Gdansk used to be jewel of the Hanseatic League. Conveniently situated at the mouth of the Vistula River, on the main trade route, the town of Gdansk grew to be one of the biggest and rubest Baltic ports in the 14th and 15th centuries.
The Old City with big buildings and burgher houses built in the style of the north European Renaissance by master - builders from Flanders and the Netherlands is decorated with characteristic antethresholds. The streets do not coverge in the market place, but run down towards the River Moltawa and the old Gdansk harbor together with Dlugi Targ (Long Market), which plays the role of the city's main market. Some Dutch towns, e.g. Amsterdam have similar urban layouts.
The Second World War destroyed 90% of Gdansk town center, and extensive restorations were undertaken immediately after the war. Worth seeing is a memorial to the shipyard workers killed in the 1970 riots, a symbol of the fight for freedom. Nearby, in the Gdansk Shipyard area, the workers' protest movement Solidarity began. With their protest, the TriCity workers triggered the social and political changes, brought about freedom and democracy to Poland and Central Europe.