At present, fortress greenery is a significant resource of urban greenery, composed for the purposes of concealing, defending, decorating and nourishing the former Kraków Fortress, based on the knowledge and experience of engineers at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, as well as the aesthetic principles of that era. The aim of this paper is to present conclusions formulated as part of a research project by the local municipality and university, concerning the proper interpretation of the masking greenery systems of the Kraków Fortress, and the definition of framework guidelines for the protection and shaping of green complexes. The development of the method of recording, valorizing and defining the rules of dealing with the green areas of the Kraków Fortress was based on the experience gained from searching for holistic methods of recording and valorizing the fortified landscape of the fortresses of Przemyśl, Zamość, Pula (Croatia) and Kotor (Montenegro). The development of rules for the conservation and legibility of system plantings may contribute to the effective protection of masonry and earth structures, as well as regaining landscape values and increasing the safety of visitors. In the preparation of the guidelines, general principles and detailed principles for selected, representative examples were developed (with an indication of the processes of change, development, possible use together with low-intervention zones).

This paper tackles the questions of material culture and protecting heritage values through urban intervention. Urban intervention is understood as the identification of local heritage with a diagnosis of potential development profiles and application of the adopted solutions to underlie the formation of a new local centrality. It is underlined that the right urban intervention needs to be conducted for and with local inhabitants. Urban intervention, as proposed in this paper, is understood as a tool to properly direct the development of peripheral areas, especially rural ones. The basis for the research is the idea of spatial re-definition that aims to upgrade not only spatial but above all social attractiveness. An original two-stage methodology adopted for the purpose of the research with the use of the author’s AIA method was presented. This developed tool can harness the potential of material culture of local heritage. The shown research methodology is universal and can be applied in any urban interventions intended to transform places characterized by either partially or completely lost spatial and social identity.