History of the structure

In 1626 Christoph von Schellendorf built a Late Renaissance manor house in Iłowa.  The building was erected in place of an earlier building, on an island surrounded by branches of a small river. A vegetable garden was set up at the pond, on the south side. In the early 18th century Balthasar von Promnitz extended the building and probably incorporated the pond in the decorative composition. The earliest iconographic mentions concerning the development of the land around the residence date back to the turn of the 19th century and indicate the existence of a garden exhibiting a free arrangement. The present shape of the park has its origins in the early 20th century. The works consisting in the redevelopment of the palace and development of the land around it were initiated by Friedrich Maximilian von Hochberg, the ambassador of Germany in the court of the emperor of Japan and owner of the estate since 1902. The count, recognised as a connoisseur of the Japanese garden art, created a Japanese garden with a collection of rhododendrons and a Chinese garden with unique moon gates and a viaduct with a pagoda, in collaboration with gardeners Anlauf and Ertel. Smaller thematic gardens with collections of, among others, dahlias, roses and Ericaceae, were also created. The last owner of the estate, Paul Jentzig, organised an exhibition of dahlias in the park in the 1930s. After World War II the palace was adapted to serve as a seat of a secondary school and the park was opened to the public. In 2012 a renovation of the park began.

Site description

The park, palace and manor farm form a compact complex situated in the central part of Iłowa, on the west side of the main road to Żagań. The palace, surrounded by the park, occupies an island formed by branches of the Mała Czarna river. At the east end, the farm yard and buildings erected in the timber-frame structure, form an L-shaped layout. The main entrance to the palace leads through a gatehouse in the north-eastern corner. The surface area of the complex amounts to 15.8 hectares.

The park is divided into thematic gardens. The Japanese garden, created along the river bank and located to the south of the palace, includes a pond and several islets linked by small bridges. Next to them, there is a rhododendron grove occupying an area of around 1 hectare. The Chinese garden, situated to the west of the residence, has been arranged along the axis starting at the palace bridge. It includes fountains, two brick walls pierced by oval openings (the so-called moon gates) and an alley, originally adorned with rows of sculptures resting on pedestals. The axis terminates in a viaduct with a pagoda, the so-called Love Bridge, passing over Ogrodowa Street. The preserved hornbeam alley runs along the park road to the south-west of the palace. Pedunculate oaks, common hornbeams, red oaks, common maples and black alders prevail in the tree stands. The most valuable specimens include: the thickest common beech in Poland (of a weeping variety), common beech of the copper variety and American tulip tree. The rhododendron grove includes: Catawba rhododendrons, Cunningham’s White rhododendrons and yellow rhododendrons.

The park, palace and manor farm form a compact complex situated in the central part of Iłowa, on the west side of the main road to Żagań. The palace, surrounded by the park, occupies an island formed by branches of the Mała Czarna river. At the east end, the farm yard and buildings erected in the timber-frame structure, form an L-shaped layout. The main entrance to the palace leads through a gatehouse in the north-eastern corner. The surface area of the complex amounts to 15.8 hectares.

The park is divided into thematic gardens. The Japanese garden, created along the river bank and located to the south of the palace, includes a pond and several islets linked by small bridges. Next to them, there is a rhododendron grove occupying an area of around 1 hectare. The Chinese garden, situated to the west of the residence, has been arranged along the axis starting at the palace bridge. It includes fountains, two brick walls pierced by oval openings (the so-called moon gates) and an alley, originally adorned with rows of sculptures resting on pedestals. The axis terminates in a viaduct with a pagoda, the so-called Love Bridge, passing over Ogrodowa Street. The preserved hornbeam alley runs along the park road to the south-west of the palace. Pedunculate oaks, common hornbeams, red oaks, common maples and black alders prevail in the tree stands. The most valuable specimens include: the thickest common beech in Poland (of a weeping variety), common beech of the copper variety and American tulip tree. The rhododendron grove includes: Catawba rhododendrons, Cunningham’s White rhododendrons and yellow rhododendrons.

Visitor access. Heritage site accessible to the general public.

Author of the note: compiled by Anna Jackiewicz, Regional Branch of the National Institute of Cultural Heritage in Zielona Góra, 07-11-2017

Bibliography

• Bielinis-Kopeć B. (ed.), Zabytki województwa lubuskiego, Zielona Góra 2013, pp. 141-144.
• Bielinis-Kopeć B. (ed.), Zamki, dwory i pałace województwa lubuskiego, Zielona Góra 2008, pp. 128-131.
• Garbacz K., Przewodnik po zabytkach województwa lubuskiego, vol. 2, Zielona Góra 2012, pp. 177-178.
• Kowalski S., Zabytki architektury województwa lubuskiego, Zielona Góra 2010, p. 130.