Dębno Castle is a late Gothic complex, built in 1470 to 1480 by Chancellor of the Crown and Kasztelan of

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

, Jakub Dębiński (also known as Jakub z Dębna), in the southern Polish village of

Dębno Dębno (german: Neudamm) is a town in Myślibórz County, West Pomeranian Voivodeship in western Poland. As of December 2021, the town has a population of 13,443. After the Migration Period, the area was populated by West Slavic peoples since t ...

. It is located a few hundred meters south of the international European route E40.

History

Before stone castle was built, a complex made of wood and earth had existed on the location. It probably belonged to

komes Komes (abbreviated K. before a surname), also żupan in Polish, a title developed from the Latin ''comes'' in medieval Poland and was used for dignitary in the period of the Holy Roman Empire for administrative and military district commanders. The ...

Świętoslaw of the noble ''Gryfita'' family, Kasztelan of Wiślica. Some time in the mid-14th century, Dębno passed into the hands of the influential Odrowąż family, to which Jakub z Dębna, founder of the castle, belonged. In 1586 the castle was rebuilt in

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

style, and at that time it belonged to a Hungarian nobleman Ferenc Wesselini, secretary of King Stephen Báthory. In the late 18th century, another remodeling took place, ordered by the ''Tarło'' family, who were then-owners of the castle. Tarło coat of arms and the date ''1772'' can still be seenon

baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

portal Portal often refers to: * Portal (architecture), an opening in a wall of a building, gate or fortification, or the extremities (ends) of a tunnel Portal may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Gaming * ''Portal'' (series), two video games ...

. Also, at that time, a part of the northern wing of the castle was added. Throughout the years, Dębno castle changed hands several times. It belonged to a number of

noble A noble is a member of the nobility. Noble may also refer to: Places Antarctica * Noble Glacier, King George Island * Noble Nunatak, Marie Byrd Land * Noble Peak, Wiencke Island * Noble Rocks, Graham Land Australia * Noble Island, Great B ...

Polish families -

Lanckoroński The House of Lanckoroński (plural Lanckorońscy. Lithuanian - Lanskoronskiai) was an old Polish aristocratic family. Its representatives held power and influence in the Kingdom of Poland from the times of the late Piast dynasty (14th century) to ...

, Rogowski, Rudnicki, Spławski (who in 1831 hosted there refugees of the

November Uprising The November Uprising (1830–31), also known as the Polish–Russian War 1830–31 or the Cadet Revolution, was an armed rebellion in the heartland of partitioned Poland against the Russian Empire. The uprising began on 29 November 1830 in W ...

), Jastrzębski. Even though owners carried out numerous remodeling projects, the castle did not change its original look. It today consists of four rectangular segments, which make an internal, rectangular courtyard with a well. The gate goes through a Baroque portal. Lavlishly furnished rooms on upper floors were occupied by owners, while

domestic worker A domestic worker or domestic servant is a person who works within the scope of a residence. The term "domestic service" applies to the equivalent occupational category. In traditional English contexts, such a person was said to be "in service ...

s lived on ground floor. The castle used to be surrounded by a

moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that is dug and surrounds a castle, fortification, building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive ...

, now, there is a permanent wooden bridge leading to the gate. In 1945, the castle was taken over by the government of Poland, and between 1970 and 1978, it was renovated. Since 1978, Dębno castle has been home to a branch of

Tarnów Tarnów () is a city in southeastern Poland with 105,922 inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of 269,000 inhabitants. The city is situated in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship since 1999. From 1975 to 1998, it was the capital of the Tarnów ...

Regional Museum.

External links

Dębno Castle webpage

Castles of Poland - Dębno

Castles of Lesser Poland - Dębno
{{DEFAULTSORT:Debno Castle Castles in Lesser Poland Voivodeship Brzesko County Museums in Lesser Poland Voivodeship Historic house museums in Poland

History

See also

External links