kazimierz the Great (Kazimierz Wielki 1333-1370), who expanded Wawel Castle and established two new cities – Kleparz and Kazimierz – which were closely connected with and would later be incorporated into Kraków. The defensive walls were erected around the central section of Kazimierz in 1362, and a plot was set aside for the Augustinian order next to Skałka.

A huge patron of the arts and sciences, in 1364 King Kazimierz founded the Kraków Academy, now known as Jagiellonian University – one of the oldest institutions of higher learning in Europe.

Wawel

The accession to the throne in 1385 of Jadwiga from the Hungarian dynasty of Andegavens, and her marriage to a Lithuanian prince Ladislas Jagiello (1386-1434) started another era of prosperity for Wawel. The royal court employed local and western European artists and also Rus painters. During the reign of Casimir Jagiellon (Kazimierz IV Jagiellończyk 1447-1492) the silhouette of the hill was enriched by three high brick towers: the Thieves’ Tower, the Sandomierz Tower and the Senatorial Tower. The first humanists in Poland and tutors to the king’s sons: historian Jan Długosz and an Italian by the name Filippo Buonacorsi (also known as Callimachus) worked there at that time.

Until 1611, the Wawel was the formal seat of the Polish monarchy; this was because Kraków was the capital of Poland from 1038 to 1569 and of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth from 1569 to 1596. Later, it became the Free City of Kraków from 1815 to 1846; the Grand Duchy of Cracow from 1846 to 1918; and Kraków Voivodeship from the 14th century to 1999. It is now the capital of the Lesser Poland Voivodeship. Therefore, the fortress-like Wawel complex which visually dominates the city has often been viewed as seat of power. Wawel Cathedral was not only a place of coronation for the Kings of Poland, but also their mausoleum. Later, it became a national pantheon.

During the 20th century, the Wawel was the residence of the President of Poland. After the invasion of Poland at the start of WWII, Kraków became the seat of Germany’s General Government, and the Wawel subsequently became the residence of the Nazi Governor General Hans Frank. Following the cessation of hostilities, the Wawel was restored and once again become a national museum, a place of worship and centre depicting Poland’s complex history.

The legend of The Wawel Dragon

The oldest known telling of the story comes from the 13th century work of Bishop of Kraków and historian of Poland, Wincenty Kadłubek. According to his chronicle, the frightening monster appeared during the reign of King Krakus (lat. Gracchus). The dragon required weekly offerings of cattle, if not, the humans would have been devoured instead. Legend says that …

… in Poland, a long time ago, in a den at the foot of Wawel Hill, there lived a terrible dragon. None of the inhabitants of the city Krakow from the poorest beggar to His majesty King Krak didn’t know where it had come from and how it got there.

Everyone always trembled with fear. Always having the scary thought that the knigths guarding the dragon made their hair stand on end when they heard the monster roar. People said there was no weapon and no way that they were going to defeat the dragon.

As the days past the dragon made himself feel more at home living there which scared the villains even more.

One day King Krak told a poem to the people of Krakow:

He who once and for all puts this dragon

Shall recieve my sceptre and my royal crown,

So come and defeat this most horrid beast

And win my daughters hand and a wedding feats.

After that many brave and valient knights made their way from different countries to reach Poland to defeat the dragon.

Swords and arrows shattered on its scaly body as if on a shield. But nobody was able to kill this dragon or even drive it away. Time passed, the dragon laid waste to the grounds of Krakow. Fewer knights came every day. More people cam to desert the town, until one day a young man, a shoemaker known to no one, knocked on the gates of the town. He bore no arms and wore no amour. Some twine, a needle,and sharp mind were his only weapons. The guards wouldn’t let him in unless he immediately went to see the king.

King Krak had heard what the boy was saying and decided to put some trust in him so he could have a go. The boy said that he would need: lambskin, some sulphur and mustard seed. The king nodded his acceptance to him.

All night long the shoemaker spent hard working on his plan. Local residents would peer through the window staring at his work. He took the lambskin, filled it with sulpher, pitch and mustard seed, and skillfully sewed up the hole of the lambs belly.

Everyone was now wondering what the morning would bring.

At sunrise the shoemaker set off to see the dragon with his bag of his ideal plan.There he laid his bait and quickly hid in the nearby bushes waiting to see what was going to happen.

The dragon awoke. The dragon knew he was hungry so he walked a bit for food. Suddenly the dragon saw a dead lamb (as it looked to him), looked at it and greedily jumped down to eat it and swallowed it whole with his jaws.

The dragon suddenly went “BANG!” and exploded. Exactly what the shoemaker had planned.

The villagers went silent. Then the sudden cheer began. All the knights ran to the bottom of the hill. The dragon was dead. But one thing was not. The river Wistula had been gulped up.

