We start our walk at the Church of St. John of Jerusalem Behind the Wall, probably the oldest brick temple in Poland.
Next to the church is a very old district called Śródka. The origin of the name comes from the day when the markets were organized (Środa means Wednesday). Before the "new city" was established on the opposite side of the River Warta, Śródka had been granted some sort of municipal charter. One of the traces of the old urban structure in Śródka is the medieval square with the Church of St. Margaret.
In 1253 the dukes of Poznań, Przemysł I and his brother Bolesław, ordered all Śródka residents to resettle to the newly-established city.
Ostrów Tumski, (Cathedral Island) is a magical place. "Here Poland began" as said Pope John Paul II. This, one of the major centres of the first Polish rulers, is an island surrounded by the River Warta and its tributary, the Cybina. Initially, it was a small settlement outside the city walls, controlling the river crossing. It appears to have become the capital at the moment Poland adopted the Christian faith in 966. It is also said that Poznań was the site of Mieszko I's conversion to Christianity. The settlement was protected by huge wooden and earth embankments, reinforced with stones. During the reign of Mieszko I, a palace and cathedral were built here.
To reach Cathedral Island cross Bishop Jordan's Bridge over the River Cybina.
The Cathedral is the oldest necropolis of Polish sovereigns. PRIMA SEDES EPISCOPORUM POLONIAE ("The original seat of the Polish bishops" as stated in an inscription over the main entrance), is a very special place indeed. Its millennium-long history reflects landmarks in the development of Poland and Christianity. Among the impressive features of the interior, the following deserve special mention: the Golden Chapel, dating from the early 19th century, which houses the tombs of the first kings of Poland, Mieszko I and Bolesław Chrobry. The Cathedral was repeatedly damaged by natural disasters and wars. Now it is a three-aisle Gothic Basilica with pre-Romanesque and Romanesque relics.
As legend has it, in the Cathedral is a copy of St. Peter's sword which was awarded to Mieszko I by the Pope.
Next to the Cathedral stands the Church of Saint Mary the Virgin in Summo. This old church is partly situated upon the remains of the residence of the first Polish sovereign.