It is one of the few objects of this type in Poland.

History

The construction of the Bismarck Tower in Żagań (German: Sagan) was initiated by state councillors Neefe and Obischau in August 1902. Two years later, in 1904, an organising committee was formed and addressed all municipal organisations and residents to raise money and materials necessary for the erection of the tower. Already in mid 1906 the initiators of the construction of the tower had 4.200 mark at their disposal. In 1907 the design prepared by an architect Carl Stahlberg from Zielona Góra was selected out of the submitted ones. A plot under the construction of the tower was bought on the Castle Hill, near the contemporary Nocznickiego Street. A cornerstone was laid at a presence of municipal authorities on 30 July 1908. The main construction works were supervised by a constructor Bernikau and a site manager Engel from Jabłonowo (German: Schönbrunn). Erratic rocks and granite from a quarry near Bolków were used at the construction of the tower. The tower head was made of Silesian granite. The ceremonious opening took place on 27 June 1909. On that day the tower was opened to visitors and in the evening the fire was lit for the first time on the top of the tower. The structure was handed over to the town, along with the maintenance costs. The tower was commissioned by the then mayor, Heinrich Achilles. In 1938 a water reservoir with a capacity of 200 m³ was incorporated into the tower, therefore it served as a water tower for the local community until 2002. The hostilities of the World War II did not lead to damage being done to the building. In 2002 the tower was subject to renovation, in the course of which, among others, external walls, the crown and the stairs were refurbished. Currently, the structure does not perform any functions.

Description

A 22 metres tall structure was set on a rectangular plan and built of erratic rocks and granite. The entrance portal leading to the Otto von Bismarck memory chamber was located on the side of the town. The original two-wing entrance door made of oak was replaced with bars. Granite columns are located on the sides of the portal. Above the entrance, a relief of a reclining lion made of granite (created by a Munich-based sculptor, Klaus) was embedded as a complementary feature of the portal. A plaque with a “Bismarck” inscription (made by the Fabian company of Żagań) was placed above the lion. At the height of 5 metres, the tower is circumscribed by a terrace accessible via external stairs on the left and on the right. The terrace is supported by seven quadrangular columns made of stone blocks. Under the terrace, there is a hall with arcades forming corridors on the sides, terminating in a full, round arch under the stairs. External stairs with 50 steps made of granite lead from the terrace to the viewing platform (located at the height of 15 m). From the viewing platform it was possible to access the tower head by means of spiral stairs, to a place where a fire pan with a diameter of 2.80 m and weighing 850 kg was installed.

The site is open to visitors.

Author of the note Krzysztof Słowiński, Regional Branch of the National Institute of Cultural Heritage in Zielona Góra, 11-05-2017

Bibliography

• www.bismarcktuerme.de,
• www.zagan.dlawas.info,
• www.fotopolska.eu,
• www.wikipedia.org,
• www.dolny-slask.org.pl