Wawel Castle

The Gothic Wawel Castle was built at the behest of Casimir III the Great and consists of a number of structures situated around the central courtyard. In the 14th century it was rebuilt by Jogaila and Jadwiga of Poland. Their reign saw the addition of the tower called the Hen’s Foot ("Kurza Stopka") and the "Danish" Tower. The Jadwiga and Jogaila Chamber, in which Szczerbiec, used in coronation ceremonies, is exhibited today, is another remnant of this period. Other structures were developed on the hill during that time as well to serve as quarters for the numerous clergy, royal clerks and craftsmen. Defensive walls and towers such as Jordanka, Lubranka, Sandomierska, Tęczyńska, Szlachecka, Złodziejska and Panieńska were erected in the same period.

People have lived on the Wawel Hill at the site of the Castle as early as fifty thousand years ago, in the Paleolithic Age. The settlement was apparently bustling with trade, assorted crafts and local farming. When more people begun to settle down on the Wawel Hill and when the trade became more efficient, the rulers of Poland took up their residence at the Hill as well.

During the early 16th century King Sigismund I the Old ("Zygmunt I" in Polish) and his wife, brought in the best native and foreign artists including Italian architects, sculptors, and German decorators, to refurbish the castle into a splendid Renaissance palace. It soon became a paragon of stately residence in Central and Eastern Europe and served widely as a model throughout the region.

The crises

In the fire of 1595 the northeast part of the castle burned down. The king Sigismund III Vasa decided to rebuild it, from which only the Senator Stairs and the fireplace in the Bird Room remain till today. In 1609 king Sigismund moved the capital to Warsaw, and tough times for Wawel began. Both the castle and other buildings were neglected despite the concerns of local governors. The Swedish invasion between 1655 – 1657 and in 1702, contributed to the further deterioration of the castle. The Hill was occupied by the Prussian Army in 1794. Royal Insignia were stolen and never retrieved (apart from the Szczerbiec). After the Third Partition of Poland (1795) Wawel, as an important defensive point, was modernised by Austrians with defensive walls. The interior of the castle was changed and some of the buildings pulled down. In the second part of the 19th century the Austrians redesigned the defensive walls making them a part of a stronghold. However, in 1905 the emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria gave an order for Austrian troops to leave Wawel. Restoration works began, with the discovery of the Rotunda of Virgin Mary as well as other relics of the past. The renovations of the Wawel Hill were financed by public subscriptions.

Return to independence

After World War I, the authorities of the newly independent Polish Second Republic decided that the Wawel Castle was to become a representative building of the Polish state and would be used by the Governor and later by the President himself. In 1921 the Polish Parliament passed a resolution which gave Wawel an official status of the residence of the President of Poland. Following the ravages of World War II, by the decree of the State National Council, the Wawel Castle became a national a museum.

Crown Treasury and Armory

The Crown Treasury situated in the historic Gothic rooms which were used from the 15th century on for storing the Polish coronation insignia and Crown Jewels, feature on display objects from the former Treasury that survived plunder, among them the memorabilia of Polish monarchs including members of their families and eminent personages, as well as the coronation sword Szczerbiec.

Gallery

Dosso Dossi
Renaissance inner courtyard

Museum exhibitions

* State Rooms
* Royal Private Apartments
* Exhibition "The Lost Wawel"
* Exhibition "Oriental Art"
* The Royal Gardens
* Dragon's Den

ee also

* Culture of Kraków
* Royal Castle in Warsaw

External links

* [http://www.wawel.krakow.pl/en Wawel Homepage]
* [http://www.wawel.krakow.pl/en/index.php?op=22,33 Jagiellonian Tapestries]
* [http://www.krakow4u.pl Krakow"] : unofficial website (photographs of Wawel Castle)
* [http://www.krakow.vel.pl/index.php?go=zabytki/wawel_en Cracow"] : the information and photographs of Wawel Castle
* [http://www.krakow-info.com/wawel.htm Comprehensive info about Wawel]