Informacija

Today, Warsaw is the capital of Poland, but this has not always been the case. Originally, it was the main residence of the rulers of the Principality of Mazovia. After 1526, the principality ceased to exist and all its lands became part of the Kingdom of Poland. After the royal court moved from Krakow to Warsaw at the end of the 16th century, the city became the capital again.

In order to be able to attend the royal Sejm, the Ostroh princes decided that they should possess their own residence in the city. At the beginning of the 17th century, Prince Yanush Ostrozkyi acquired a piece of land in the Krakow suburbs of Warsaw and commenced constructing a castle-palace there.

Specific instructions for the estate managers, in which the prince indicated were to take and how to deliver construction materials from the territories of Lesser Poland, have been preserved. Even the typical names for construction materials such as bricks, lime, boards, shingles, as well as balusters for palace balustrades, have been remained intact.

However, the authentic appearance of the palace has not reached our days. In the middle of the XVII century, the palace was damaged during the occupation of Warsaw by Swedish troops. Subsequently, it was restored, partially by changing the architectural features of the building.

Nowadays, the palace has retained the name “the Castle of the Princes of Ostroh” and it houses a museum of the famous Polish composer Frederic Chopin.