The siege of Kraków was one of the military conflicts of the Swedish and Transylvanian invasion of Poland, which took place in the summer of 1657. The royal city of

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

, had been occupied for two years by a Swedish-Transylvanian garrison led by Paul Wirtz and

János Bethlen János Bethlen de Bethlen (1613 – 13 February 1678)Markó 2006, p. 102. was a Hungarian noble in the Principality of Transylvania, who served as Chancellor of Transylvania from 1659 to 1678. Life János was the only son of Farkas Bethle ...

. It was besieged by Polish Army of

Hetman ''Hetman'' is a political title from Central and Eastern Europe, historically assigned to military commanders (comparable to a field marshal or imperial marshal in the Holy Roman Empire). First used by the Czechs in Bohemia in the 15th century, ...

Jerzy Lubomirski, supported by soldiers of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

under Austrian field marshal

Melchior von Hatzfeldt Melchior Graf von Gleichen und Hatzfeldt (Westerwald, 20 October 1593 – Powidzko, Powitzko, 9 January 1658) was an Imperial Field Marshal. He fought in the Thirty Years' War first under Albrecht von Wallenstein and Matthias Gallas, then rec ...

Background

Two years prior to the 1657 siege, in the summer of 1655, two armies of the

Swedish Empire The Swedish Empire or the Great Power era () was the period in Swedish history spanning much of the 17th and early 18th centuries during which Sweden became a European great power that exercised territorial control over much of the Baltic regi ...

invaded the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, also referred to as Poland–Lithuania or the First Polish Republic (), was a federation, federative real union between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ...

, see

Deluge (history) The Deluge was a series of mid-17th-century military campaigns in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. In a wider sense, it applies to the period between the Khmelnytsky Uprising of 1648 and the Truce of Andrusovo in 1667, comprising the Po ...

. The Swedish invaders moved southwards, reaching the city of Kraków in late September 1655. After the Siege of Kraków (1655), the ancient Polish capital surrendered, and on October 17, Swedish soldiers along with King

Charles X Gustav Charles X Gustav, also Carl X Gustav (; 8 November 1622 – 13 February 1660), was King of Sweden from 1654 until his death. He was the son of John Casimir, Count Palatine of Kleeburg, John Casimir, Count Palatine of Palatinate-Kleeburg, Zweib ...

entered the city. The looting of Kraków's treasures followed.Dariusz Milewski
Szwedzi w Krakowie (The Swedes in Krakow)
''

Mówią Wieki ''Mówią Wieki'' (, meaning ''Centuries Speak'' in English) is a monthly popular science and history magazine published in Poland since 1958. Editors in chief: * Maria Bogucka (1958–1976) * Bożena Krzywobłocka (1976–1977) * Eugeniusz ...

'' monthly, 08.06.2007, Internet Archive. In some districts not a single house was left standing, as in Garbary and in Biskupie. For the next two years the amount of destruction, pillage and methodical plunder was so enormous that some former parts of the city had never recovered from it. According to the

Treaty of Radnot Treaty of Radnot was a treaty signed during the Second Northern War in Radnot in Transylvania (now Iernut in Romania) on 6 December 1656. The treaty divided the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth between the signing parties. According to the treaty ...

signed on December 6, 1656, Kraków was to be occupied by

Prince of Transylvania The Prince of Transylvania (, , , Fallenbüchl 1988, p. 77.) was the head of state of the Principality of Transylvania from the late-16th century until the mid-18th century. John Sigismund Zápolya was the first to adopt the title in 1 ...

George II Rákóczi George II Rákóczi (30 January 1621 – 7 June 1660), was a Hungarian nobleman, Prince of Transylvania (1648-1660), the eldest son of George I and Zsuzsanna Lorántffy. Early life He was elected Prince of Transylvania during his father' ...

, who was an ally of Charles X Gustav. In January 1657, the Transylvanian army invaded southern provinces of the

Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland (; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a monarchy in Central Europe during the Middle Ages, medieval period from 1025 until 1385. Background The West Slavs, West Slavic tribe of Polans (western), Polans who lived in what i ...

(

Red Ruthenia Red Ruthenia, also called Red Rus or Red Russia, is a term used since the Middle Ages for the south-western principalities of Kievan Rus', namely the Principality of Peremyshl and the Duchy of Belz, Principality of Belz. It is closely related to ...

and

Lesser Poland Lesser Poland, often known by its Polish name ''Małopolska'' (; ), is a historical region situated in southern and south-eastern Poland. Its capital and largest city is Kraków. Throughout centuries, Lesser Poland developed a separate cult ...

), and on March 28, the Transylvanians reached Kraków. Rákóczi left, in the city, some 2,500 soldiers, who strengthened the Swedish garrison already stationed there. Most of the Transylvanian army headed northwards, to meet the Swedes.

Siege

In early summer 1657, Polish Crown units under

Jerzy Lubomirski arrived near Kraków, but lacking artillery, the Poles limited their activities to cutting Swedish and Transylvanian supply routes. In early August, the 17,000 strong army of

, under Field Marshal

, reinforced the Poles, and began preparations for an assault. On August 4, however, a message from Rákóczi was received by both sides. Since his army had been destroyed in the Battle of Czarny Ostrow (July 20), Rákóczi urged

to surrender the city to the Poles. The Transylvanians capitulated, but Swedish garrison of Kraków, under Paul Wirtz, continued resistance until August 25. Five days later, Swedish units left the city, and on September 4, Poles, together with Austrians, organized a military parade, observed by King Jan Kazimierz.

Aftermath

After a two-year Swedish and Transilvanian occupation, the ancient capital of Poland was in ruins. All villages and towns in the area were burned to the ground, as well as the suburbs of Kraków. In Kleparz, only 15 people dwelled in huts, while at Bishop Square, only 5 houses remained, out of 51. In the district of Piaski, which had several hundred houses before the Swedish invasion, not a single building remained. The

Wawel Hill The Wawel Royal Castle (; ''Zamek Królewski na Wawelu'') and the Wawel Hill on which it sits constitute the most historically and culturally significant site in Poland. A fortified residency on the Vistula River in Kraków, it was established o ...

was completely looted, as Swedes and Transylvanians had stolen almost everything of value: including the Polish treasury, books, carpets and even upholstery. Furthermore, Swedes destroyed the tomb of St. Stanislaus.

Sources

* Jaroslaw Stolicki, ''Oblezenie Krakowa przez Jerzego Lubomirskiego w latach 1656-1657''. SiM do historii wojskowosci, vol. XL, Bialystok 2003, pp. 87–117 * Leszek Podhorodecki, ''Rapier i koncerz'', Warszawa 1985, , pp. 345–346 {{DEFAULTSORT:Kraków 1657 Conflicts in 1657 1657 in Europe Sieges of Kraków Battles of the Deluge (history) Sieges involving the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Sieges involving Sweden 1657 in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Sieges involving the Holy Roman Empire Battles involving the Principality of Transylvania (1570–1711) Looting in Poland Residential building arson attacks in Poland Urban fires in Europe