The Wawel Royal Castle of Krakow!

Posted in Europe, France

Ok so going into new territory, just a few years ago I had the opportunity to travel to the old Eastern Europe countries, and finally got to Poland. It was a nice experience that took me in two trips. I like to update this older post on a wonderful monument of Krakow; therefore,let me tell you a bit on the Wawel Royal Castle of Krakow!. This is a must to see, but after going around so excited seeing the different venues and night spots, I ran out of time!! Walked right by it and no time to go inside. This will definitively have to change eventually!  Nevertheless, hope you enjoy the introduction as I.

krakow-wawel castle-visiting-entrance-may17

The historic city is of Krakow is located at the foot of the Wawel Hill. The city was before Warsaw, the capital of Poland and is often considered the true center of the country with its traditions and over 1 000 years old history. It is the cultural and scientific center of the country Karol Wojtyła was Bishop and then Archbishop of Krakow, before becoming Pope John Paul II in 1978, the first non-Italian pope for 455 years.

The main thing here is the Wawel Royal Castle. The castle is wonderful bordering the Vistula river or wisla. The castle was built at the behest of Casimiro III the Great, who reigned between 1333 and 1370, and consists of several structures located around a central courtyard. In the 14C it was rebuilt by Jogaila and Eduviges I. During his reign the tower called Hen’s Paw (Kurza Stopka) and the Danish tower were added. The Chamber of Eduviges and Jogaila, in which is the Szczerbiec sword, which was used in coronation ceremonies, is exhibited today and is another remainder of this period.   On the hill were built other structures that served as barracks for the numerous clerics, royal employees and craftsmen. In this period, defensive walls and towers were erected such as Jordanka, Lubranka, Sandomierska, Tęczyńska, Szlachecka, Złodziejska and Panieńska.

Krakow wawel castle belltower may17

The Wawel Royal Castle and Wawel Hill are the most important historical and cultural places in Poland. For centuries it was the residence of the kings of Poland and a symbol of the Polish state. It is currently one of the best art museum in the country. Founded in 1930, the museum comprises ten departments responsible for collections of paintings (including an important collection of Italian Renaissance paintings), engravings, sculptures, textiles (including the collection of tapestries by Sigismund II Augustus), Goldsmiths, weapons, armor, ceramics, Meissen porcelain and furniture. The museum’s Oriental Art collections include the largest collection of Ottoman tents in Europe. With seven specialized conservation studies, the museum is also an important center for the preservation of works of art.

krakow wawel castle arriving may17

The current castle comprises Romanesque fragments and important gothic elements. Its current aspect mainly dates from the period (1504-1535), from the reign of Alexander Jagiellon (1501-1506) and from Sigismund I the Elder (1506-1548). The Treasure of the Crown, located in the historical Gothic rooms that were used since the 15C for the storage of the insignia of the crown and the jewels of the crown, exhibits objects of incalculable value of the ancient treasure that survived the looting, among them the memories of the kings of Poland, like the hat and the sword that the Pope gave to John III Sobieski after the Battle of Vienna or the crowning sword Szczerbiec.

Krakow wawel castle walls may17

A fragment of a column of Wawel Royal Castle has been incorporated into the skyscraper Tribune Tower of Chicago , IL USA. Located in a niche on the upper left corner of the main entrance, it is a visual tribute to the large Polish population in Chicago, the largest outside of Poland. And I used to live in a major second concentration in and around Perth Amboy, NJ with the ZBA or Polish Congress of America! 

The official Wawel Royal Castle of Krakow : https://wawel.krakow.pl/en

The Poland tourist board on the Wawel Royal Castle : https://www.poland.travel/en/discover/castles-palaces/wawel-royal-castle-in-krakow

There you go folks, something that must be seen, and will look forward to revisit more in depth eventually. In the meantime you can search for Krakow in my blog and see my previous posts. Hope you enjoy this post as I

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all!!!

Published by pedmar10

I am a lover of travels to Europe , Americas , Africa and Asia as well ,who like to share my experiences of the last 53 years with the world, visiting so far 81 countries; living in 6, working in 5, and Citizen of 4, speaking fluently 4 languages. I can deal with sports especially football/soccer and love music, arts, wine collector/drinker, and go out to restaurants, and just visit the world. My background comes all the way from Candelaria and Pajara in Tenerife, Spain where my grandparents came from ;not knowing each other then, to Punta Brava, west of Havana, Cuba. There , my parents born in Cuba met and later on I was born there too. 100% guanche (annexed Tenerife to Spain on April 10 ,1496). I left Cuba as many have to Madrid, Spain where I lived for 4 years. Then, move to Perth Amboy ,New Jersey USA (living there 13 yrs) ; where I completed high school, became a US Citizen, learned to drive a car, and learned English. Afterward, went to the university in Florida, ERAU, and upon graduation decided to moved there to Ormond by the Sea, near Daytona Beach, finally moving North Miami, then Hialeah, then another moved to Silver Lakes division in Miramar, Broward county, Florida; in Florida I lived a total of 18 years. Finally , moved to France in 2003 ,Versailles call me for its royalty, and working in Paris was great. It was time to seek frontiers again and moved to Brech near Auray, Morbihan in Brittany , and later move to not too far Pluvigner. Total so far in France has been 20 years, and counting. Moving average a home every 5.5 years hopefully this will be my last. Cheers All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means or stored in a retrieval system of any nature, without the written permission of the copyright holder, me. No part of this work may be modified, without the written permission of the holder, me.No part of this work may be exposed to public view in any form or by any means, without identifying the holder as the author, and with the before mentioned permission.

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