# Kraków receives Magdeburg rights (1257)

URL: https://poland-history.com/timeline/1257-krakow-receives-magdeburg-rights
Location: Kraków

Bolesław V granted Kraków a charter under Magdeburg law, laying out the Main Market Square and the grid of the medieval city. Within the broader Fragmentation period: After 1138 Poland split into duchies ruled by rival Piast princes. Mongol invasions, German settlement, the growth of towns and the arrival of the Teutonic Knights reshaped the land before it was reunited. At this point in the timeline (5 June 1257), the governing authority was Bolesław V the Chaste (High Duke of Poland). His long reign saw Mongol raids, the canonisation of St Stanislaus and the chartering of Kraków under Magdeburg law. Kraków receives Magdeburg rights mattered because it defined rights and institutions that shaped Polish government and society. The event is placed here so readers can follow it alongside changes in government, warfare, society, religion and culture across Polish history.

## Why it matters
Kraków receives Magdeburg rights mattered because it defined rights and institutions that shaped Polish government and society.

Ruler at the time: [Bolesław V the Chaste](https://poland-history.com/rulers/boleslaw-v-the-chaste)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia — History of Kraków](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Krak%C3%B3w)
- [Encyclopaedia Britannica topic lookup — Kraków receives Magdeburg rights](https://www.britannica.com/search?query=Krak%C3%B3w+receives+Magdeburg+rights)
- [Wikipedia — History of Poland during the Piast dynasty (period overview)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Poland_during_the_Piast_dynasty#Fragmentation_of_the_realm_(1138%E2%80%931320))