Książ Castle (, ; ) is a castle in northern

Wałbrzych Wałbrzych (; ; or ''Walmbrich''; or ) is a city located in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in southwestern Poland, seat of Wałbrzych County. Wałbrzych lies approximately southwest of the voivodeship capital Wrocław and about from the Czec ...

Lower Silesian Voivodeship Lower Silesian Voivodeship (, ) in southwestern Poland, is one of the 16 Voivodeships of Poland, voivodeships (provinces) into which Poland is divided. It covers an area of and has a total population of 2,899,986. It is one of the wealthiest ...

, Poland. The largest castle in the region of

Silesia Silesia (see names #Etymology, below) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at 8, ...

, it is the third-largest in Poland behind

Malbork Castle The Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork, commonly known as Malbork Castle (; ), is a Brick Gothic castle complex located in the town of Malbork, Poland, built in the 13th and significantly expanded in the 14th century. It is the largest cast ...

and

Wawel Castle The Wawel Royal Castle (; ''Zamek Królewski na Wawelu'') and the Wawel Hill on which it sits constitute the most historically and culturally significant site in Poland. A fortified residency on the Vistula River in Kraków, it was established o ...

. It lies within Książ Landscape Park, a

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...

located in the Sudeten Mountains and Sudeten Foreland. The castle overlooks the gorge of the Pełcznica river and is one of Wałbrzych's main tourist attractions.

History

A first fortification at the site was destroyed by the

Bohemian Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, originally practised by 19th–20th century European and American artists and writers. * Bohemian style, a ...

forces of King Ottokar II in 1263. The Silesian duke

Bolko I the Strict Bolko (Bolesław) I the Strict, also known as Bolko (Bolesław) of Jawor ( or ''Srogi'' or ''Jaworski''; 1252/56 – 9 November 1301), was a Duke of Lwówek Śląski, Lwówek 1278–81 (with his brother as co-ruler) and Duchy of Jawor, Jawor after ...

(d. 1301), ruler in

Świdnica Świdnica (; ; ) is a city on the Bystrzyca (Oder), Bystrzyca River in south-western Poland in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. As of 2021, it has a population of 55,413 inhabitants. It is the seat of Świdnica County, and also of the smaller dis ...

and

Jawor Jawor () is a town in south-western Poland with 22,890 inhabitants (2019). It is situated in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is the seat of Jawor County, and lies approximately west of the regional capital Wrocław. One of the oldest towns ...

, had a new castle built from 1288 to 1292 and took his residence here, adding ''Lord of Książ'' to his titles. The burgraviate included the neighbouring settlements of

Świebodzice Świebodzice (; ) is a town in south-western Poland with 22,793 inhabitants (). It is situated in Świdnica County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship. The town is situated close to Książ Castle, which during World War II, together with the cave complex ...

, Szczawno, and Pełcznica. When the last Świdnica duke Bolko II the Small died in 1368 without children, the castle's estates passed to the

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

king

Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia Wenceslaus IV (also ''Wenceslas''; ; , nicknamed "the Idle"; 26 February 136116 August 1419), also known as Wenceslaus of Luxembourg, was King of Bohemia from 1378 until his death and King of Germany from 1376 until he was deposed in 1400. As he ...

, the son of Bolko's niece

Anne Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), Annie a ...

, while his widow Agnes of Habsburg reserved the

usufruct Usufruct () is a limited real right (or ''in rem'' right) found in civil law and mixed jurisdictions that unites the two property interests of ''usus'' and ''fructus'': * ''Usus'' (''use'', as in usage of or access to) is the right to use or en ...

for herself. After her death in the year 1392, King Wenceslaus, also

King of the Romans King of the Romans (; ) was the title used by the king of East Francia following his election by the princes from the reign of Henry II (1002–1024) onward. The title originally referred to any German king between his election and coronatio ...

since 1376, seized the Duchy of Świdnica and obtained Książ Castle. As Agnes, contrary to her limited real rights, had sold the Książ estates, the castle passed through many hands. In 1401 it was obtained by the Bohemian noble Janko of Chotěmice (d. after 1442), who later rose to a governor of the Świdnica-Jawor lands. During the

Hussite Wars The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars or the Hussite Revolution, were a series of civil wars fought between the Hussites and the combined Catholic forces of Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, the Papacy, a ...

, the castle was captured by the insurgents and occupied in 1428–1429. After Janko's death, the Bohemian king

George of Poděbrady George of Kunštát and Poděbrady (23 April 1420 – 22 March 1471), also known as Poděbrad or Podiebrad (; ), was the sixteenth King of Bohemia, who ruled in 1458–1471. He was a leader of the Hussites, but moderate and tolerant toward the ...

acquired Książ from his descendants and transferred the administration to the Moravian general Birka of Nasiedle. In 1466 Hans von Schellendorf obtained the castle from the Bohemian Crown. It was renamed Schloss Fürstenstein. The second castle complex was devastated in 1482 by Georg von Stein, a military commander in the service of the Hungarian king

Matthias Corvinus Matthias Corvinus (; ; ; ; ; ) was King of Hungary and King of Croatia, Croatia from 1458 to 1490, as Matthias I. He is often given the epithet "the Just". After conducting several military campaigns, he was elected King of Bohemia in 1469 and ...

while his forces campaigned in Silesia. Stein granted Frederick von Hochberg the estates, his descendant Konrad I von Hochberg obtaining the castle hill in 1509. The von Hochberg family were elevated to the rank of ''

Freiherr (; male, abbreviated as ), (; his wife, abbreviated as , ) and (, his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire and in ...

en'' (Baron) in 1650, ''

Graf (; feminine: ) is a historical title of the German nobility and later also of the Russian nobility, usually translated as "count". Considered to be intermediate among noble ranks, the title is often treated as equivalent to the British title ...

