13th-century fortifications of Kraków

Abstract

The paper recapitulates the current state of knowledge about the fortifications of the three basic settlement units of 13th-century Kraków, namely Wawel, Okół, and the city established under Magdeburg Law. With respect to Wawel, written accounts have survived that clearly point to large-scale construction works on timber-and-earth defences of the stronghold undertaken in 1258 and 1265; these fortifications have partly been uncovered by archaeological research close to the southern edge of the hill. The northern section of the moat protecting the Kraków suburbium known as Okół (by the southern border of Wszystkich Świętych Square and Dominikańska Street) probably ceased to function in 1191 due to its destruction during the struggles among provincial dukes vying for control over Kraków. New archaeological investigations of the moat in the area between Poselska and Senacka Streets suggest that in the second half of the 13th century the area of Okół was constricted, with its northern boundary moved back to the line running between these two streets. The earliest planned attempt at fortifying the city of Kraków did not take place before 1285–1287, and it was undertaken on the initiative of Duke Leszek Czarny. It is worth emphasising that at the initial stage it was connected with incorporation of an older Dominican mill-race (mentioned before 1284) into the new system of defences. The construction of the full defensive perimeter in the form of timber-and-earth ramparts and moats must have been completed before the third Mongol invasion, which reached Kraków in the winter of 1287. The remains of a moat connected with the oldest fortifications of the city of Kraków, presumably created during the reign of Leszek Czarny on the northern side of the Church of St. Mark, were archaeologically identified on a parcel at 26 Sławkowska Street. The western line of a moat of the same age was confirmed in several places in the westernmost part of the University Quarter. The construction of Kraków city walls after 1298, during the reign of Wacław II and Władysław Łokietek, was connected with expanding the area of the city in virtually all directions beyond the line marked by older fortifications from the times of Leszek Czarny.