The Trumpeter of Krakow

Probably the most famous legend associated with Krakow is also connected with a time honored tradition: from the taller tower of St. Mary's church a lone trumpeter plays a solemn melody every hour, on the hour, to commemorate a 13th century attack on the city when the then city trumpeter was struck down by an enemy arrow. Legend has it that during the 1241 Tartar invasion of Krakow a brave guard was stationed up in St. Mary's tower. He was there to look out for fires or invaders, so when he saw the Tartar army approaching he pulled out his trumpet to sound the warning that the city was under attack. Because St. Mary's tower has always been the tallest structure in the Old Town, the bell tower also functioned as a watch tower. But while the guard was playing his warning melody a Tartar archer took aim and let an arrow fly. And alas, the trumpeter was fatally struck in the throat and the melody was never finished... Today, a member of the local fire department is still always stationed up in the tower and plays melody in tribute to his fallen comrade from the 13th century.

Prince Krak and the Krakow dragon

We don't know for sure when Krakow was first founded, all we have to go on is a brief reference in a traveler's chronicle from 966. But local legend says that Krakow is in fact even older than that: in the 7th century there was a brave local leader named Krak, and after he died the local citizens erected a burial mound to honor the founder of Krakow. The mound was placed on the southern side of the Vistula River, in what's now the Podgórze neighborhood, and it's still standing. Some researchers think that it wasn't erected as a burial mound at all by the local pagans, but as a special place for observing the stars and for ritual sacrifices... But Prince Krak was also famous for slaying the local dragon Smok. The earliest legend about the dragon dates back to the 12th century and credits Krak with the skillful act of vanquishing the fire-breathing beast. But a later version of the legend says that it was in fact a clever cobbler who came up with the idea of stuffing a sheep's carcass with sulfur and then placing the carcass in front of the dragon's lair at the foot of the castle hill. And so when the dragon woke up in the morning he readily swallowed the sheep in one gulp but then was engulfed by a terrible fire and thirst in his belly. So the dragon rushed down to the river and drank and drank until he burst. And so the Skuba, the cobbler was rewarded with one of Prince Krak's beautiful daughters and entered Polish lore. This is in fact the version of the legend that all Polish school children are told. And during a visit to Krakow you can explore the cave were the terrible dragon Smok lived, and you can see a bronze statue of the dragon at the cave's entrance that really does breath fire every so often. (about every 2 minutes)

Princess Wanda

Well, Prince Krak had another beautiful daughter and that brings us to another pagan burial mound, this one located in the Nowa Huta neighborhood. This mound also has a legendary past, and it goes something like this: After the beloved Prince Krak died, his pure and beautiful daughter Wanda inherited the kingdom of Krakow and ruled from the Wawel hill. Her beauty made her quite famous and attracted many suitors. But alas, Wanda didn't intend on marrying anyone, instead preferring a life of simplicity and purity. Then one day a German prince approached the kingdom of Krakow at the head of a marauding army. But the prince had heard of Wanda's beauty and when he finally laid eyes on her decided not to invade, but to ask for Wanda's hand in marriage so as to unite their kingdoms. Well, Wanda was put in quite a predicament; how could she refuse this offer without angering the prince and risking the destruction of Krakow and her people? She decided to preserve her purity and reject the marriage proposal by committing suicide! She cast her self from the Wawel hill into the Vistula River and drowned. The local residents were in shock, but some villagers east of Krakow managed to fish her pale body out of the river in what's now Nowa Huta and erect a burial mound in here honor, just as had been done for her father Krak. And the Wanda mound still stands as a silent reminder of Wanda's sacrifice. And the stories behind the Krak and Wanda mounds help explain why in the 19th and 20th centuries two more mounds were erected in Krakow: but no longer for mythical figures, but for flesh and bone patriotic heroes in Poland's struggle for independence: Taduesz Kościuszko and Józef Piłsudski.

