In the past the name Krakowskie Przedmieście (Cracow Suburbs) did not just mean a street. In the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, the whole district situated opposite the Cracow Gate and around the route leading to Cracow was called like that. At that time the settlements outside the walls and excluded from the town privileges but situated on land belonging to the city were called the suburbs. After fortification of Lublin by Casimir the Great, Krakowskie Przedmieście was built outside the city walls.
In 1996, the City Council decided to turn narrow Krakowskie Przedmieście Street into a pedestrian area, which stretches from Kapucyńska Street to Łokietek Square. The road was replaced with an elegant pavement. The official opening of the pedestrian area took place on October 8, 1997.
On Krakowskie Przedmieście Street, between Lithuanian Square and the Old Town, there is dense development, dating back to the Old Polish period, that was transformed in the 19th century into the tenements. While walking it is worth lifting your head up. The tenements are really beautiful. Approaching the Old Town, we pass two interesting buildings on the left. It is the 15th-century church of the Holy Spirit and the New City Hall - the current seat of the city authorities, in a place where the church and monastery of the Discalced Carmelites used to be.
