Friday Photo: The Walls of Krakow
Today's Friday Photo is of the mediaeval bastion of Krakow, with Florian's gate behind. The city had been an inhabited site since prehistoric times, and by the 10th century was noted for its commercial enterprises. Throughout its mediaeval life, the city was ringed by powerful defences, but those which survive today all date from after 1241, when Mongol attack devastated Krakow.
This picture of Krakow in Poland is very interesting - because as the blogger rightly notes, the Mongol hordes tore through this city in the thirteenth century. The Templars joined battle with this terrifiying eastern army in central Europe and came off very badly. It's hard to believe that an empire originating in far off Mongolia ruled everything from eastern Europe to China at one stage - a remarkable achievement.