Krakow's pigeons

As all visitors will notice, the market square in Krakow is haven for pigeons. They may seem perfectly natural, but there also exists a legend for those of us pine for a more magical explanation...way back in the 13th century when Poland had splintered into many warring kingdoms it was believed that whoever ruled Krakow could hope to rule the rest of Poland. So there once lived a prince named Henryk the Righteous who was briefly in control of Krakow and dreamt of reunited Poland by being crowned king of Poland. Well, at that time, at the end of the 13th century this was a religious ceremony and one need the Pope's permission for such a coronation to take place. Prince Henryk wasn't so rich, and the city coffers were practically empty, thus Henryk was in need of financial support in order to make the costly journey to Rome. After asking around, he heard about a witch living in the outskirts of Krakow who might be able and willing to help. He was desperate so off he went in search of the witch; he was able to find her and after having told the witch of his plight the witch expressed a willingness to help, but there was a price: as a garantee on the loan she could offer him, he would have to leave behind his trusted knights in her care until he returned with the Pope's blessing to be crowned king of Poland. He agreed to this, and right away his loyal knights were put under a spell and turned into pigeons. Off they flew to St. Mary's church on the main square, and once there they started to peck off little pebbles from the church's facade. These pebbles magically changed into gold coins as they fell and Prince Henryk collected these coins and headed off to Rome. But once one the road away from Krakow he started to forget about his holy mission and dream of reuniting Poland. Instead he started spending the loan on wine and women. Well, his money was all used up before he ever even got close to Rome. He had to return empty-handed to Krakow and his enchanted knights still flock to the main square in the guise of pigeons waiting for their prince to return with a crown...

The two towers and the two brothers

The two asymmetrical towers of St. Mary's church are a symbol of Krakow and have been since Medieval times. The taller tower is renowned for its slender spires and as the home of the trumpeter of Krakow. The right hand tower is smaller and overshadowed by the trumpeter's tower. But what did the architects have in mind when they were building the church? According to legend, both towers were to be of the same height and magnificence...Back in the middle of the 14th century when the current St. Mary's was being built, two brothers were responsible for the church's construction. They shared their work equally and construction went along very smoothly until the moment when the towers had to be built. The brothers decided to divide their work and build the towers separately. The older brother built the left hand tower, and the younger brother ended up building the right hand tower. At first they worked in harmony, but after some time they started to compete; each brother wanted to construct a taller and more impressive tower than the other. The older brother finished his tower first, and was justly proud of his tall, slender tower and Gothic spires. The younger brother worked at a slower pace, but stated to build larger sections so as to create a base for a much taller tower than that of his older brother. Of course the older brother suspected what his younger brother was up to, so one night after work in a local tavern the older brother tried to convince his younger brother to halt construction. A violent argument broke out between them, and in a fit of passion the older brother stabbed the younger brother to death with a knife. At once, the older brother was consumed by guilt and shame; he fled the tavern, ran to the unfinished St. Mary's church, and climbed to the top of his tower. From there he admitted his guilt to all and plunged to his death. The church had been stained by blood and ignominy, so the parish priest and the city fathers decided to never finish the younger brother's tower as a reminder of the terrible crime. Then murder weapon was hung in one of the arches of the cloth hall across from St. Mary's as a warning against jealousy and fratricide. It hangs there still...

Poland's first capital and the Polish colors

Legend of Poland's first capital and the Polish colors. Most visitors know that Krakow used to be the capital of Poland before Warsaw developed into the most important city in Poland in the 17th century, but few tourists have ever heard of Poland's first capital, Gniezno. Well, there's a legend that says that the first ever Polish leader was named Lech and he was looking for a place to settle when he say a magnificent white eagle soaring above an eagle's nest high on a hill at sunset. Lech was so impressed he decided to create a settlement on this high hill with the eagle's nest and that's how the first Polish capital was founded. But what's interesting is that the word for that capital, Gniezno, is derived for the Polish word for nest, gniazdo. And this legend explains why the Polish flag is red(sunset) and white(eagle), and why the national symbol is the white eagle.

Poland's first saint

The patron saint of Poland is St. Stanislaus, and his tomb is of course in Krakow. He was the bishop of Krakow in the 2nd half of the 11th century, but unfortunately for him he got into a dispute with the then king of Poland, Boleslaus the Bold and the king felt that the bishop was a traitor and so had him beheaded! Some versions say that the king himself struck the fatal sword blow. The legend continues that bishop Stanislaus' body was dragged from the church and hacked into pieces. But then his dismembered body parts miraculously came back together and were guarded by four white eagles. But one finger was missing from the bishop's corpse. Alas, it had fallen into a small pond and was swallowed by a fish that started to emit a strange white light. Well, the church where St. Stanislaus was martyred has been rebuilt many times, and the current Baroque church dates back only to the 18th century, but it still houses an altar where his blood is believed to have splattered. And next to the church is a small pool with a statue dedicated to the saint standing in its center. The water is still believed to be have miraculous powers due to Stanislaus' finger and every year in May (the first Sunday after May 8th, his feast day) the saint's head is brought to the church in a special procession from the Wawel cathedral (where his tomb is located) to the church on the rock (Skałka) in Kazimierz where he was martyred.