Reconstruction of the spatial evolution of the medieval city and port of Szczecin

Karolina A. Krośnicka

doi:10.5277/arc160401

Abstract

The paper reconstructs the evolution of the urban growth of Szczecin between half of the 8th century and the beginning of the 14th century, basing on the interpretation of the available scientific literature on history and archeology of Szczecin, and on the method of planning analysis. A very important element of the description of urban structure of the early medieval Szczecin was a determination of the role and location of the port. The analysis of changes in the spatial layout of the city in the mentioned period allowed us to define the six successive stages of its development: 1. The open settlement on the Castle Hill and its’ haven (the 2nd half of the 8th century–the 2nd half of the 9th century), 2. The gord and its haven (the 2nd half of the 9th century–the 2nd half of the 10th century), 3. The early medieval urban complex: the gord, the slavic borough and its port (the 2nd half of the 10th century–half of the 12th century), 4. Town-like urban complex: the gord, the slavic borough and its port, German borough and its port Havening, open settlements (the 2nd half of the 12th century–the end of the first quarter of the 13th century), 5. The double city: “Lower town”, and “Upper town” (the end of the first quarter of the 13th century–the 8th decade of the 13th century), 6. The formation of the medieval city (8th decade of the 13th century–the end of the first quarter of the 14th century).     The early medieval Szczecin was not growing simply in a linear manner, but it was developing in a step-wise manner, by attaching new, already spatially organized settlements. Such a model of an urban growth, consisting of the existence of “double” or even “multiple” cities, can be an interesting alternative for the development of contemporary urban areas, which are struggling with the phenomenon of “urban sprawl”. The presented concept is basing in many places on assumptions, resulting from logic of the settlement process, known from urban planning theory. Therefore, this work should be regarded as a research hypothesis, until finding new archaeological evidences will give a chance for its verification.

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