Teachers with passion – Mr. Grzegorz Ciemała

History Lessons in the Field

History lessons in the field mean learning outside the four walls of the school – through direct contact with historical monuments. Monuments that serve as witnesses to their times.

Our city, Kraków, offers history teachers an immense field of opportunity. One only needs the courage to take students beyond the school walls. It is often said that it is better to see something once than to read about it a hundred times – and in teaching history, this saying proves absolutely true. Take, for example, the topic Romanesque Art in Medieval Poland. In our city of Kraków, it is enough to walk along the Royal Route from Wawel Hill to the Barbican to experience the atmosphere of the Middle Ages.

The Wawel Cathedral itself, which combines many architectural styles, also contains Romanesque elements – such as St. Leonard’s Crypt and the lower part of the Silver Bells Tower. In St. Leonard’s Crypt, students can see both the columns and the small, narrow Romanesque windows. They immediately learn why buildings were constructed that way in the past – to provide defensive features in case of enemy attacks. Students can also see from the terrain’s topography that Wawel was a separate settlement in the Middle Ages, not part of Kraków’s Old Town. Walking along Podzamcze Street, it is difficult to imagine that there once was water separating Wawel from the Old Town.

When we enter Kanonicza Street, we step into another distinct medieval settlement. It is worth noting that Kanonicza is the oldest street in Kraków and may have been part of the so-called Okół settlement. The very etymology of the street’s name is interesting – it refers to the canons of the Wawel Cathedral Chapter who lived there. To this day, above the portals of the houses, we can see four carved hats – symbols of cardinal dignity. Where one sees such a hat above a doorway, a cardinal likely once lived there.

Another Romanesque monument is the Church of St. Andrew. Its characteristic two-part windows, called biforia, and three-part windows, triforia (from Latin), are typical of Romanesque architecture. The solid stone structure made the church a safe refuge for the residents of Okół during the Tatar invasion of 1241 – it was never captured. In peacetime, it served as a place of prayer; in wartime, it became a fortress. This was necessary, as there were not many castles in Poland at that time. It was King Casimir the Great (1333–1370) who began constructing them on a larger scale.

Our route would not be complete without the Church of St. Adalbert (St. Wojciech) on the Main Market Square. A few interesting facts: it is the only church located directly on the Main Square — contrary to the common but mistaken belief that this refers to St. Mary’s Basilica, which actually stands on St. Mary’s Square. Moreover, the Romanesque entrance portal of St. Adalbert’s is more than three meters below the current ground level of the square. This shows that when the church was built, the ground was over three meters lower. What happened over the centuries? The level of the terrain rose due to centuries of waste, debris, and refuse being thrown out of windows directly onto the ground. Hard to believe — but true. Such was the case across much of medieval Europe.

The location of the church on the Market Square also indicates that it existed before the official foundation of the city, which took place by the decree of Duke Bolesław the Chaste on June 5, 1257. According to Magdeburg Law, churches were to be built at the corners of the market square. And what about Grodzka Street? It extends from one corner of the square — and by Magdeburg Law, two streets should extend from each corner. This is further evidence that there was already existing development and a route to Wawel before the city charter was granted in 1257.

It is worth mentioning that during the Tatar invasion of 1241, people also took refuge inside St. Adalbert’s Church, which – along with those hiding within – survived the siege unharmed.

It is clear that such an educational field trip is far more engaging than sitting within the school walls. I have always said, and will continue to say, that lessons in the field are much more interesting, motivating, and stimulating for students than those held in the classroom. Moreover, having a school in Kraków, it would be a shame not to make use of this in history education. Even the best classroom lesson cannot give students as much as a field lesson on, for example, medieval art.

Just as during the coronavirus pandemic no online method could replace traditional in-person teaching, I also believe that no artificial intelligence can ever replace a real teacher.

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Prepared by Grzegorz Ciemała,
certified teacher at KE and licensed city guide in Kraków.