This former aristocratic seat has largely preserved its Renaissance and Baroque character.

History

First mentions of a castellany in Biała date back to the 13th century. The town was under the rule of the Piasts from the Opole-Racibórz family line and the Habsburgs (since 1532). Already in the 16th century, the Prószkowski family received property in Biała as a pledge and became its legal owners in the 17th century (until 1810). One of their first investment was the construction of waterworks serving the residence and local residents. The castle was raised in the 16th century on a slope in the north-east part of the town, close to the city defensive structures, including the wall and moat. In the 17th century (ca. 1640), the Prószkowskis expanded their residence westwards. Further transformations were made in the 18th century (1717?) and the 19th century. In 1856 the municipality took over the castle and converted it to accommodate a junior high school and a teachers’ training college. After WW2, the building house a school and a warehouse in the 1980s. Today, the building is a private property and is not used.

Description

The castle stands in the north-east part of the city; the old defensive wall has survived from the west. The two-storey building, covered with a high gable roof has a T-shaped floor plan. The older, east part from the small courtyard features some blind arcades on the façade. The west wind added later is longer than the east one and topped with a tower with a bulbous cupola with a lantern. The main entrance is in through a columned portico in the west wing. The regularly partitioned façades have preserved their old architectural design: voluted gables on the south and window surrounds. The interior with a single-bay layout are vaulted at the ground level and covered with ceilings on the upper floor. At the gable wall in the south wing of the castle, there is a stone penitential cross.

Currently, the complex is a private property and is not made available to the public.

Compiled by Joanna Szot, Regional Branch of the National Heritage Board of Poland in Opole, 11-01-2015.

Bibliography

• Chrząszcz J. (red.), Geschichte der Stadt Zülz in Oberschlesien, Zülz 1926.
• Lutsch H., Verzeichnis der Kunstdenkmäler der Provinz Schlesien, Bd. 4: Die Kunstdenkmäler des Reg.-Bezirks Oppeln, Tl. 2, Breslau 1894.
• Pilch J., Leksykon zabytków architektury Górnego Śląska, Warszawa 2008.
• Zabytki sztuki w Polsce. Śląsk, (praca zbiorowa), Warszawa 2006.