The unique place that Kraków has in the Polish consciousness was developed in the first few centuries of the country’s existence. This was due to numerous functions that Kraków had throughout centuries: the centre and symbol of national power; the religious and scientific centre, the multinational and multicultural city where German, Italian and Jewish cultures thrived, the centre of political, literary and musical life; a symbol of Polish history, glory and tradition, the most eminent testimony to national identity.