History » Europe » Central Europe » Poland »

Poland

History & Architecture

History

Modern-day Poland has been both blessed and cursed by its location on a fertile plain, making the land a crossroads of trade, but also an easier path for invading and moving armies for centuries. It only began to form in its modern borders with the arrival of the Slavs in about the 400-700s. From this point until about 1000 the people were organized and governed by local rulers.

The country claims its birth with the crowning of Mieszko I in 966, which began the Piast Dynasty. He converted to Christianity and soon took over neighboring lands, reaching out from his home of Gniezno (near Poznan) to the northern coast and south to modern day Krakow and the Tatras Mountains. The kingdom quickly grew to about the size, and in the same region as the country is today; in the 1000s the capital was moved to Krakow.

After some years of turmoil and war in the north, Poland was thrust upon the European stage under the rule of Kazimierz the Great in the 1300s. Kazimierz worked with his neighbors in Bohemia and the Teutonic Knights, but also expanded the empire to the southeast where there was little resistance or organization. He also changed laws allowing the Jews to call Poland home and established one of the world's first universities in 1364, Uniwersytet Jagiellonski. In the late 1300s Polish royalty merged with the Lithuanians through marriage, which expanded their land, gave them an ally in their fight against the Teutonic Knights and, once defeating the knights, created the largest empire in Europe, but the height of this empire only lasted about 100 years.

The early 1500s brought in the Renaissance and, despite the smaller size of the kingdom, became one of Poland's most prosperous times. The country became a destination for scholars and businessmen and had more Jews within its boundaries than the rest of Europe combined by 1600. Also during this time, in 1569 the capital was moved to Warsaw, which marked the beginning of instability and decline, first signified by the Swedish invasion in 1655, then in the late 1700s the country was partitioned by their three neighbors, Russia, Prussia, and Austria. Each part of Poland progressed according to their occupier. The lands under the rule of the Austrians were free to trade and continue a fairly Polish lifestyle, while at the other extreme, the Russians forced the Russian language and repressive economic laws on their Polish territories.

World War I's eastern front was almost entirely fought on Polish soil as the war pitted the Russians against the Germans and Austrians, whose land met in what was formerly Poland. The Poles were recruited into armies and forced to fight, but it seems only the Poles in the Austrian-controlled region liked their occupier enough to actually fight for them. As the war came to a conclusion, Polish lobbyists in the U.S.A. convinced the winning allies to recreate a Polish state in 1918.

The interwar period consisted of trying to become politically and economically stable, but as this was still a distant reality, Poland found itself in between the Soviet Union and Germany, who were ready to invade. In 1939 Germany invaded Poland and World War II began. Poland found itself being "cleansed" of its people; both the Jews and the intellectuals who the Germans viewed as a threat. Nearly every Jew in Poland was killed in death camps and many more ethnic Poles were killed there as well, while the Soviets shipped still additional Poles to their Gulag, many of which is in addition to the losses on the battlefields, which in total cost the lives of six million people, or nearly 20% of Poland's population.

To celebrate the end of the war, Poland's boundaries were redrawn by the allies and they had a puppet communist government installed by the Soviets, so for the next 45 years fell under communist rule. Despite communism, the country in 1979 had a Pole, John Paul II elected Pope of the Roman Catholic church and hence received more communication with the west than any other eastern bloc country, however this didn't stop the protests or massacres.

In 1989 the round table talks began as Poland successfully gained semi-independent elections and the placement of non-communists in positions of power. These actions led to the fall of communism in Poland and contributed to the fall of communism throughout the eastern bloc with a weakening Soviet Union.

Since 1990 Poland has progressed rapidly and in 2004 joined the European Union, although it still has high unemployment and uneasy relations with some of their neighbors despite their movements towards European unity.

Architecture

Poland has an incredible amount of preserved architecture and an enviable variety of styles throughout history, particularly given the region was never the birthplace of any architectural movement. Although many of the Romanesque (and other) structures were destroyed by the Tatars, Swedish, and later, Nazi and Soviet invaders, there are still a large number of these early buildings still standing.

