The park and palace complex in Krzeszowice is one of the most valuable examples of a landowner residence in the region. The neo-Renaissance palace and the adjacent neo-Gothic church are valuable monuments of historicist architecture. The park layout is one of the classic examples of 19th-century garden art.

History

Already in the 17th century, Krzeszowice was considered a health resort. In 1816 the property was inherited by Artur Potocki, the progenitor of the Krzeszowice family line. In 1832, after Artur Potocki’s death, the estate was managed by his wife Zofia and son Adam. The first two palace designs were commissioned by Izabela Lubomirska at the end of the 18th century. Further designs were the Potockis’ initiative. In 1819 Artur Potocki commissioned a design from the French architects Charles Percier and Pierre-François-Léonard Fontaine. However, the scale of the proposed development exceeded the Potocki family’s financial capabilities. In 1823 another design was made by a Berlin-based architect, Karol Schinkel. At Zofia’s request, two more designs were proposed in the English Gothic style. The final one was made in the late 1840s by Francisco Maria Lanci. Lanci proposed a relatively modest, Italian Renaissance mansion, more of a villa than a palace. The construction project was overseen by Antoni Bauman. After the death of Adam Potocki in 1871, a significant modification was made to the main (south) façade of the palace; its proportions were balanced, but the layout proposed by Lanci was not altered. The palace has survived like this to this day. After 1893 the west wing was extended north, according to the design by Zygmunt Hendl. As a result, a spacious, brick annexe was made covered by a mansard roof. At the turn of the 19th century, a new utility wing was added to the north-east, thus creating a second but not representative courtyard. The Potocki family gathered rich and valuable works of art, including paintings, sculptures, furniture, antiques, glass, porcelain, memorabilia, etc. During the German occupation, the general governor, Hans Frank, took over the palace in 1940 as his summer residence and had the interior re-designed according to the concept of Herbert Pohl, Koetgen, and Horstmann. The middle staircase was installed as a result. After WW2, the palace was initially transferred to the Forest College and the National Forest Research Institute based in Krzeszowice. Eventually, it became a seat of the Tadeusz Kościuszko State Educational Institute, a primary school, a high school, and a residence hall. Poorly maintained and not renovated, the condition of the palace quickly deteriorated. In 1973 an idea was conceived to use the complex as a therapeutic rehabilitation centre. In 1977 the palace buildings were taken over by the Department of Health and Social Assistance of the Kraków Municipal Office with the intention of establishing the Kraków Rehabilitation Centre. Until 1987, however, only general securing works were performed. Today, the palace is owned by Krzeszowice Commune.

Description

The palace is located in the west part of the urban settlement, at the highest point of the landscape park, at an altitude of 290 m a.s.l. It has a quadrilateral shape with a courtyard in the centre. The overall volume of the complex is nearly 43,500 m3 and of the usable area about 5,320 m2; it has 228 different rooms (about 100 were used by the owners). The palace was built in the years 1850-1857. The building consisted of a two-storey main body with four towers at the corners, two-sided, one-storey side pavilions connected to the body and side wings. In addition, an octagonal pavilion (later a conservatory) was erected from the east and connected to one of the side wings by a gallery. The entire complex was preceded by a large terrace from the south. In 1858 Artur’s son, Adam Potocki, commissioned Filip Pokutyński to alter the palace. This plan was never implemented; only a rear wing was built (according to Lanci’s design). It finally closed the courtyard. The palace was not inhabited until 1862, and minor alterations (mainly to the interior) were made until 1870 (by the architect August Stüler and the sculptor Parys Filippi). In front of the palace, on the south side, there is a large, bricked-in observation deck. A similar terrace is to the east. Under it, there are entrances to spacious cellars. The wing of the palace on this side is decorated with an original, octagonal pavilion: a former conservatory connected with the palace by a gallery. During the period of use by the State Educational Institution, the interior of the palace was heavily devastated. Irretrievably destroyed was small, architectural equipment of historic value: ceramic stoves, veneer, doors, frames, profiled joinery, wall lamps, door and window fittings, plaster, etc. The front part of the palace was intended by the Potocki family for representative purposes (the east part of the ground floor and the ground floor of the east side wing), residential purposes (the first floor and second floor of the east wing) and as guest rooms (the second floor - attic, some rooms of the west wing). The north wing was primarily a utility space. The terrace leads to a hall which closes with the main staircase. On the right (east) side, there is en enfilade of two the so-called French rooms, a small dining room, a corner ballroom (decorated with stucco). Further on (already in the east wing), there was a large dining room. From there, a roofed gallery led to an octagonal, projecting pavilion, the former orangery. From the front hall to the left (west), there was a passage to two more rooms of different sizes housing a library adjacent to a study located in the so-called Gdańsk Room. Among the furnishings of this room, there were mainly the Gdańsk Renaissance spiral stairs purchased in Gdańsk in 1856. Currently, the Gdańsk stairs can be seen Collegium Maius in Kraków, where they were moved during the post-war interior re-design. The park with an area of 12.43 ha has a landscape character and resembles an English park due to the relatively free greenery layout. The main attraction is two elongated viewing clearings, sloping gently down the hill to the east and south. Both are flanked by tall greenery, which makes their perspective seem significantly longer. The south clearing stretches out in front of the palace. According to the original concept, it was to offer the owners a view of the hill with the ruins of Tęczyn Castle, a testimony to the former glory of the family. In the lower part of the clearing, there are unique trees of varied shapes, clustered in colourful groups: the purple and giant beech, rare species of oak (pyramidal, pectinata, pin, red, pedunculate), catalpa, spruce and others. Above the large pond, there is a broad-leaved mountain ash, profusely blooming magnolias, a group of native trees, and a sumac vinegar on the edge. 

The park is available until dusk; the palace upon arrangement with the commune authorities or during indoor events.

Note by Regional Branch of the National Institute of Cultural Heritage in Kraków 26/10/2014

Bibliography

• Kornecki M.: Sztuka sakralna. Natura i kultura w krajobrazie Jury, Kraków 1993.
• Michałek-Brzegowska M., Pałac w uzdrowisku, “Kraków”, wrzesień 2007, pp. 75-77
• Baraniewski W., Zespół rezydencjonalny w Krzeszowicach w wieku XIX, [in:] Dzieła czy kicze, ed. Grabska E., Jaroszewski T., Warszawa 1981
• Marcinek R., Zamki, dwory, pałace, Kraków 2000