Ogrodzieniec Castle is a ruined medieval

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

in Podzamcze, near

Ogrodzieniec Ogrodzieniec is a town in Zawiercie County, Silesian Voivodeship, Poland, with 4,282 inhabitants (2019). It is noted for the extensive ruins of a medieval castle. Ogrodzieniec is a part of Lesser Poland. Ogrodzieniec lies among the hills of Le ...

, the south-central region of Poland called

Polish Jura Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

. Originating in the 14th century the castle was rebuilt several times in its long history. It is situated on the top of 515.5-metre-high Castle Mountain (

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

: Góra Zamkowa), the highest hill of the

Kraków-Częstochowa Upland The Kraków-Częstochowa Upland, also known as the Polish Jurassic Highland or Polish Jura ( pl, Jura Krakowsko-Częstochowska), is part of the Jurassic System of south–central Poland, stretching between the cities of Kraków, Częstochowa an ...

. The ruins are open to visitors and are a part of

Trail of the Eagles' Nests The Trail of the Eagles' Nests ( pl, Szlak Orlich Gniazd) of south-western Poland, is a marked trail along a chain of 25 medieval castles between Częstochowa and Kraków. The Trail of the Eagles' Nests was first marked by Kazimierz Sosnowski. Si ...

, a hiking trail that connects a number of well known castles in the region.

History

The history of fortifications on the top of Ogrodzieniec Castle Mountain goes back to the early 12th century and the reign of Boleslaus III Wrymouth. It was during his rule when the first stronghold was built on the top of the hill. This first keep, made largely of earth and wooden ramparts, was razed to the ground in 1241 during the

Mongol Invasion of Europe From the 1220s into the 1240s, the Mongols conquered the Turkic states of Volga Bulgaria, Cumania, Alania, and the Kievan Rus' federation. Following this, they began their invasion into heartland Europe by launching a two-pronged invasion of ...

. In the middle of the 14th century a new

gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

castle was built here to accommodate the Włodek Sulima family. Surrounded by three high rocks, the castle was well integrated into the area. The defensive walls were built to close the circuit formed by the rocks, and a narrow opening between two of the rocks served as an entrance. In 1470, the castle and lands were bought by the wealthy

Cracovian In astronomical and geodetic calculations, Cracovians are a clerical convenience introduced in the 1930s by Tadeusz Banachiewicz for solving systems of linear equations by hand. Such systems can be written as in matrix notation where x and b are ...

townsmen, Ibram and Piotr Salomon. Then, Ogrodzieniec became the property of Jan Feliks Rzeszowski, the rector of

Przemyśl Przemyśl (; yi, פשעמישל, Pshemishl; uk, Перемишль, Peremyshl; german: Premissel) is a city in southeastern Poland with 58,721 inhabitants, as of December 2021. In 1999, it became part of the Subcarpathian Voivodeship; it was pr ...

and the canon 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 ...

. Around 1488, the castle was owned by Jan and subsequently Andrzej Rzeszowski and, later, the Pilecki and Chełmiński families. In 1523 the castle was bought by Jan Boner. After his death, the castle passed to his nephew, Seweryn Boner, who replaced the medieval stronghold with a

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 ...

castle in 1530–1545. In 1562, the castle became the property of the Great Marshal of the Crown

Jan Firlej Jan Firlej (c. 1521, Dąbrowica, Lublin County – 1574, Kock) was a Polish nobleman (szlachcic), and Calvinist activist. Jan became Great Marshal of the Crown in 1563 and starost of Kraków in 1572. He agreed with the candidature of Henryk ...

, as a result of his marriage to Zofia, the daughter of Seweryn Boner. In 1587, the castle was captured by the Austrian archduke Maximilian III, the rejected candidate to the Polish-Lithuanian throne. In 1655, it was partly burnt by the Swedish troops, who – deployed there for almost two years – damaged the buildings considerably. From 1669 on, the castle belonged to

Stanisław Warszycki Stanisław Warszycki of Abdank coat of arms (c. 1600 – 1680/1681) was a noble (''szlachcic'') and magnate in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Starosta of Piotrków Trybunalski, Piotrków, Voivode of Mazowsze (1630–1651), Castellan of ...

, the Kraków's

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 o ...

, who managed to partly rebuild the castle after the Swedish devastations. About 1695, the castle changed hands once again, becoming the property of the Męciński family. Seven years later, in 1702, over half of the castle burned in a fire set by troops of

Charles XII of Sweden Charles XII, sometimes Carl XII ( sv, Karl XII) or Carolus Rex (17 June 1682 – 30 November 1718 O.S.), was King of Sweden (including current Finland) from 1697 to 1718. He belonged to the House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken, a branch line of t ...