The best examples of Romanesque architecture in Poland are found in Krakow and include St. Andrew's Church (1079-1098) and St. Wojciech's Church (1000s). Moving into the Gothic style, Krakow again is home to perhaps the country's best example in St. Mary's Basilica (1200-1300s), although St. Mary's Church in Gdansk (1300-1400s) can also stake a claim for that title. In fact, much of Gdansk was built in the Gothic style, however most of the city was destroyed during World War II so what is seen today is primarily rebuilt. The town of Kazimierz Dolny is another great example of a Medieval town as this small town, for the most part, survived the war intact. The final Gothic structure worth mentioning is Malbork Castle (built by the Teutonic Knights in 1200-1400s; restored in the 1950-1960s), which is the world's largest brick castle and in a style that reflects its Teutonic German past.

Throughout Polish history, but peaking in the 1400s and 1500s, a large number of wooden churches were constructed in southern Poland, in the Tatras Mountains. Shockingly, many of these churches survive to the present. There are nearly 20 of these churches from the 1400s-1700s and they are generally found in mountain villages. One of the most impressive is St. Michael the Archangel Church (1400s), which is located in the tiny town of Debno (about 1,000 people).

Unlike much of northern Europe, Poland prospered during the Renaissance and the Zygmund Chapel (1519-1533) in Wawel Cathedral (Poland's Royal Castle and the kings' cathedral) in Krakow is often considered the best example of Renaissance art north of the Alps. During this same time, the royal castle of Wawel itself was restructured in the Renaissance style. Poznan's town hall was also constructed in the style as was the entire city of Zamosc, which was built as a defensive fortress by Italian architects.

The next significant style to arrive to Poland was the Baroque style, but as today's Poland includes lands that were historically Germany, the style vastly differs from the eastern to western part of the country. Branicki Palace (1600-1700s) in Bialystok and Aula Leopoldina (1600-1700s) in Wroclaw University are both in this style, but vastly differ. However, Wilanow Palace (late 1600s) just outside of Warsaw is perhaps the most impressive example of the style in Poland.

During this same time, traditional wooden architecture was continuous built, most strikingly in the form of churches. The most impressive of these churches from the 1600s (in addition to those in Poland's south) are in regions that were at the time part of Germany. Those include the Church of Peace in Jawor (1610–1688) and the Church of Peace in Swidnica (1600s), both in the Lutheran German style.

The late 1700s and 1800s saw the rise of the neo-Classical style and the most serene example from this time comes with the many palaces in Lazenki Park in Warsaw. This park was a private reserve for Poland's last kings and they built numerous small palaces in the style, however the park's natural beauty generally leaves a more lasting impression on the visitor.

With the Industrial Revolution in the late 1800s came new construction styles, techniques, and materials. One of the most impressive early buildings from this time was built in what was Germany at the time, in the Centennial Hall (1911-1913) in Wroclaw. This is essentially a monument to concrete construction today.

Few other notable structures have been built in the 1900s as communism demanded most construction be in the communist style. While many cities have communist bloc apartment buildings, Warsaw's Palace of Culture (1952-1955) and Krakow's Nowa Huta (1949-1950s) are both uniquely Polish examples of the communist style in Poland.

For modern architecture, Warsaw is the only location truly worthy of mention, however most of Warsaw was destroyed during World War II so what is seen today are primarily reconstructions from their past (such as their Old Town) and modern architecture.

For a more authentic and truly Polish representation of the country's architectural history, Krakow is the only option. Krakow's Old Town has buildings in every style, many of which are the best examples in the country. Plus, Wawel Cathedral contains mortuary chapels of the Polish kings and these spread over a time period of centuries, each being in the style of the time. There are few places in Europe that you can see such dramatic and ornate examples of each style within the same building.

● Poland ● Geography & Wildlife ● Food & Drinks ● Culture & Identity ●

This page was last updated: February, 2012