More about the Jewish district:

In 1335 King Kazimierz the Great founded a town just a stone’s throw from the city of Kraków and named it after himself. Just like neighbouring Kraków, Kazimierz had its own market square enclosed within defensive walls.

At the end of the 15th the persecuted Jewish population of Kraków was expelled from the city by king Jan Olbracht and started migrating into nearby Kazimierz. This mass migration led to the foundation of the Jewish district in the eastern part of the town, thereby marking a major milestone in the history of Kazimierz.

Within the next century Kazimierz became home to the largest population of Jews in Poland.
As the community continued to expand, the number of synagogues, schools, shops, as well various institutions serving the interest of the minority grew. In 1800 Kazimierz lost its status as a separate town and was incorporated into the city of Kraków as a district.

Right before the outbreak of the Second World War the Jewish population of Kraków was approximately 64 000, which comprised 25% of the whole population of the city. During the German occupation Jews from Cracow were forced to live in a ghetto from where massive deportations to death camps were ordered. Owing to the Nazi-German extermination policy and massive migrations of Jews to Israel, the Jewish community in post-war Kraków became almost extinct.