Source: http://myths.e2bn.org/

Legend of the Wawel dragon has similarities with the biblical story about Daniel and the Babylonian dragon. Same stories are known about Alexander the Great (Aleksander Wielki) but it is believed that the story has its own pre-Christian origins. In addition to attempts of explaining the legend of the Wawel Dragon simply as a symbol of evil, there might be some echoes of historical events. According to some historians, the dragon is a symbol of the presence of the Avars on Wawel Hill in the second half of the sixth century, and the victims devoured by the beast symbolise the tribute pulled by them. There are also attempts to interpret the story as a reminiscence of human sacrifices and part of an older, unknown myth.

One of the oldest university in Europe

Kraków rose to prominence in 1364, when Casimir III of Poland (Kazimierz III) founded the University of Kraków, the second oldest university in central Europe after the Charles University in Prague. King Casimir also began work on a campus for the Academy in Kazimierz, but he died in 1370 and the campus was never completed. The Kraków University is now the oldest higher education institution in Poland and one of the oldest in Europe.

The Studium Generale – as the University was then called – comprised three faculties: of liberal arts, medicine and law. Only the former two were active during the founder’s life. After the king’s death, the University ceased to exist.

Following the failed attempts to restore it in the 1390s, the University was re-founded by King Vladislaus Jagiełło (Władysław Jagiełło) on July 26th 1400. Queen Jadwiga, who died in 1399, contributed to the restoration by leaving a considerable portion of her private estate to the University in her last will. The University’s structure was already complete in 1397, with the formal establishment of the faculty of theology. The oldest, main college was at first called the Royal Jagiellonian College (Collegium Regium), and then the Greater College (Collegium Maius). The University, located in the then capital of the Kingdom of Poland, never again interrupted its educational and scholarly activity. Not only does it constitute a symbol of continuity of the Polish state, but also places Kraków among the most important educational centres both in the country and the world.

During the 15th century, the University flourished. It attracted learners from all of Europe – every year, some 200 new students enroled. Aside from Poles, the University was also attended by Ruthenians, Lithuanians, Hungarians, Germans, Czechs, the Swiss, the English, the Dutch, the French, the Spanish, Italians, and even Tartars. It was known for providing education in the fields of law, mathematics and astronomy. Among the professors of this age there were two brilliant lawyers – Stanisław of Skarbimierz and Paweł Włodkowic (Paulus Vladimiri) – as well as great mathematicians, astronomers and geographers: Marcin Król of Żurawica, Jan of Głogów, Wojciech of Brudzewo, Maciej of Miechów. The world famous astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus enroled as a student in 1491.

Poland among the ten most visited countries in the world

[i]According to Lonely Planet my country is one of the top ten visited world countries with over 16 million foreign visitors each year. To show you how much popular is Kraków I would say that over 7 million tourists visit the city every year. It makes nearly half of Polish income from the tourism.

The city’s magic consists of the unique complex of architecture, art and culture (more than 25% of the resources of the Polish works of art is gathered in Kraków). Thanks to this heritage the city was honoured with the title of the European Capital of Culture in 2000. Today Kraków, the former capital of Poland, is one of the most important cultural and tourist centres of the country, and the seat to many cultural institutions, theatres, cinemas, museums and philharmonic that make life pleasant for the inhabitants and tourists. Nowhere in Poland could one find such a rich variety of cultural and artistic events: every year Kraków is host to over 40 festivals like the International Jewish Culture Festival, the Print Triennial, the Sacrum Profanum Festival and the International Short Film Festival. Every year the city hosts over 2,500 performances and concerts. Last July World Youth Days took place there. Kraków is a special place that, like a magnet, attracts the people of culture and art who draw their inspiration from the atmosphere and rich past of the city. It became home, for example, to Wisława Szymborska, poet and Nobel Prize Winner, Sławomir Mrożek, writer, Krzysztof Penderecki, composer, Andrzej Wajda, film director, Jerzy Nowosielski, painter, drawer and stage designer, and many other well-known and valued artists.

***

If you want to feel genius loci, visit world heritage sites, learn the history and just enjoy yourselves, go to Kraków and you will not regret.

See you there!

  

[i] http://www.radiozet.pl/Rozrywka/O-tym-sie-mowi/Wakacje-2016-Polska-w-czolowce-listy-TOP-10-krajow-Lonely-Planet-00013508

Photos: Michał Stanisławski

The text was published at http://www.communications-unlimited.nl/krakow-a-city-where-tradition-meets-modernity-in-full-harmony/

Polecam tekst o Bożym Narodzeniu w Polsce, który powstał z myślą o obcokrajowcach, ale i tak go polecam. Wesołych Świąt!

http://www.communications-unlimited.nl/immerse-yourselves-into-polish-xmas/

Immerse yourselves into Polish Xmas

If you didn't try Polish Xmas, you should do it. Come to Poland, wait until the first star comes, share Christmas wafer with the others, have 12 Christmas Eve dishes and be lucky for next 12 months. Get Christmas gitfs several hours earlier than at your place, go to the Church for late night mass and immerse yourself into Polish Xmas and its special atmosphere. Merry Christmas to everyone! 

http://www.communications-unlimited.nl/immerse-yourselves-into-polish-xmas/