In addition, its layout remains a vivid illustration of the way in which the facility continued to spread gradually as its capacity increased, with both the old brewery and the more recent section of the complex from years 1861-1914 having been preserved intact. The site also retains an immense significance from a research standpoint due to the presence of the surviving fixtures and fittings which even today continue to perform their original functions, including the drying plant, the malt house and the brewhouse no. 3, the latter still featuring its period interior décor in the form of ceramic tiles with maiolica decorations, originating the famous ceramics manufacturing plant in Karlsruhe. The immediate surroundings of the plant, with the purpose-designed plantings, walking paths, squares and tree stands, also bear testimony to the meticulous quality of design of the entire complex.

History

The Tychy brewery can trace its roots all the way back to the 16th century. Originally, the brewery buildings were located in the manor farm owned by the Promnitz ducal family from Pszczyna, in the eastern part of the village. The very first mentions of the brewery date back to 1613, with a brief description of the facility being included in the urban register of ownership (urbarium) from 1629, leading to this very date being accepted as the year when the complex itself came into being. The Tychy brewery was one of the largest local facilities of its kind back in the mid-17th century. In 1761, the manufacturing process was streamlined through the introduction of a wooden pipeline supplying the water from a spring located in the middle of the village, near the local parish church. In 1794, the brewery complex was heavily damaged by fire, with the reconstruction process commencing in the year 1800, resulting in the construction of new, brick brewery buildings. The first attempts at the modernisation of the plant, brought about by a decline in profitability, were made in the years 1824-1861, when numerous hop plantations were established in Tychy, Suszec and Pszczyna; in addition, a new official known as the “cellar administrator” was appointed, his responsibilities including, among others, beer quality assurance and transportation arrangements. Due to the low revenues of the company at the time, however, these investments were limited in scope and included the construction of a heating duct in the malt drying plant. In 1832, the ducal treasury leased the facility - along with the lagering cellars in Pszczyna and Suszec - to Jakub Altsmann, whose primary lines of business were cattle sales and vodka manufacturing. In 1835, he imported one of the most state-of-the-art distillation devices available at the time - the so-called Gall apparatus - and had it installed at the facility. However, the brewing company was only able to overcome its economic woes in 1861, thanks to the involvement of Jan Henryk XI, the duke of Pszczyna, who commenced the modernisation and construction of a new, state-of-the-art Tychy Brewery, acting upon the advice given by Leopold Nasse and Julius Müller, with the notable architects responsible for the design of the new facility including Eschweiler and Scheinertern. The initial stage of extension works took place in the years 1861-1862 and encompassed the construction of the new brewhouse with a drying room, grinder, cold storage and malt drying kiln on the attic level. The distillery - which now occupied a separate cellar - was located in the old brewery buildings. In 1864, due to the introduction of a new brewing method, the decision was taken to begin the construction of a new cellar where ingredients would be stored throughout the winter. A significant milestone in the development of the plant was the arrival of Julius Müller, who implemented the lager beer (Lagerbier) manufacturing process and initiated a further plant extension programme. In 1886, the brewhouse no. 1 was extended and received its new machinery and equipment; a new malt house and fermentation cellar were also added, while one year later a Hencke mechanical grain stillage drying apparatus was purchased. Another crucial investment was the introduction of electric lighting in 1890 as well as the acquisition of steam boilers that heated the wort and mixing water, resulting in a greatly enhanced manufacturing process. In years 1895-1896, a second brewhouse was added, followed by a third one six years later, equipped with a state-of-the-art mechanized steam brewing apparatus. The main investments have been completed prior to the outbreak of World War I. The 1920s brought about the further modernisation of the plant, with the fourth brewhouse, opened in 1922, being the most modern installation to date. In 1918, the Civic Brewery and the Ducal Brewery were merged into a single company, ending the long period of resource-draining competition between the two. In 1945, following the fall of Nazi Germany, the Soviet troops used the brewery as their quarters for a brief period of time; in September, the Breweries in Tychy have all been joined together, forming the Union of Brewing and Malting Industry. One year later, the manufacturing plant was nationalised, while towards the end of the 1940s, the advent of the agricultural reform resulted in the loss of the accompanying land which had hitherto served the factory. In the 1940s, the modernisation and extension works were limited to the rectification of the wartime losses; in the 1950s, the vats and electrical equipment were replaced, the racking (fining) system was extended, as was the boiler room. The brewhouse throughput was likewise increased. The modernisation and extension of the plant continued in the years that followed. In 1951, a new company known as the Tychy Brewing and Malting Company was formed by merging Brewery no. 1 and no. 2. In 1968, the company changed its name to the Tychy Brewing Company. In the 1970s, the company was merged with the Upper Silesian Brewing Company and was only able to regain its autonomy in 1981.

