Wilanow Palace (Warsaw) - one of the most valuable monuments of Polish Baroque. The historic mansion was built at the end of the XVII century. However, each subsequent owner rebuilt it.
The building combines a traditional Polish manor with details of an Italian rural villa and a French palace. ATWilanow Palace built for the king of the Commonwealth Jan IIISobieski and Maria Casimira, his wife, Italian architect Augustine Lozzi. Later, it was rebuilt several times by such architects as Giovanni Spazzio, Jan Zygmunt Dejbel, Shimon Bogumil Zug, Peter Aigner and Francis Maria Leanci.
After the death of the king, the palace was inheritedto sons, and then to the ownership of noble families: the magnates of the Senevskys, the Chartoryskys, the Lyubomirskys, the Potockis, and the Branitskys. Each subsequent family made certain changes in the appearance of the building, in the interior of the palace, in the garden and in its infrastructure. It is worth noting that in 1805, at the initiative of the then owner, Stanislav Kostka Potocki, part of the palace was taken under the creation of one of the first public museums in Poland.
Wilanow Palace was declared historicmonument in 1994. The architecture of the palace (the facade with one-story wings in the semi-columns with pilasters) combines the art of building the European tradition of an old Polish manor. The royal apartments, located in the central part, are decorated in baroque style. The interiors in the south wing are a true example of the artistic manner of the 18th century. The northern wing was decorated in the XIX century by Count Potocki, the then owner of the manor.
The whole floor is dedicated to the Polish portrait gallery.XVI – XIX centuries. On the canvases of artists perpetuated images of monarchs, representatives of the great aristocratic families, cultural figures who glorified the country. To the right of the main gate, visitors can see neoclassical buildings, the so-called old kitchen and guardrooms, built in 1775–1776 by the architect Zug. The stables were set up under the leadership of Leanci (1848–1850).
Wilanow 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 part of the pond retains the English character. The area is decorated with statues, fountains and small examples of park architecture.
В 1805 году по инициативе Александра и Станислава Kostoki Pototskikh in Wilanów was founded a museum. Wilanow Palace became state property after 1945. In 1954, when careful restoration works were carried out and valuable frescoes and sculptures were discovered, a new life began at the palace and park. At the same time, interiors underwent a thorough renovation.
In 1962, on the anniversary of the siege of Vienna, the palace wasopen 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 is called the palace-museum of King John III in Wilanów. Since the first years of the 21st century, the activity of the Panopticon has been 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.
Palace open for visits all year roundexcept for the end of December and the beginning of January, as well as the most important religious holidays - Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday, Christmas, Dormition of the Most Holy Mother of God and November 1. The palace is also closed to the public on Tuesdays.
The entrance fee to the museum is 20zł, preferential - 15, in the park - 5 and respectively 3. On Thursdays, the entrance to the territory is free, but is carried out on the basis of tickets issued at the box office.
Many tourists are worried about Wiluńwski.palace? How to get to it? This is no less 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 here.
