Wawel

Wawel (Polish Wzgórze wawelskie) is the name of a lime hillock situated on the left bank of the Vistula in Kraków, Poland, at an altitude of 228 metres above sea level. This is a symbolic place of great significance for Polish people. The Royal Castle and the Cathedral are situated on the Hill. Polish Royalty and many distinguished Poles are interred in the Cathedral and royal coronations took place there.

Wawel Hill

There are archaeological remains indicating settlement from the 4th century.

Illustration of the Royal Castle on the Wawel Hill (16th century).

The history of the medieval Wawel is deeply intertwined with the historyof the Polish lands and Polish royal dynasties during the Middle Ages.The political and dynastic tensions that led to the final ascendence of Krakówas the royal seat are complex, but for most of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, Wawel was the seat of national government. As the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth formed and grew, Wawel became the seat of one of Europe's most important states. This status was only lost when the capital was moved to Warsaw in the 17th century. When Poland lost its political independence during the period of the partitions, Wawel became a symbol of the lost nation; demonstrationsand meetings combined contemporary political action with a claim forthe significance of the once-powerful state, taking on nationalist overtones.

The Wawel Hill in Kraków

The significance of the Wawel hill comes in part from its combination ofpolitical and religious structures and functions. The cathedral holds the relics of St. Stanisław and stands directly adjacent to the Royal Castle.The hill has long had a religious function; some of the oldest extant architectural remains are those of the Rotunda of the Virgin Mary, which may be visited today in a tour that takes the visitors into the walls and foundations of the present-day buildings.

Wawel Cathedral

The Zygmunt's Chapel, the tomb of the last Jagiellons and a pearl of the renaissance

The Wawel Cathedral is Poland's national sanctuary. With a 1000 year history, it was the coronation site of Polish monarchs.

The so-called Sigismund's Chapel (Kaplica Zygmuntowska) is one of the most notable pieces of architecture in Kraków. Built as a tomb chapel of the last Jagiellons, it was hailed by many historians of art as the most beautiful example of Toscan renaissance north of the Alps. Financed by king Sigismund I of Poland, the chapel was built between 1519 and 1533 by Bartolomeo Berrecci. A square-based chapel with a golden dome houses the tombs of its founder king Sigismund, as well as king Sigismund Augustus of Poland and Anna Jagiellonka. The design of the internal sculptures, stuccos and paintings was carried out by some of the most renowned artists of the epoch, including Santi Gucci, Hermann Vischer, and the architect himself, Georg Pencz.

Wawel Castle

The Wawel Castle (Zamek wawelski) served as a royal residence and the site where the country's rulers governed Poland for five centuries from 1038 until 1596.

The Wawel Dragon

Smok Wawelski, also known as The Dragon of Wawel Hill or simply The Wawel Dragon, is a famous dragon in Polish folklore. He laired in a cave under Wawel Hill on the banks of the Vistula river, although some legends place him in the Wawel mountains. In some stories the dragon lived before the founding of the city, when the area was inhabited by farmers.

The Wawel Cathedral features a statue of Smok Wawelski and a plaque commemorating his defeat by Krakus, a Polish prince who, according to the plaque, founded the city and his palace over the slain dragon's lair. The dragon's cave under the castle is now a popular tourist stop.

A popular version of Smok Wawelski's tale takes place in Kraków during the reign of King Krak, the city's legendary founder. Each day the evil dragon would beat a path of destruction across the countryside, killing the civilians, pillaging their homes and devouring their livestock. In many versions of this story, the dragon especially enjoyed eating young girls, and could only be appeased if the townfolk would leave a young girl in front of its cave once a month. The King certainly wanted to put a stop to the dragon, but his bravest knights fell to its fiery breath. In the versions involving the sacrifice of young girls, every girl in the city was eventually sacrificed except one, the King's daughter Wanda. In desperation, the King promised his beautiful daughter's hand in marriage to anybody who could defeat the dragon. Great warriors from near and far fought for the prize and failed. One day, a poor cobbler's apprentice named Szewczyk Dratewka accepted the challenge. He stuffed a lamb with sulphur and set it outside the dragon's cave. The dragon ate it and soon became incredibly thirsty. No amount of drinking could quell his stomachache, and after swelling up from drinking half of the Vistula river, he exploded. Dratewka married the King's daughter as promised and they lived happily ever after.

Royal Coronations in Wawel Cathedral

The majority of coronations of Polish kings took place in Wawel Cathedral. See Royal Coronations in Wawel Cathedral for complete list.

Wawel: Encyclopedia BETA