Ten years later, the company became a State Treasury-owned joint-stock company. Another important event for the functioning and development of the company was the merger between Browary Tyskie Górny Śląsk S.A. (“Upper Silesia” Tychy Brewing Company) and Lech Browary Wielkopolskie S.A. (Lech Brewing Company of Greater Poland).

Description

The Ducal Brewery complex is located in the northern part of the city of Tychy. The greatest concentration of buildings can be seen in the eastern part of the site, with the industrial complex itself being designed on a roughly rectangular plan, with the Katowicka, Mikołowska and Tadeusza Kościuszki roads and the main access road serving as its eastern, northern, southern and western boundaries thereof. The entire complex is surrounded by a perimeter wall, with four access gates leading into the brewery. One of the distinguishing features of the complex is the presence of large amounts of well-kept greenery - walking paths, squares, groves and stands of trees. The complex itself consists of two main areas in the form of the Old Brewery and the New Brewery.

The Old Brewery complex occupies the area of the original brewing facility, established back in the early 17th century. It has been preserved in its 19th-century shape, exhibiting the final stage in the planning and development, when the complex of buildings, the green areas and the road network were all completed. The complex consists of four former industrial buildings - the former distillery in the northern and north-eastern part of the quadrangle, the former smithy forming a fragment of the south-eastern side of the complex, the utility building designed on an L-shaped floor plan at the south-western edge of the complex, connected with the smithy building by a wall, as well as an icehouse located at the western edge of the site. The buildings are arranged around a square inner courtyard, accessible through the gate on the eastern side of the complex. The constituent parts of the complex are as follows:

1. The former manufacturing building, originally used as a distillery and brewhouse, currently abandoned - a two-storey brick edifice designed on an L-shaped floor plan, its segmented main body covered with a gable roof. The building was erected towards the end of the 17th century and was subsequently redesigned in the late 19th/early 20th century.

2. The former smithy, currently abandoned - a two-storey building with exposed brick façades, designed on an elongated rectangular floor plan and featuring a compact main body covered with a gable roof. Erected towards the end of the 18th century, it was subsequently redesigned towards the end of the 19th century.

3. The buildings standing above the former distillery cellars, currently abandoned - a group of brick buildings designed on a roughly L-shaped floor plan and a rectangular floor plan respectively, covered with flat roofs. Erected towards the end of the 18th century, they were subsequently redesigned towards the end of the 19th century.

The New Brewery complex is a large group of buildings consisting of manufacturing, administrative and auxiliary structures. The buildings are predominantly arranged in rows which line the main internal roads, with the greatest concentration of structures being present in the eastern part of the site. The constituent parts of the complex are as follows:

1. The malt house complex - a complex of four-storey brick buildings designed on a roughly L-shaped plan, their two wings covered with flattened gable roofs. The buildings were constructed in the years 1892-1893.

2. The malt drying house with chimneys - a three-storey brick building designed on a rectangular floor plan, its compact main body covered with a flat roof, with three cylindrical chimneys jutting from its surface. The structure was built in the years 1895/1896.

3. The brewhouse no. 3 - a four-storey brick building designed on a roughly square plan, its compact main body covered with a gable roof. Notable features include the interior, with its glazed tiles adorned with maiolica decorations, as well as the fixtures and fittings from the years 1915-1917, including the brewing kettle, the mash kettle and the switchboard. The building was erected in the years 1917-1922.