'' (Count) in 1666, and Imperial counts (''Reichsgrafen'') in 1683, and owned the castle until 1944. From the mid 16th century onwards the premises were rebuilt in a lavish

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

style. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the castle was seized by the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

regime in 1944. Count Hans Heinrich XVII of Hochberg, Prince of Pless, had moved to England in 1932 and become a British citizen; moreover, his brother Count Alexander of Hochberg, also a Polish citizen and owner of

Pszczyna Castle Pszczyna Castle (, ) is a classical-style palace in the town of Pszczyna in southern Poland. Constructed as a castle in 13th century or earlier, in a Gothic architectural style, it was rebuilt in a Renaissance style in the 17th century. During t ...

, had joined the Polish army in 1939. Supervised by '' SS'' and ''

Organisation Todt Organisation Todt (OT; ) was a Civil engineering, civil and military engineering organisation in Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945, named for its founder, Fritz Todt, an engineer and senior member of the Nazi Party. The organisation was responsible ...

'' personnel, the building complex at Fürstenstein became part of the vast underground Project Riese complex, presumably a projected Führer Headquarter and a future abode for

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

. Construction works were carried out under inhumane conditions by forced labourers and inmates of

Gross-Rosen concentration camp Gross-Rosen was a network of Nazi concentration camps built and operated by Nazi Germany during World War II. The main camp was located in the German village of Gross-Rosen, now the modern-day Rogoźnica in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, Poland, di ...

. The castle was subsequently occupied by

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

forces in the wake of the Vistula–Oder Offensive in 1945. A memorial marks the site of the ''Fürstenstein'' subcamp. Parts of the historic building structure were demolished during reconstruction; numerous artefacts were stolen or destroyed during the Soviet occupation. After the war the castle complex was taken over by communist authorities and served as a recreation home and cultural centre. In recent years, large parts of the interior have been elaborately restored. Parts of the tunnel complex beneath the castle are currently used by the

Polish Academy of Sciences The Polish Academy of Sciences (, PAN) is a Polish state-sponsored institution of higher learning. Headquartered in Warsaw, it is responsible for spearheading the development of science across the country by a society of distinguished scholars a ...

for

gravimeter Gravimetry is the measurement of the strength of a gravitational field. Gravimetry may be used when either the magnitude of a gravitational field or the properties of matter responsible for its creation are of interest. The study of gravity c ...

measuring, while several WWII-era tunnels are accessible to the public on guided tours.

Trivia

*The castle contains 400 rooms and occupies an area of approximately 11,000 square meters. *Książ Castle is a major tourist attraction of Lower Silesia attracting over 300,000 visitors annually. *Each year, the castle hosts the ''Festival of Flowers and Art'', a cultural event featuring flower and hand-made crafts exhibitions. *In 2014, a fire broke out in the attic of the eastern part of the castle's wing, which resulted in significant losses as nearly 500 square meters of roof and attic area were destroyed. *In 2018, the castle was voted as one of the ''Seven Wonders of Poland'', a list compiled on the 100th anniversary of Poland regaining its independence. *In 2021, the National Bank of Poland issued a special 5- zloty commemorative coin featuring Książ Castle as part of a series "Discover Poland".

Gallery

File:Ksiaz w jesiennej scenerii.jpg, Aerial view File:Zamek Książ w Wałbrzychu - 2.jpg, Front view File:Ksiaz Castle 04.jpg, Sculptures in the castle gardens File:2019-07-03 Exterior of the Książ Castle 6.jpg, Rear view File:Ksiaz 07.jpg, Castle tower File:Walbrzych Zamek Ksiaz wnetrza 15.jpg, Castle interiors File:Ksiaz(js)05.jpg, Maximillian's Hall File:2016 Zamek Książ 2.jpg, The Baroque Room File:Wałbrzych - Książ castle - Interiors 40.jpg, The Green Room File:Wałbrzych - Książ castle - Interiors 49.jpg, The Playroom File:Wałbrzych - Książ castle - Interiors 45.jpg, Chinese Salon File:5467viki Zamek Książ.Foto Barbara Maliszewska.jpg, Court d'honneur File:Wałbrzych Książ Taras Bogini Flory i Baszta Prochowa.jpg, Castle terrace File:Książ (0005).jpg, Gate buildings

Surroundings

* Gola Castle *Cistercian monastery at Henryków * Wojsławice Arboretum

References

External links