Kraków (Polish pronunciation: [ˈkrakuf], also Cracow or Krakow, is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life and is one of Poland’s most important economic hubs.

It was the capital of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland from 1038 to 1569; the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth from 1569 to 1596; the Free City of Kraków from 1815 to 1846; the Grand Duchy of Cracow from 1846 to 1918; and Kraków Voivodeship from the 14th century to 1998. It has been the capital of Lesser Poland Voivodeship since 1999.

In 1866, Austria granted a degree of autonomy to Galicia after its own defeat in the Austro-Prussian War. Politically freer Kraków became a Polish national symbol and a centre of culture and art, known frequently as the “Polish Athens” or “Polish Mecca”. Many leading Polish artists of the period resided in Kraków [1]. That is why we have decided to organize our international conference “Galicia and its Multicultural Heritage” in here.

Later on we will publish here some additional information about interesting events in Krakow for May 13-15, 2016 for your convenience.

 

Some useful links are below:

http://www.krakow.travel/

http://www.krakow.pl/english/

https://www.lonelyplanet.com/poland/malopolska/krakow