4. The brewhouse no. 1 and the block brewhouse - a brick building designed on a roughly rectangular plan, its segmented body covered with a gable roof. The building was preserved in the form which it attained in years 1886-1896.

5. Machine room buildings - brick buildings designed on an irregular plan, consisting of two distinct segments and housing the fermentation tanks, the yeast facility and the machine room. The buildings were completed in 1896 and were subsequently extended in the years that followed.

6. The casino - a three-storey brick building designed on a roughly rectangular floor plan, with a four-storey tower in its southern section, the individual segments of its structure covered with a flat roof (main body), pyramid roof (tower) and jerkin head roof (avant-corps). Inside, the building features some period décor in the form of wood panelling and other fixtures and fittings. The building was erected in 1905.

7. Möller’s Villa, currently serving as the administrative building - a single-storey brick building designed on a roughly square plan, its compact body covered with a mansard roof. Inside, the mansion features some preserved original fixtures and fittings in the form of the wooden ceiling, tiled stoves in various vibrant colours, decorative wood panelling as well as built-in wardrobes and closets adorned with sumptuous fretwork decorations. The building was completed in 1891.

8. The boiler house complex, currently serving as the storage facility, transformer station and heat exchanger station - a two-storey brick complex designed on an irregular plan consisting of two adjoining rectangles, with the segmented structures of the buildings being covered with gable roofs. The complex was erected gradually, starting in 1862.

9. The former bathhouse and washhouse, currently serving as the factory outpatient clinic - a single-storey brick building designed on a polygonal plan, with a gable roof covering most sections of its segmented main body. The building was completed in 1927.

10. Evangelical chapel, currently serving as the Brewing Museum in Tychy - a brick building erected on a rectangular floor plan, covered with a gable roof, its original structure having seen numerous alterations throughout the years. A bell tower rises above the south façade gable, with the interior of the northern part of the structure taking the form of a two-nave hall, with the ground-floor level following a three-nave layout with arcaded partitions. The building was erected somewhere around the year 1861.

11. The “America” storage cellars with a fermentation facility - a complex of brick buildings designed on an elongated plan, their segmented sections having various types of roof structures, including a gable roof, a hip roof, a two-tier roof and a shed roof. The complex underwent various alteration and extension works in the late 19th century.

12. The grain stillage drying facility, currently serving as the Municipal Museum in Tychy - a two-storey brick building designed on a rectangular floor plan, its compact main body covered by a gable roof. The building was completed in 1909.

13. The truck garage building - a two-storey brick building, its compact structure covered with a gable roof. The building was completed in 1920.

14. The cold storage building - a single-storey brick building designed on a quadrangular plan with a rounded northern section, its compact body covered with a flattened roof. The building was completed in 1911.

15. The brewer’s station - a single-storey brick building designed on a rectangular floor plan, consisting of two distinct segments and covered with a gable roof. The building was completed in 1894 and was subsequently reconstructed in 1995.

16. The “Toszek” storage cellar building - a single-storey brick building covered with a flattened gable roof, its segmented body featuring a tower rising above the southern façade. The building was completed in 1887.

17. The guard booth by the gateway for vehicular traffic - a single-storey brick building with a compact overall shape, covered with a hip roof. The building was completed in 1939.

18. The barrel manufacturing facility buildings - a complex of brick structures designed on an irregular, polygonal plan with a tower in the north-western section. One of its distinguishing features is its segmented silhouette, its northern segment covered with a tented roof, while the southern section and the tower feature a gable roof and a five-sided roof respectively. The building was completed in 1896.

19. The carpentry shop with water tower - a brick building consisting of a two- and three-storey section, designed on a roughly rectangular plan, with a tower rising above the northern section of its segmented main body. The building was constructed in the years 1896-1899.

20. The smokehouse building - a two-storey brick building designed on a rectangular floor plan, its compact body covered with a barrel roof. The building was constructed in the years 1896-1899.

