Webcam Lublin. Krakow Gate, Krulewska Street
Krakow Gate - defensive fortifications built in the fourteenth century in the Gothic style under King Casimir the Great. Krakow Gate is located in the western part of the Old Town in Lublin. Today the gate is an architectural and historical symbol of Lublin.
The Krakow Gate was built around the middle of the fourteenth century after the terrible Tatar invasion of the city in 1341. The gate was on the trade route from Krakow to Lithuania, so it was called Krakow Gate. Originally the gate was part of the district defenses of Lublin. The city was surrounded by a moat with water, the entrance was made by a lifting bridge.
Unlike the City Gate, located in the lower part of the city, the Krakow Gate served as a grand entrance to the city for kings and nobles.
The oldest Gothic part of the gate was built of limestone and brick. In the fifteenth century the first reconstruction took place - a two-story brick superstructure made of thin bricks with a diagonal pattern was created. In the sixteenth century the Krakow Gate became a victim of fires twice. After a fire in 1575, an octagonal copper dome topped with a tower was built.
In the evenings at the gate began to gather city musicians, gradually, the area in front of the gate became the main commercial and social center of the city. In the seventeenth century the Krakow Gate ceased to be used for its intended purpose, after which its condition gradually fell into disrepair.
Due to constant repairs, as well as limited financial resources of the city, in 1830 it was decided to demolish the gate. Fortunately, the project was never implemented.
In 1965 the Museum of the History of Lublin was opened in the Krakow Gate, which tells about the life and development of the city from the 6th century to the end of World War II.
