Wawel Dragon
Introduction


The **Wawel Dragon** (), also known as the **Dragon of Wawel Hill**, is a famous [dragon](/wiki/Dragon "Dragon") in Polish legend.

According to the earliest account (13th century), a dragon (, "one who swallows whole") plagued the capital city of [Kraków](/wiki/Krak%C3%B3w "Kraków") established by legendary [King Krak](/wiki/King_Krak "King Krak") (or Krakus, Gracchus, etc.). The man\-eating monster was being appeased with a weekly ration of cattle, until finally being defeated by the king's sons using decoy cows stuffed with [sulfur](/wiki/Sulfur "Sulfur"). But the younger prince ("[Krak the younger](/wiki/Krakus_II "Krakus II")" or "Krak junior") murdered his elder brother to take sole credit, and was banished afterwards. Consequently [Princess Wanda](/wiki/Princess_Wanda "Princess Wanda") had to succeed the kingdom. Later in a 15th\-century chronicle, the prince\-names were swapped, with the elder as "Krak junior" and the younger as [Lech](/wiki/Lech_II "Lech II"). It also credited the king himself with masterminding the carcasses full of sulfur and other reagents. A yet later chronicler ([Marcin Bielski](/wiki/Marcin_Bielski "Marcin Bielski"), 1597\) credited the stratagem to a cobbler named Skub (Skuba), adding that the "Dragon's Cave" () lay beneath [Wawel Castle](/wiki/Wawel_Castle "Wawel Castle") (on Wawel Hill on the bank of the [Vistula River](/wiki/Vistula_River "Vistula River")).


What was hidden in the decoy cows that were used to defeat the Wawel Dragon?