21. Residential building - a two-storey brick building designed on a rectangular floor plan and situated right next to the roundhouse. The building was completed in 1903.

22. The lavatory for carriage drivers - a single-storey brick building designed on a roughly square plan, its compact body covered with a gable roof. The building was completed in 1897.

23. The main warehouse building - a single-storey brick building designed on a rectangular floor plan, its compact structure covered with a gable roof. The building was erected in the late 19th/early 20th century.

24. The barrel-making (cooperage) workshop and storage facility - a brick building consisting of both a single-storey and a two-storey section, designed on a rectangular floor plan, its individual segments covered with a gable roof (northern segment) and two-tier roof (southern section). The building was erected towards the end of the 19th century.

25. Residential building - a two-storey brick building designed on a rectangular floor plan, its compact structure covered with a gable roof. The building is situated right next to the barrel-making workshop. Erected in the 1890s.

26. Residential and utility building with the former stables - a brick consisting of both a single-storey and a two-storey section, designed on a rectangular floor plan, with the two segments of its body covered predominantly with flattened gable roofs. The building was constructed in the years 1892-1895.

The site forms part of the Industrial Monument Trail and may be explored from Monday to Saturday, between 10 AM and 8 PM. Detailed information on admission prices and reservations available on the Brewery website.

compiled by Agata Mucha, Regional Branch of the National Heritage Board of Poland in Katowice, 14-08-2014.

Bibliography

• Zespół Pałacowo-Browarny w Tychach. Część III. Browar Książęcy, compiled by M. Kasprzyk, Kraków 1982, (Archive of the Regional Monuments Protection Office in Katowice, file no. 2035/IV).
• Pasierbek J., Browar Książęcy w Tychach. 1629-1999, Tychy 1999.
• Tyskie Browary Książęce 1629-2004, R. Kaczmarek (ed.), Tychy 2004.
• Zabytki sztuki w Polsce. Śląsk, Sławomir Brzezicki, Christine Nielsen, Grzegorz Grajewski, Dietmar Popp (eds.), Warsaw 2009, p. 893.
• Zabytki techniki województwa śląskiego. Przewodnik po wybranych obiektach, G. Bożek (ed.), p. 74.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. Bathhouse, currently serving as the factory outpatient clinic - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The Ducal Brewery complex - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The brewery and distillery buildings, currently serving as residential and utility buildings (the so-called Kelleraj), compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. Residential building next to the barrel making workshop - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The roundhouse and smithy no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The guard booth by the gateway for vehicular traffic - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The manufacturing buildings, currently serving as the utility buildings of the distillery/the Kelleraj, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. Manufacturing building of the brewery and distillery, currently serving as a residential building/Kelleraj, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The smokehouse - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The carpentry workshop with water tower - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The barrel manufacturing plant - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The grain stillage drying plant - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The malt drying plant - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The lavatory for carriage drivers, currently serving as a storage facility - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The brewhouse no. 1, 2 and 3, currently serving as the brewhouse no. 1 and 2 - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The brewhouse no. 4, currently serving as the brewhouse no. 3 - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. Main warehouse - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The Ducal Brewery complex, currently known as brewery no. 1 - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The fermentation cellar, known as the “western cellar” - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The porter’s lodge, currently serving as the house of the duty brewer, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The cooperage workshop and barrel storage facility, currently serving as the electrical assembly workshop - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. Paired residential buildings for company officials - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. Director Mueller’s villa, currently serving as the administrative building - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The malt house building complex - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The boiler house building complex - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The cold storage building - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The truck garage building, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The Ducal Brewery machinery hall building - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The former Evangelical chapel, currently serving as the mechanical workshop - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The brewers’ casino building, currently serving as the management building - Brewery no. 1, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture. The smithy building, currently serving as the residential building forming part of the distillery complex/Kelleraj, compiled by P. Wybraniec, Ł. Konarzewski, A. Szewczyk, J. Sperka, 1988.