Przemyśl Castle

Aerial view
Przemyśl Castle
Przemysl castle. Detail of engraving by German Frans Hogenberg in 1617

Przemyśl Castle or Casimir Castle (Polish: Zamek Przemyśl or Polish: Zamek Kazimierzowski) is a Renaissance castle in Przemyśl, Poland, located on the Castle Hill, which rises to a height of 270 metres above the city and San River.

History

The city of Przemyśl, which probably originated in the era of Great Moravia, with early buildings built in forms quite common in the lands of the White Croats. Przemyśl lay on an important river crossing on a trade route from the Black Sea, Galicia, Kyiv Poland, the Baltic Sea and the Carpathian passes through Hungary, Slovakia, Moravia. It is believed that the Kiev Grand Prince Yaroslav the Wise, after the death of the eldest son Vladimir of Novgorod gave it to his grandson, Prince Rostislav of Tmutarakan in 1054.

In 1071, Polish prince Bolesław II the Generous kept the castle under siege and the defenders eventually succumbed to a lack of food and water. Under his control the brick Romanesque rotunda and the palace were built. Later Casimir III the Great was responsible for the building of a castle in gothic style in 1340. Only a gate in Ogive style survives to this day. The buildings were damaged by invading Vlachs in 1498 and rebuilt once again for Piotr Kmita Sobieński.

Przemyśl elder Martin Krasitsky began the reconstruction of the castle in the Renaissance style in 1616. The works were led by Italian architect Galleazzo Appiani. Towers were raised and attics finished, and more housing was attached but after the elder's death reconstruction stopped.

From 1759 to 1762, Przemyśl mayor and future Polish king Stanislaw Poniatowski rebuilt the castle, rebuilding the ruins of two towers, the wall between them, building a new castle and add stepped buttresses.

After the partition of the Commonwealth, the Austrians stationed troops in the castle. Eventually in 1865, the castle was handed over the city where from 1884 the dramatic society Fredreum has been based. During World War I, the Austrians held two thousand Russian prisoners in the castle. More restoration of the castle was carried out in 1920, and in 1980 two corner towers and curtain wall between them were rebuilt.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Przemyśl Castle.

Coordinates: 49°46′50″N 22°45′54″E / 49.78056°N 22.76500°E / 49.78056; 22.76500

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/21/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.