Showing 1-16 of 16 results
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Belvedere Palace
Besides the palace and amphitheatre, other buildings are scattered throughout Łazienki Park, the most architecturally intriguing of which is the 18th-century Belvedere Palace at the southern limit of Al Ujazdowskie. It served as the official residence of Marshal Józef Piłsudski (from 1926 to 1935) and Polish presidents from 1945 to 1952 and 1989 to 1994, and now houses an upmarket restaurant.
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Citadel
Continuing north of the New Town you'll soon see the Citadel, a massive 19th-century fortress overlooking the Vistula. Built by the Russian tsar to intimidate Warsaw following the November Insurrection of 1830, it served as a notorious political prison for years and nowadays is used by the military. The huge gate overlooking the river is known as Brama Straceń (Gate of Execution; M056E), a spot where political prisoners were executed all too frequently after the 1863 uprising.
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Jabłonowski Palace
The neoclassical Jabłonowski Palace, opposite the Teatr Wielki on Plac Teatralny, served as the town hall from 1817 until WWII, when it was dismantled due to damage sustained. It was completely rebuilt in 1997.
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Jewish Cemetery
The Jewish Cemetery, founded in 1806, suffered little during the war and still boasts more than 150,000 tombstones, the largest collection of its kind in Europe. Large parts are, however, neglected and very overgrown, making it a forlorn place. A notice near the entrance lists the graves of many eminent Polish Jews, including Ludwik Zamenhof, creator of the international artificial language Esperanto.
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Krasiński Palace
The 1677 Krasiński Palace, designed by the ubiquitous Tylman van Gameren, is considered one of the most splendid Baroque palaces in Warsaw. Today it's a branch of the National Library, and if you ask nicely you may be let inside.
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Mauzoleum Walki i Męczeństwa
A short distance to the west of the Botanical Gardens is the Mauzoleum Walki i Męczeństwa, a branch of the Pawiak Prison Museum. Like Pawiak, this building was used by the Gestapo for interrogation, torture and murder, and now stands as a memorial to the thousands of Poles who passed through its doors. With its depressing basement holding cells and Gestapo officer's interrogation room (complete with original bullwhips, coshes, knuckledusters etc), it's a hard place to visit.
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Ostrogski Palace
A short detour east of Ul Nowy Świat along ul Ordynacka leads to Ostrogski Palace. Situated on a high fortified platform on the Vistula escarpment, the small Baroque palace (again designed by Tylman van Gameren) is today the seat of the Chopin Society, which hosts recitals and chamber music concerts in a lovely concert hall inside.
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Palace on the Water
The centrepiece of Łazienki Park is the neoclassical Palace on the Water, the former residence of the king. It straddles an ornamental lake (gondola rides around zl6 /around zl4 per adult/child) and like most other Łazienki buildings was designed by the court architect Domenico Merlini. During WWII the Nazis attempted to blow it up, but succeeded only in starting a fire that destroyed much of the 1st floor. Renovated and refurbished, the palace is open to guided tours - highlights include the 17th-century marble reliefs depicting scenes from Ovid's Metamorphoses gracing the original bathhouse ( łazienki in Polish, hence the name), and the ornate ballroom.
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Radziwiłł Palace
The neoclassical Radziwiłł Palace is guarded by four stone lions and an equestrian Statue of Prince Józef Poniatowski. The prince was the nephew of the last Polish king, Stanisław August Poniatowski, and commander in chief of the Polish army of the Duchy of Warsaw created by Napoleon. Today the palace is the official residence of the president.
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Royal Castle
It's a simple exercise moving on from Castle Square (the natural spot from which to start exploring the Old Town) to the Royal Castle; just turn east and you're there.
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Ujazdów Castle
Ujazdów Castle is a fairy-tale-like edifice in its third incarnation. Erected in the 1620s for King Zygmunt III Waza as his summer residence, it was burned down by the Nazis in 1944, blown up by the communists in 1954 and eventually rebuilt in the 1970s. At the time of research it housed changing exhibitions of modern art from the Centre for Contemporary Art; a new centre is planned near the Palace of Culture & Science.
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White House
A short walk north of the circular Water Reservoir in Łazienki Park you'll find the White House , which was erected in 1774 as a temporary residence for the king until the Palace on the Water was finished. It's incredibly small for a royal home and has managed to retain most of its original 18th-century interior.
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Wilanów
Warsaw's crowning glory in the park-palace arena is Wilanów (pronounced vee- lah -noof), some 6km south of Łazienki. Its origins date back to 1677, when king Jan III Sobieski bought the land and set about turning the existing manor house into an Italian Baroque villa (calling it in Italian 'villa nuova' from which the Polish name is derived) fit for a royal summer residence.
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Wilanów Orangery
The Wilanów Orangery , off the northern wing of the palace, features decorative art and sculpture from the 16th to 19th centuries.
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Wilanów Palace
The best place to start exploring the Wilanów complex is Wilanów Palace. Its highlights include the two-storey Grand Entrance Hall, the Grand Dining Room, and the Gallery of Polish Portraits, featuring a collection of paintings from the 16th to 19th centuries. Note the so-called coffin portraits - a very Polish feature - that are images painted on a piece of tin or copperplate personifying the deceased, then attached to the coffin during the funeral.
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Łazienki Park
Łazienki Park - pronounced wah- zhen -kee - is a beautiful park of manicured greens and wild patches. Its popularity extends to families, Sunday strollers, proud peacocks, and the many red squirrels that call it home.
Showing 1-16 of 16 results
