With its over one-thousand–year-old history, the City of Poznan has, a number of times, been in the centre of political events.

The graves of the first Polish sovereigns are here. The Emperor of Germany, Otton the Third, paid a visit here and the Emperor of France stayed in the city for several days. For these reasons the idea of creating the  The Royal-Imperial Route in order to commemorate all these places was born.
The route of the Royal - Imperial Route begins by the Church of Saint John of Jerusalem behind the walls situated close to Lake Malta. It is one of the oldest brick churches in Poland. In the Middle Ages a settlement was established and this became famous when the Order of St John of Jerusalem built the first hospital in the city.

Photo 1 – The Church of St Paul of Jerusalem
Srodka is located nearby – a very old district which from the very moment of its foundation ( XIth  century) developed as a market settlement. And that is where its name comes from – the market on Wednesday – Srodka. Until the beginning of the XIXth century, Srodka was a separate city and the ancient urban arrangement with a small market square has partly survived till today. The Church of St Margaret Virgin and Martyr and an ancient  monastery is situated by the market square. In the eastern part of the district the Church of St Casimir as well as an ancient Reformati monastery are located. Today Srodka and the centre of the City of Poznan are connected by means of a dual carriageway. In several weeks’ time it will be possible to reach the vicinity of the Cathedral as well. A new footbridge is still being built. The oldest part of the City of Poznan, that is Ostrow Tumski with the Cathedral is located in the vicinity of Srodka. According to the most recent research the first settlement was established as early as the IXth century, around one hundred years before the birth of Poland.

Photograph 2 – Cathedral
From the oldest area of Poznan the trail leads to the Old Market Square. This is the part of the city that was established after having received a town charter in 1253. From Ostrow Tumski the route leads to the Old Town through a small district called Chwaliszewo. For a short time, this little part of Poznan was on the lips of every European! The Tsar of Russia, Claus the First, was passing by the place in 1843. During the ride his carriage broke down. It was rumoured, however, that there was an attempt on the life of the Tsar of Russia. Only after an investigation was it finally proved to be an accident.
Of course, the Old Town is a beautiful market square with a Renaissance Town Hall and tenements that surround it. There is a Baroque parish church in the vicinity of the Market Square. An ancient building of the Jesuit College, which these days is the seat of the Municipal Council, is situated nearby. The building became famous at the beginning of the XIXth century. The French Emperor, Napoleon Bonaparte, along with his court, stayed here for several days.
There is a hill on the other side of the Old Town on which, several hundred years ago, a castle was situated. At the turn of  the XIIIth and the XIVth centuries the City of Poznan was, after all, the capital of Poland. Today, a more recent building is situated on the hill ( the seat of the Museum of the Applied Arts). Work aimed at reconstructing the original castle, dating back to the Middle Ages, is in progress. 

Photograph 3 – The Old Market Square
From the Old Town the Royal – Imperial Route leads to St Martin's Street and the imperial castle. The imperial castle was built as part of a little district in the eastern part of the city centre of Poznan. At the turn of the XIXth and the XXth century, when Poznan was a part of the Prussian Empire, a castle for Emperor William the Second was erected there. The Emperor visited the place twice, in 1910 and 1913.

Photograph 4 – The imperial castle