Historic Background Of Krakow

Krakow, one of the oldest cities in Poland, is traditionally believed to have been established some time in the 8th century. By the 12th  century, the town had become the capital of the Polish kingdom, and was an important commercial centre. Krakow’s enviable wealth attracted Tatar invaders, who invaded and sacked the city in 1241. Krakow was rebuilt and revived by the Germans, whose influence later led to Krakow’s joining the Hanseatic League.

Krakow’s increasing importance as a trading and industrial centre had an adverse effect on its political status: by the 17th century, Krakow had been attacked by the Swedes, and the Polish capital had been shifted to Warsaw. In 1794, however, Krakow once again shot into the limelight- a significant revolutionary movement was staged here, and the following year the city fell into the hands of invading Austrian troops.

In the early 19th century, Napoleon made Krakow a part of the duchy of Warsaw; after his defeat at Waterloo in1 815, the city was made the capital of the independent republic of  Krakow. In 1846, the republic- and the city itself- became part of Austria.

Krakow was an important battlefield during World War I- after which the city was incorporated into Poland- and was occupied during the Second World War by the Nazis. The Nazis deported millions of Jews to nearby Auschwitz, where mass executions were carried out till 1945, when the Soviet armies freed Krakow.

Since Poland’s emergence as a democratic republic in the early 1980s, Krakow has grown significantly; today, it’s the fourth largest city in the country and is a major cultural and commercial centre.