Warsaw Old Town

About

Warsaw Old Town, also known as Old Town, and historically known as Old Warsaw, is a neighbourhood, and an area of the City Information System, in the city of Warsaw, Poland, located within the district of Śródmieście. It is the oldest portion of the city, and contains numerous historic buildings, mostly from 17th and 18th centuries, such as the Royal Castle, city walls, St. John's Cathedral, and the Barbican, the Old Town Market Square and the Warsaw Mermaid Statue. The settlement itself dates back to between the 13th and 14th centuries, and was granted town privileges c. 1300.

During World War II, the Old Town was nearly totally destroyed, and subsequently reconstructed. The project was the world's first attempt to resurrect an entire historic city core and was included on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1980. In 2011, the Archive of Warsaw Reconstruction Office was added to UNESCO's Memory of the World international register.

Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Photography via Wikimedia Commons.