History of Kazimierz and the Kraków Jews

In 1335, King Casimir the Great (Kazimierz Wielki), signed the Great Charter of the Borough of Kazimierz, endowing it with the privileges of the Law of Magdeburg. This enterprise was not only of significant economic importance, but also of strategic importance as well. The new borough was to be more than just a trading partner for Kraków. Thanks to its hefty defences it was also, and in particular, to be a shield protecting the older borough from the south.

The area where Kazimierz was founded was not a wasteland, even though it was hardly a popular area for settlers due to the difficult natural conditions on the Vistula floodlands and marshes. A Romanesque rotunda church surrounded by a small settlement is known to have already existed na Skałce – on the rock – in the mid-11th century. Further south, in the vicinity of today’s ul. Skawińska, the Church of St James was built in the 12th century, to be destroyed towards the end of the 18th. The Parish Church of St Laurentius stood in the eastern part of Kazimierz, near the village of Bawół, and was first mentioned in 1198.

Today’s Wolnica Square is in fact the former Market Square of Kazimierz, though now quite curtailed. It was laid out with quite a panache soon after the borough received its charter. Its area was hardly any smaller than that of Kraków’s Main Square as it reached today’s ul. Augustiańska in the west, and ul. Skawińska and Dom Esterki (at ul. Krakowska 46) in the south. Only the eastern side and the northern side (extended in the past along today’s ul. Węgłowa) coincide with today’s Wolnica Square. The market square was crossed by the Salt Route running towards Wieliczka and Bochnia along the today’s ul. Krakowska.

Soon after the grant of the Charter, the construction of two gigantic churches began in Kazimierz. Corpus Christi and Saint Catherine’s might have been, although there is no convincing proof to support the claim, King Casimir the Great’s idea and might have been designed to act as collegiate churches for the newly established university.

A turning point in the history of both Kazimierz and Kraków’s Jewry was the decree of King John Albert (Jan Olbracht) ordering the Jews to leave Kraków (1495). For nearly two centuries up to this date, the Jewish community had continued to grow in strength and importance in the city. Members of the community were involved in trading, crafts, and banking, with the last profession gaining an increasing significance and – in the absence of competition – bringing the greatest profits. On the other hand, it did not win them instant liking, as at the time Christians treated bankers on a par with usurers. Initially, Jews settled around today’s ul. Św. Anny (at the time, known as ul. Żydowska, “Jewish Street”). Effectively being ordered to sell off their houses to the university that was about to be built (1469), Jews moved to the area surrounding Szczepański Square. Despite the favourable attitude of successive monarchs, an intense atmosphere began to surround Jews, especially in the 15th century which was rife with persecutions throughout Europe. When the blame for the great fire in the city in 1494 was laid at the door of the Jews, the King yielded to pressures and issued the decree already mentioned, earmarking the north eastern part of Kazimierz for those removed from the city.

At the time, Kazimierz was already inhabited by Jews, yet the inflow of richer and better organised newcomers from Kraków soon allowed the Jewish town to develop. Initially it filled the quarter limited by today’s ul. Józefa and ul. Bożego Ciała, and the defence wall of Kazimierz running along today’s ul. Miodowa and ul. Dajwór. Following the custom of the time, it was divided from the Christian city by its own, internal wall. The life of the Jews of Kazimierz was concentrated in that area for a number of centuries. They maintained their separate religion, customs, and culture. Jews built grand homes and synagogues, while the inflow of immigrants, especially from Bohemia and Moravia, forced the Jewish town to expand southwards to today’s ul Św. Wawrzyńca.

The Swedish invasion of 1655 and the occupation which followed, together with the third northern war (1704-1705) spelt havoc for Kazimierz. In the wake of the progressive destruction of buildings and the resultant demolitions, entire chunks of the urban fabric, for example the market square, ceased to be distinguishable. The only testimony to the former splendour of the town at the time was the lofty, though also ruined, town hall standing in the centre of the Market Square.

Overpopulated since its earliest days, the Jewish town long waited for the authorities to allow its citizens to settle outside its walls. It was only in 1818, already in the Free City of Kraków, that the Senate issued a statute on the basis of which Jews were allowed to trade and settle all over Kazimierz, a step made easier by the demolishing of the city walls in 1822. Once Galicia had obtained its autonomy in 1867, it passed an act granting Jews full political and religious rights.

The Jewish presence in Kazimierz and Kraków spanning many centuries was nearly terminated by the second world war, the occupation, and the programmed annihilation of the Jewish people. Of 58,000 Kraków Jews in 1939, only 3000 survived the war...

Listen more about Kaziemierz district.



The file is a part of the Kraków, the Magical City audioguide, available to download at www.guidebuy.pl or to rent in the InfoKraków tourist information offices.

You will find more audio files attached to the descriptions of: Floriańska, Szeroka, Kanonicza Streets, Main Square, the Wawel castle and cathedral, Schindler's Factory, as well as to the descriptions of Kraków's districts: Podgórze and Zwierzyniec.