The Branicki Palace ( pl, Pałac Branickich ) is an 18th-century

magnate The magnate term, from the late Latin ''magnas'', a great man, itself from Latin ''magnus'', "great", means a man from the higher nobility, a man who belongs to the high office-holders, or a man in a high social position, by birth, wealth or ot ...

mansion A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word '' manse'' originally defined a property l ...

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officiall ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

. It is located at the junction of ''Podwale'' and ''

Miodowa Miodowa (lit. ''Honey Street'') is a street in Warsaw Old Town, Warsaw's Old Town. More precisely, it links the Krakowskie Przedmieście, Krakowskie (Cracow Suburb) Street in with Krasiński Square. It is also the name of a street in the Kazimierz ...

'' Streets.

History

The Palace is one of three with the same name in Warsaw. This particular Branicki Palace is on Miodowa Street (the others are located on Nowy Świat Street and ''Na Skarpie'' Avenue). Izabella Poniatowska Branicka

The original building that stood where the palace now stands was a 17th-century

of the Sapieha family sold in the beginning of the 18th century to Stefan Mikołaj Branicki. This led to the current palace, built in 1740 by Johann Sigmund Deybel for Grand Crown

Hetman ( uk, гетьман, translit=het'man) is a political title from Central and Eastern Europe, historically assigned to military commanders. Used by the Czechs in Bohemia since the 15th century. It was the title of the second-highest military ...

Jan Klemens Branicki Count Jan Klemens Branicki (also known as Jan Kazimierz Branicki; 21 September 1689 – 9 October 1771) was a Polish nobleman, magnate and Hetman, Field Crown Hetman of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth between 1735 and 1752, and Great Crown ...

. Jan Henryk Klemm (1743),

Jakub Fontana Jakub Fontana (born 1710 in Szczuczyn, died 13 April 1773 in Warsaw) was a Polish architect of Swiss Italian origin, a practitioner of the Baroque and Neoclassical styles. He was court architect to the Polish king. He was knighted in 1764. Jakub ...

(1750) and sculptor Jan Chryzostom Redler also participated in the construction. The now

rococo Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...

palace was inspired by French palaces. The layout was shaped like a horseshoe, with a central part ''

corps de logis In architecture, a ''corps de logis'' () is the principal block of a large, (usually classical), mansion or palace. It contains the principal rooms, state apartments and an entry.Curl, James Stevens (2006). ''Oxford Dictionary of Architecture ...

'' and two side wings. The building was set back from the street by a ''

cour d'honneur A ''cour d'honneur'' (; ; german: Ehrenhof) is the principal and formal approach and forecourt of a large building. It is usually defined by two secondary wings projecting forward from the main central block ('' corps de logis''), sometimes w ...

'', a symmetrical courtyard set apart in this way, at which the honored visitors arrived. The façades were balanced with admirable rococo decoration and rooftop windows. The main entrance was decorated with a portico of four columns with sculptures on the top. The interiors were decorated in the rococo style by Johann Sigmund Deybel and Jakub Fontana. Later, a pavilion called "Buduar" was added to the south wing at the back. The Branicki Palace previously had been called the ''Mrs Krakowska Palace'', because after Branicki's death the property was inherited by his beautiful wife

Izabella Poniatowska Countess Izabella Poniatowska (1 July 1730 – 14 February 1808) was a Polish noblewoman, sister of king Stanisław Antoni Poniatowski. Life She was the daughter of Stanisław Poniatowski and Konstancja Czartoryska. She was reportedly clo ...

(1771), sister of king

Stanisław August Poniatowski Stanisław II August (born Stanisław Antoni Poniatowski; 17 January 1732 – 12 February 1798), known also by his regnal Latin name Stanislaus II Augustus, was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1764 to 1795, and the last monarc ...

(Izabella was a daughter of Stanisław Poniatowski,

Castellan A castellan is the title used in Medieval Europe for an appointed official, a governor of a castle and its surrounding territory referred to as the castellany. The title of ''governor'' is retained in the English prison system, as a remnant ...

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula, Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland un ...

). She held a

salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon ( ...

in the palace, and became known as a patron and gatherer of artists, intellectuals, and statesmen in the era of Enlightenment in Poland. Shortly afterwards the Branicki Palace was sold in 1804 to the general Józef Niemojewski. The new owner improved the palace - two side outbuildings were added to the palace complex in 1804-1808 by architect Fryderyk Albert Lessel. From 1817 the palace was inhabited by the

Stanisław Sołtyk Stanisław Sołtyk (12 December 1753 – 4 June 1831) was a Polish nobleman (szlachcic), political activist, landowner, father of Roman Sołtyk. Stanisław was born in Krysk near Płońsk. He became Royal chamberlain in 1780, Great Podstoli ...

. During the Second World War, the estate was badly damaged (it was burned down in 1939 and demolished by the Germans during the

Occupation of Poland Occupation commonly refers to: * Occupation (human activity), or job, one's role in society, often a regular activity performed for payment *Occupation (protest), political demonstration by holding public or symbolic spaces *Military occupation, t ...

), but after the war it was completely restored. It was rebuilt in 1967, based on paintings by

Bernardo Bellotto Bernardo Bellotto (c. 1721/2 or 30 January 172117 November 1780), was an Italian urban landscape painter or ''vedutista'', and printmaker in etching famous for his ''vedute'' of European cities – Dresden, Vienna, Turin, and Warsaw. He was th ...

, and now houses Warsaw City Hall.

Images

File:Bellotto Miodowa Street in Warsaw.jpg, File:Ruiny pałacu Branickich przy ul. Miodowej.jpg, File:Warszawa pałac Branickich (Miodowa).jpg, File:2 Palac Branickich 02.jpg, File:Miodowa 6-Podwale 3.JPG, File:Miod24DSC 1231.jpg, File:Miodowa 6 rzeźby 2.JPG,

References

::In-line: ::General: *

History

Images

See also

References

See also