. After that fire, it was never rebuilt. About 1784, the ruined castle was purchased by Tomasz Jakliński. The last tenants left the devastated castle about 1810. The next owner was Ludwik Kozłowski, who used the remains of the castle as a source of building material and sold many items from castle to merchants. The last proprietor of the castle was the neighbouring Wołoczyński family. After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the castle was nationalized. The work to preserve the ruins and open them to visitors was started in 1949 and finished in 1973.

Interesting facts

Zamek w Ogrodzieńcu Widok z przedzamcza 2

On the bottom floor, fragments of the renaissance frescos of lilies are still visible. Close to the castle, on the market of Podzamcze village, stands a chapel built from architectural elements (

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 ...

volute A volute is a spiral, scroll-like ornament that forms the basis of the Ionic order, found in the capital of the Ionic column. It was later incorporated into Corinthian order and Composite column capitals. Four are normally to be found on an Ion ...

cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, around the top edge of a ...

) of the castle. Inside the chapel are original elements of the castle chapel: the vault keystone,

round shot A round shot (also called solid shot or simply ball) is a solid spherical projectile without explosive charge, launched from a gun. Its diameter is slightly less than the bore of the barrel from which it is shot. A round shot fired from a la ...

said to have fallen into the castle during the Swedish

Deluge A deluge is a large downpour of rain, often a flood. The Deluge refers to the flood narrative in the Biblical book of Genesis. Deluge may also refer to: History *Deluge (history), the Swedish and Russian invasion of the Polish-Lithuanian Comm ...

(1655–1660), and a

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 ...

Our Lady sculpture. The sculpture has been painted in the folk style (with oil paint) by the locals, obscuring its original appearance. According to local folklore, the Ogrodzieniec Castle is haunted by the "Black Dog of Ogrodzieniec", seen prowling the ruins at night, pulling a heavy chain. The dog is to be the soul of the

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 o ...

of Kraków,

, whose soul also supposedly haunts the ruins of the Dańków Castle, where it appears as a headless horseman.

In film and television

In 1973, Ogrodzieniec Castle was used for outdoor scenes in television series ''Janosik''. In 1980, film ''The Knight'' by

Lech Majewski Lech Majewski (pronounced , ‘Ma-yev-ski’) (born 30 August 1953) is a Polish film and theatre director, writer, poet, and painter. Life and career Born in Katowice, Poland, Majewski studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw. In the 1970s ...

was shot in the castle. In 1984, the castle was used by the band

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...

in their video feature '' Behind The Iron Curtain'', as a backdrop for the song " Hallowed Be Thy Name". In 1995, the castle was used to depict ruins of the old Spellbinder's castle in Australian television series '' Spellbinder''. In 2001, the ruins were used as scenery for

Andrzej Wajda Andrzej Witold Wajda (; 6 March 1926 – 9 October 2016) was a Polish film and theatre director. Recipient of an Honorary Oscar, the Palme d'Or, as well as Honorary Golden Lion and Honorary Golden Bear Awards, he was a prominent member of the ...

's film '' The Revenge''. For the purpose of filmmaking, parts of the castle interiors were temporarily reconstructed. Those recreations remained in place for a time being even after the shooting ended. In 2018, the ruins of the castle were used during filming of ''

The Witcher ''The Witcher'' ( pl, Wiedźmin ) is a series of six fantasy novels and 15 short stories written by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski. The series revolves around the eponymous "witcher", Geralt of Rivia. In Sapkowski's works, "witchers" are bea ...

'' -

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

's 2019 series, starring

Henry Cavill Henry William Dalgliesh Cavill ( ; born 5 May 1983) is a British actor. He is known for his portrayal of Charles Brandon in Showtime's ''The Tudors'' (2007–2010), DC Comics character Superman in the DC Extended Universe (2013–2022), Gera ...

Gallery

File:Ogrodzieniec-Zamek-Tamerlan.jpg, The Ogrodzieniec Castle- view from the East File:Zamek-Ogrodzieniec.jpg, Panorama of the castle File:Ogrodzieniec sala tortur 1.JPG, The torture chamber as seen from the tower File:Ogrodzieniec sala tortur 2.JPG, The torture chamber File:Ogrodzieniec zamek MG 1.JPG, A tower of the Ogrodzieniec Castle with the Polish flag File:Ogrodzieniec zamek MG 2.JPG, The castle windows File:Ogrodzieniec zamek 3.JPG, The castle walls File:20140619 Zamek Ogrodzieniec 3673.jpg, The castle walls File:Ogrodzieniec zamek 5.JPG, The castle walls File:Ogrodzieniec - ściana południowa (2012-08-26).jpg, The South wall of the Ogrodzieniec Castle (2012-08-26) File:Ogrodzieniec Castle.jpg, Inside castle

History

Interesting facts

In film and television

Gallery

See also