Architectural gems in the Market Square
The heart of Wrocław is the Market Square, one of the most beautiful and largest urban squares in Poland. As in centuries past, it is home to large banks, elegant stores and famous restaurants. Wrocław’s Market Square was built on the crossroads of important transport routes running from the Czech Republic in the south, to the north, and from Western Europe to the East. The wealth of Wrocław’s residents was built on international trade, and the city grew rich from the taxes flowing into its coffers. With over 20,000 residents in the 14th century, Wrocław was among the largest cities of Europe at the time. In 1387 it became a member of the Hanseatic league, the powerful union of northern German, Rheinland, Teutonic, Swedish and Polish towns, which monopolized northern European trade and became a political power. People come to Wrocław for more than just business. Kings, emperors and presidents have been guests at the Under the Golden Sun, Under the Seven Electors and Under the Blue Sun tenement houses located on the Market Square. They have received homage, held political negotiations and borrowed money from the city. Today their former residences are the most beautiful buildings in the Market Square, and the Town Hall is recognised as a gem of Gothic-Renaissance urban architecture. The Cathedral Bridges on the Oder Market Squar.
WROCŁAW – A CITY OF CULTURE AND HISTORY
Wrocław has all the assets of a tourist destination – great location, a mild climate, marvelous historic sites and hospitable residents. It lies in the middle of the Silesian Lowland, where the Oder River branches out to form 12 islands of varying size. Summers here are sunny, but not extremely hot, and winters are not very cold – the average temperature in the hottest month, July, is 17.8°C, and the coldest month, January, is -1.9°C. The most rainy days are in November, and the fewest are in September.
Wrocław – the Melting Pot of Nations
In Wrocław, artistic masterpieces of all times, decadent and cosmopolitan architecture and the spirit of a small town go hand in hand, right in the very centre of Europe. Meandering through the city, the River Oder is spanned by one hundred bridges and dotted with a dozen islands. One of them is known as Ostrów Tumski. The earliest foundations of Wrocłw were erected there over 1000 years ago. Throughout centuries, the city belonged to Bohemia, Austria, Hungary, Germany and Poland. Protestant, Roman- Catholic and Jewish cemeteries are evidence of the cities patched history. Wrocław is an important centre of higher learning and culture, a city teeming with youthful vigour and the home to many foreign visitors. The Old Town Market Square once was at the junction of old European trading routes. Its architecture reflects the patchwork of architectural styles from different epochs. The monumental Gothic Town Hall is now a busy cultural centre. The people of Wrocław know about the good life. The Market Square is lined with many excellent restaurants, including the highly reputed Świdnicka where beer always tastes better! Among many cultural events organised in Wrocław, the most highly acclaimed and internationally well-known is the Wratislavia Cantans International Oratorio & Cantata Festival. The Aula Leopoldinum at the Wrocław University, with its elaborate stucco works, sculptures, paintings and frescoes, is the most magnificent Baroque interior in the whole of the city. Wrocław’s most often visited attraction is the Racławice Panorama, a monumental canvas which is 15 m high, 114 m long and covers the area of 1,710 sq m. The painting shows a battle scene from the time of the 18th century Polish-Russian wars. Hung on the internal walls of the rotunda in the form of an unbroken circle, it encircles the viewers from all sides, effectively placing them in the very midst of the battle. A three-dimensional visual experience created almost one hundred years ago!
A MEETING WITH HISTORY
As befits a city with a 1,000-year-long history, Wrocław has countless excellently preserved historic buildings. Tourists usually start their sightseeing from the Market Square. Near the Market Square are two Gothic churches, St. Elizabeth’s Church – the old parish church and the burial site of Wrocław’s patron saint, and St. Mary Magdalene’s Church – which has one of the oldest and most beautiful Romanesque portals in Central Europe. It’s hard to overlook the Baroque seat of Wrocław University, and within it, the Leopoldine Hall, with its enchanting illusionist painting and rich stucco decoration, and University Church, with its wonderful frescoes. Two more essential tourist destinations are Piaskowa Island and Ostrów Tumski, an island that is home to a number of Gothic churches, including the breathtaking cathedral. Other must-sees in Wrocław include the Botanical Gardens, Ludowa Hall and Szczytnicki Park, which includes Poland’s only Japanese Garden – but this entails a longer trip to the city’s eastern neighborhoods. A stroll along Wrocław’s Planty, a green belt running along of Europe’s longest city moat (3,860 m), is also worthwhile.
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