Podcasts

Krakow. The Unwanted Capital

What was the General Government supposed to be and what made the German authorities choose Krakow rather than Warsaw or Łodź as its capital? Was this choice decided by the still vivid sentiment of Cracovians for the Austrian monarchy, a large local German minority or maybe Hans Frank's weakness for Krakow?

An Ominous Setting in a City

Having chosen Kraków as the capital of the General Government, the German occupier had to prove that it was an ancient German city reclaimed for the Third Reich.  This appropriation was carried out by way of ubiquitous Nazi symbols.

A Camp in the City: KL Plaszow Then and Now

KL Plaszow is the only concentration camp ever located in the city centre. What was it, who were its prisoners, and how is it remembered today?

The Wawel Castle and the Main Square in the Shadow of the Swastika

The occupier undertook to eradicate the Polish identity of Krakow by proving that it was an ancient German city. To this end, street names were changed, monuments were demolished, and frontages along streets were repainted. To this day, there are still many German traces in Krakow, which have permanently grown into the city's tissue.