Wilanow Palace (Warsaw) - one of the most valuable monuments of Polish Baroque. The historic mansion was built at the end of the 17th century. However, each subsequent owner rebuilt it.
Palace History
The building combines a traditional Polish manor with details of an Italian rural villa and a French palace. In the Ilyaniv Palace, he built for the King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Jan III Sobieski and Maria Casimira, his wife, the Italian architect Augustine Lozzi. Later, architects such as Giovanni Spazzio, Jan Zygmunt Deibel, Shimon Bogumil Zug, Peter Aigner and Francis Maria Lanci rebuilt it several times.
After the death of the king, the palace was inherited by his sons, and then - into the property of noble families: the magnates of Senevsky, Czartoryski, Lubomirsky, Pototsky and Branitsky. Each subsequent family made certain changes to the appearance of the building, to the interior of the palace, to the garden and its infrastructure. It is worth noting that in 1805, on the initiative of the then owner, Stanislav Kostka Potocki, part of the palace was allocated for the creation of one of the first public museums in Poland.
Interior and exterior
The Vilanius Palace was declared a historical monument in 1994. The architecture of the palace (the facade with one-story wings in half columns with pilasters) combines the art of building the European tradition of the old Polish estate. The royal apartments are located in the central part, decorated in Baroque style. The interiors in the south wing are a true example of the artistic manner of the 18th century. The north wing was decorated in the XIX century by Count Potocki, the then owner of the estate.
The whole floor is dedicated to the Polish portrait gallery of the 16th – 19th centuries. On the canvases of artists immortalized images of monarchs, representatives of great aristocratic families, cultural figures who glorified the country. To the right of the main gate, visitors can see the neoclassical buildings, the so-called old kitchen and guardhouses, built in 1775-1776 by the architect Zug. The stables were set up under the direction of Lanci (1848–1850).
The Wilanów Palace is surrounded by a two-level garden. The park was created according to the scheme of French geometric plantations of the XVII – XVIII centuries. The landscape at the pond retains an English character. The area is decorated with statues, fountains and small examples of park architecture.
Museum in the palace
In 1805, on the initiative of Alexander and Stanislav Kostka Potocki, a museum was founded in Wilanow. The Wilanów Palace passed into state ownership after 1945. In 1954, when thorough restoration work was carried out and valuable murals and sculptures were discovered, a new life began at the palace and park. At the same time, the interiors underwent a thorough reconstruction.
In 1962, on the anniversary of the siege of Vienna, the palace was opened to the public. The museum operated until 1995, as a branch of the National Museum in Warsaw, and then was transformed into an independent institution. Since 2013, it has been called the Palace Museum of King John III in Wilanow. From the first years of the 21st century, the activities of the panopticon are funded by the European Union and the Ministry of Culture of the country.
The museum organizes temporary exhibitions, conferences and seminars, conducts research, publishes books, both scientific and popular, organizes educational events dedicated to the cultural values and natural heritage of Wilanów. Palace and the park has also become a venue for cultural events, concerts and meetings.
Wilanowski Palace (Warsaw). How to get there
Palace It is open for visitors all year round, with the exception of late December and early January, as well as the most important religious holidays - Good Friday, Good Saturday and Easter Sunday, Christmas, Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and November 1. The palace is also closed to the public on Tuesdays.
The cost of admission to the museum is 20 zlotys, preferential - 15, to the park - 5 and respectively 3. Entrance to the territory is free on Thursdays, however, it is based on tickets issued at the box office.
Many tourists care about what is the Wilanow Palace? How to get to it? This is an equally frequently asked question. The museum is located about 10 km from the center of Warsaw, at the end of the historic Royal Route. There are numerous bus lines.