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The Krakow City Walls and The Florian Gate

In medieval times Krakow was surrounded by two tight rings of City Walls. Entering the Polish capital was possible only through one of the eight gates, which were closed from dusk until dawn, and their opening and closing was announced by the bugle call. The main gate was the Barbican, linked with the Florian Gate. Krakow was also surrounded by a moat that kept unwanted visitors out of the city.

History of the Krakow City Walls

The Krakow City Walls were built between late 13^th and early 14^th century, after the city was plundered by the Tartars in 1241. The inner wall was about 7 meters high and 2.5 metres thick, while the outer was about two meters high. Apart from the eight gates, Krakow had nearly forty towers, each of them defended by a different guild of craftsmen – and traditionally bearing their name.

From the 18^th century onwards, the City Walls caused more and more problems: the walls themselves were deteriorating, the dirty water in the moats smelled terribly, and the towers were occupied by all sorts of dregs of humanity, making the neighbourhood about as safe as Nowa Huta at night. At the beginning of the 19^th century Krakow's Senate decided to pull the Old City Walls down, get rid of the moat and plant a park around Cracow. Only thanks to Feliks Radwanski, a professor of the Jagiellonian University, also the architect of the Planty park, we can still see the remains of the City Walls. Though Krakow's authorities insisted on tearing down all of the walls, he convinced them to maintain some remenants. He claimed, that if the Barbican and the Florian Gate had been destroyed, winds from the north would cause terrible, cold drafts in the city. The townfolk's daughters would certainly suffer from the wind, and furthermore - on Sundays, when all of the Krakow burghers went to the Mariacki Church, the wind would raise the daughters' skirts and dresses and expose the religious folk to quite an indecent sight!

That's how the prudery of Krakow's inhabitants saved some priceless architecture. Of course, the most valuable piece of Cracow's fortifications is the Barbican, but the second place goes to Brama Florianska. The Florian Gate is now about 35 meters high, and its current looks are very different from what a medieval visitor could have seen. Built in the 13^th century along with the rest of the City Walls, the Florian Gate has a baroque helmet, inside it is a classicist altar, and on the side facing the Florianska Street there is a balcony with a Neogothic, openwork barrier.

Visiting the Cracow City Walls

In the Summer, the inside of the City Walls is occupied by dealers of kitsch copies of famous paintings, one of the favourites being Leonardo's Lady with an Ermine. If you want to see for yourselves, how good (or bad) the copies are, just compare them to the original at the nearby Czartoryski Museum. But rather than just look at the remains of the Old City Walls, it's much better to simply climb them: a ticket costs about 6 zloty, and it includes a visit inside the Krakow Barbican.