“Krzyżtopór Castle is a unique place on the map of Poland – there is no second castle complex in the world.

If I can help promote this place, I encourage everyone to visit the castle ruins – every Pole should see them,” said Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Culture and National Heritage Piotr Gliński during visiting the historical ruins of Krzyżtopór Castle in Ujazd.

Historical ruins, shaped in the centuries-old process of destruction, remaining in an unchanged spatial arrangement since the beginning of the 19th century, constitute one of the full-fledged forms of monuments.

Deputy Prime Minister Piotr Gliński said that the subject of Krzyżtopór Castle often comes up during talks, also between politicians holding the most important positions in Poland.

– We talk about how to make this originally preserved place famous, because – although it is a very valuable building from a conservation point of view – it is not known in Poland outside scale it deserves – underlined the head of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.

The Deputy Prime Minister said that the authentic ruins of the castle are globally unique.

– The castle could be rebuilt on the basis of these walls, of course with strict conservation standards. However, a question arises – what next? Rebuilding the castle would create a huge challenge for the Polish state, which would have to develop it. At the moment there is no concept of reconstruction, but the original ruins perfectly fulfill the function of this place – said Piotr Gliński.

The Minister of Culture recalled that in the 17th century the castle was devastated and plundered during the Swedish invasion and although it never regained its glory after the flood, traces of its splendor are still visible .

– From the point of view of international law, we cannot demand the return of what the Swedes took from us. However, there are obvious moral and community-civilizational foundations for this. We are in a big community with Sweden, we cooperate with Swedish politicians. Recently a guest from our ministry was one of the Swedish parliamentarians who claimed some Polish war loss of the time. We will continue these discussions because we hope that a country like Sweden will understand that it has a certain historic debt, Deputy Prime Minister Gliński said.

Highlighting the uniqueness of Krzyżtopór Castle, he recalled that it had been recognized by the President of the Republic of Poland as a historical monument.

– Krzyżtopór is a magnificent monument, the so-called permanent ruin – the castle with the palace is preserved in a condition that prevents it from deteriorating. It is an authentic structure that can be seen where you can visit enclosed spaces. It is a way of sharing a monument that is very much appreciated. Although it is not completely rebuilt, you can easily imagine what it looked like in the past – noted Gliński.

The head of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage informed that although the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage has a support program for the reconstruction and renovation of monuments, work is currently underway on the law creation of the Revitalization Agency – a new institution that will deal with issues that have not been resolved so far, such as monuments in national parks, revitalization of old city centers in need of support or monuments neglected whose private owner does not have the funds to renovate.

About the castle

At the time of its establishment, Krzyżtopór Castle was one of the largest residences in Europe. Currently it is one of the best preserved ruins of the type “palazzo in fortezza” in the form of permanent ruins. It is distinguished by a high degree of preservation of the original walls and fortifications, which, combined with the fact that it has never undergone major reconstruction, gives it particular scientific value as an example of a representative siege. unconverted from the first half of the 19th century. Seventeenth century

The building is a combination of a castle and a palace – a modern fortress with an open residence. The features shaping this object did not have a continuation in later works, and in Krzyżtopor they were a manifestation of a certain spontaneity and freedom of Polish mannerism. The castle has unique landscape values, that is, impressive displays of a monumental building located on the edge of a plateau, surrounded by fields, meadows and low rural buildings.

The ruins of Krzyżtopór Castle are listed in the register of monuments. By order of the President of the Republic of Poland of May 18, 2018, the facility was recognized as a historical monument.

Krzyżtopór Castle in Ujazd – historical overview

The construction of the representative seat was started in the 20s of the 17th century by Krzysztof Ossoliński. The creator of the design of the castle is not known, its authorship is attributed to Italian architects of the circle of successors of JB da Vignoli, and the implementation to Lawrence Senes, perhaps with a great contribution of the own invention of the builder and with the participation of the founder, who traveled in southern and western Europe.

The monumental building was erected in a single phase. As early as 1644, the wedding party of Krzysztof Baldwin, Krzysztof’s son, took place in the new residence, with the participation of distinguished guests, incl. King Wladyslaw IV. During the Swedish invasion (1655-1657), the castle was devastated and looted, but probably not destroyed. It was then that the drawing of E. Dahlbergh depicting the only surviving plan of the settlement.

The building was used unchanged until 1770, when Michał Jan Pac, one of the leaders of the Bar Confederation, left it. In 1815, the successive owners – the Łempicki family – lived in the neighboring mansion, as well as the next ones – Orsetti, which belonged to Krzyżtopór until 1944.

From the beginning of the 19th century, the building remained in ruins in an unchanged spatial form, but gradually losing its substance and succumbing to the blurring of the landscaped surroundings, in particular the garden. The ruin was a place of refuge for the January insurgents, the local population during the fierce battles of the First World War, partisan units during the fights with the Nazi troops or a warehouse and a training ground for the troops of the ‘Red Army.

After the war, Krzyżtopór became the property of the State Treasury. In 1991, the establishment was opened to the public. In 2010-2013, the Intercollegiate Institute for the Conservation and Restoration of Works of Art carried out conservation work there.