Kórnik Castle (Polish: Zamek w Kórniku or Zamek Kórnicki) is a castle in the Polish town of Kórnik, which was constructed in the 14th century. The current

neogothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

design and remodeling was done in 1855 partly on the basis of architect

Karl Friedrich Schinkel Karl Friedrich Schinkel (13 March 1781 – 9 October 1841) was a Prussian architect, city planner and painter who also designed furniture and stage sets. Schinkel was one of the most prominent architects of Germany and designed both neoclassic ...

's plans for

Tytus Działyński Tytus Adam Działyński (1796–1861, son of Ksawery, father to Jan Kanty) was a Polish political activist and protector of arts and a Prussian politician. Biography He was a publisher of historical sources important for the Polish history, ...

and the son Jan Kanty Działyński. After last member of Działyński family Jan Kanty Działyński's death, his brother-in-law Count Władysław Zamoyski received the castle in Jan's will. Shortly before his death in 1924, the childless count willed the castle, along with an extensive art collection and the Kórnik Arboretum to the Polish state. The castle currently houses a museum and the

Kórnik Library Kórnik Library ( pl, Biblioteka Kórnicka) is one of the most famous Polish libraries, founded by Tytus Działyński in 1828 in the town of Kórnik. Currently the library, despite being robbed by the Germans during World War II, is one of the f ...

. It's one of Poland's official national Historic Monuments (''

Pomnik historii Historic Monument ( pl, pomnik historii) is one of several categories of objects of cultural heritage (in the singular, '' zabytek'') in Poland. To be recognized as a Polish historic monument, an object must be declared such by the President ...

''), as designated July 11, 2011 and tracked by the National Heritage Board of Poland.

Exterior of the castle

The current look of the castle resembles Gothic Revival architecture, one of the popular historicising styles in the 19th century. The main entrance to the castle is located at the northern side. Its characteristic feature is a four-centred arch at the top of the window above the entrance. Up until the interwar period the castle was entered through the so-called ''babiniec'' - a barbican-shaped chamber which was subsequently demolished in the years 1925–1939. The western side of the castle features an expanded

terrace Terrace may refer to: Landforms and construction * Fluvial terrace, a natural, flat surface that borders and lies above the floodplain of a stream or river * Terrace, a street suffix * Terrace, the portion of a lot between the public sidewalk an ...

overlooking Lake Kórnik. The southern side is dominated by a

chaitya A chaitya, chaitya hall, chaitya-griha, (Sanskrit:''Caitya''; Pāli: ''Cetiya'') refers to a shrine, sanctuary, temple or prayer hall in Indian religions. The term is most common in Buddhism, where it refers to a space with a stupa and a rounded ...

arch, which was probably modelled on the

Royal Pavilion The Royal Pavilion, and surrounding gardens, also known as the Brighton Pavilion, is a Grade I listed former royal residence located in Brighton, England. Beginning in 1787, it was built in three stages as a seaside retreat for George, Princ ...

in Brighton and the

Islamic architecture Islamic architecture comprises the architectural styles of buildings associated with Islam. It encompasses both secular and religious styles from the early history of Islam to the present day. The Islamic world encompasses a wide geographic ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. On the eastern side, there is a Gothic Revival tower whose red brick

façade A façade () (also written facade) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a loan word from the French (), which means ' frontage' or ' face'. In architecture, the façade of a building is often the most important aspect ...

clearly contrasts with the rest of the castle. The tower was erected during the remodelling of the castle by Tytus Działyński. Also near the entry to the Kórnik Castle, there are historic outbuildings and a

carriage house A carriage house, also called a remise or coach house, is an outbuilding which was originally built to house horse-drawn carriages and the related tack. In Great Britain the farm building was called a cart shed. These typically were open ...

. The castle is surrounded by Kórnik Arboretum founded by Count

in the first half of the 19th century - the oldest and largest one in

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 ...

as well as the fourth largest arboretum in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

covering around 40 hectares and containing more than 3300

taxa In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; plural taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular nam ...

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

s and shrubs.

Interior of the castle

The castle presently houses the

and a museum showcasing numerous unique objects including historic furniture, Ukrainian and European paintings, sculptures, numismatic collections, military antiques,

porcelain Porcelain () is a ceramic material made by heating substances, generally including materials such as kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to other types of pottery, arises main ...

and silver art objects. Among the most significant works in the library are the original manuscript of

Adam Mickiewicz Adam Bernard Mickiewicz (; 24 December 179826 November 1855) was a Polish poet, dramatist, essayist, publicist, translator and political activist. He is regarded as national poet in Poland, Lithuania and Belarus. A principal figure in Polish Ro ...

's ''

Dziady Dziady ( Belarusian: , Russian: , Ukrainian: , pl, Dziady; lit. "grandfathers, eldfathers", sometimes translated as Forefathers' Eve) is a term in Slavic folklore for the spirits of the ancestors and a collection of pre-Christian rites, ritual ...

'' (Part III) and

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

's hand-written romantic novella '' Clisson et Eugénie''. The most impressive chamber of the residence is the Moor Room, which was inspired by the

Court of the Lions The Court of the Lions ( es, Patio de los Leones; ar, بهو السباع) or Palace of the Lions ( es, Palacio de los Leones) is a palace in the heart of the Alhambra, a historic citadel formed by a complex of palaces, gardens and forts in Grana ...

in Alhambra, Spain. It was initially intended for a library but later it became a museum room featuring national works of art. In the room below the tower, there are

ethnographic Ethnography (from Greek ''ethnos'' "folk, people, nation" and ''grapho'' "I write") is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. Ethnography explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject ...

and natural collections on display brought from Australia and

Oceania Oceania (, , ) is a geographical region that includes Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Spanning the Eastern and Western hemispheres, Oceania is estimated to have a land area of and a population of around 44.5 million ...

by Count Władysław Zamoyski who inherited the estate from his maternal uncle, Jan Kanty, in 1881.

Gallery

File:Castillo de Kórnik, Kórnik, Polonia, 2016-12-21, DD 04.jpg, The castle and the moat File:Napoleon Orda, Zamek Działyńskich w Kórniku.jpg, ''Działyński Castle in Kórnik'', by

Napoleon Orda Napoleon Mateusz Tadeusz Orda ( be, Напалеон Орда; lt, Napoleonas Orda; 11 February 1807 – 26 April 1883) was a Polish-Lithuanian musician, pianist, composer and artist, best known for numerous sketches of historical sites of the ...

File:Castillo de Kórnik, Kórnik, Polonia, 2016-12-21, DD 13.jpg, The Gothic Revival tower of the castle on the right File:655070 muzeum w zamku Kórnik (1).jpg, Castle interiors

Exterior of the castle

Interior of the castle

Gallery

See also