Ostrów Tumski in Wrocław

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Ostrów Tumski ("Cathedral Island", German: Dominsel), in Wrocław, Poland, is the oldest part of Wrocław. Built on what used to be an island ("ostrów", in old Polish), it was an early crossing point on the Oder River.

Archaeological excavations have shown that the area was first inhabited in its western part, between the Church of St. Martin and the Holy Cross. The first, wooden church (St. Martin), dating from the IXth century, was surrounded by defensive walls built on the banks of the river. There were approximately 1500 inhabitants in Ostrów Tumski at that time.

The first constructions on Ostrów Tumski were built in the Xth century by the Piast dynasty, and were made from wood. The first building from solid material was St. Martin's chapel, built probably at the beginning of the eleventh century by Benedictine monks. Not long after the first cathedral was raised, in place of the small church.

In 1163 the settlement was raided by Boleslaw I the Tall who had returned after being banished. After taking control of the area and waiting for the political situation in Silesia to stabilize, he chose Ostrów Tumski as his new seat. He began replacing the wooden defenses with brick ones and to build a Roman-style residence.

In 1315 Ostrów Tumski was sold to the church authorities. Since the island ceased to be under secular jurisdiction, it was often used by those who had broken the law in Wrocław, as a place of sanctuary. An interesting indication of the special status of the island was a ban to wear anything on the head already on Tumski Bridge after the border pole of this small "Ecclesiastical nation" (the law also affected members of Royalty).