Wawel Castle area krakow

side chapel in cathedral, gorgeous  tombs

courtyard in castle area

courtyard detail

the three travelers

view of castle with ruins off to the right

lovely castle grounds, with great walls dating back many centuries

view of castle from street side

On the castle grounds artifacts going back to the 9th century have been found. Polish royals lived in the castle from the 11th to the 16th century. However, it was during the reign of Kazimierz the Great (1333-70) that the castle was truly born. A fire in 1499 destroyed much of this, yet also paved the way for Cracow's first taste of the Renaissance. The cathedral is the burial place for many of the Polish kings and queens as well as famous Poles. It has many different styles, renaissance, gothic, baroque etc. There is a burial crypt which we did not visit, nor did we visit the state rooms. we were at the end of a long day and felt the need to get home and have a nap!