Branicki Palace, Bialystok
Encyclopedia
Branicki Palace is a historical edifice in Białystok, Poland
.
It was developed on the site of an earlier building in the first half of the 18th century by Jan Klemens Branicki
, a wealthy Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth hetman
, into a residence
suitable for a man whose ambition was to become king of Poland. The palace complex with gardens
, pavillons
, sculptures
, outbuildings and other structures and the city with churches, city hall and monastery
, all built almost at the same time according to French models was the reason why the city was known in the 18th century as Versailles de la Pologne (Versailles
of Poland) and subsequently Versailles de la Podlachie (Versailles of Podlachia
).
, Great Crown Hetman
and patron of art and science, raised in the French milieu of the Polish aristocracy, who transformed a previous house into the suitably magnificent residence of a great Polish noble, a rival to Wilanów Palace
, making a start in 1726. He also laid out the central part of the town of Bialystok, not a large place in the 18th century, with its triangular market.
The original wooden manor of the Raczkowicz family that occupied the site was transformed in the 16th century into a brick two-storey castle for Piotr Wiesiołowski the Younger. The architect was Hiob Bretfus, who constructed the a gothic
-renaissance
structure with a moat
and earth remparts. Shortly after the property was inherited by Stefan Mikołaj Branicki he commissioned the transformation of the castle into a baroque
mansion. The structure was thoroughly reconstructed between 1691-1697 by Tylman Gamerski, including one of the towers adapted to a staircase. During the subsequent reconstruction the side outbuildings were enhanced, the Ionic colonnade
above the main entrance was erected and the whole structure was adorned with sculptures. Further expansion of the palace was conducted by Jan Klemens Branicki and his wife Izabella Poniatowska
. Starting in 1728 the reconstruction of the palace was directed by Johann Sigmund Deybel. Under his supervision, the structure was enhanced, the tympanum and domes on the towers were added. Deybel is also the author of the main façade. The existing pavilions and outbuildings were merged with the main building (corps de logis) according to French model to form wings surrounding a horseshoe court - the courtyard of honor (cour d'honneur), which was closed with a gate built in 1758 by Jan Henryk Klemm. Among notable architects employed in reconstruction was Pierre Ricaud de Tirregaille. After the death of Deybel, in the years 1750-1771, the rebuilding of the palace was supervised by Jakub Fontana, who was an author of the palace's vestibule
, rococo
interiors and the staircase with statues by Jan Chrysostom Redler (1754). The fence between the initial (avant cour) and honor courtyard was adorned in 1757 with two monumental sculptures by Redler - Hercules fighting the dragon and Hercules fighting the hydra. Interior decorations were conducted by artists such as Szymon Czechowicz
, Louis Marteau, Augustyn Mirys
, Jean-Baptiste Pillement
, fresco painters such as Georg Wilhelm Neunhertz (in 1738) and Antoni Herliczka and stucco decorators Samuel Contesse and Antoni Vogt.
The newly created Versailles de la Pologne concentrated many great artists, poets including Elżbieta Drużbacka
and Franciszek Karpiński
and scientists. A theater, orchestra and ballet were established. Among notable guests were King Augustus II the Strong
(1726 to 1727 and again in 1729), King Augustus III
and his wife and sons Prince Francis Xavier and Prince Charles (1744 and 1752), Prince Charles of Saxony, Duke of Courland (twice in 1759), Bishop Ignacy Krasicki
(1760), King Stanisław August Poniatowski (occasionally), Emperor Joseph II Habsburg
(1780), Grand Duke Paul, future Tsar Paul I of Russia
, with his wife (1782), King Louis XVIII of France
(1798), French, English, Turkish and Russian envoys and Italian actress.
With the first Partition of Poland
it went to the Prussian Kingdom and, after 1807, to Russia. In the summer of 1920, briefly, the palace was the headquarters of the Provisional Polish Revolutionary Committee
. Branicki Palace suffered from bombing and fires caused by the Germans
, with damage totaling approximately 70%. It was restored after World War II
as a matter of national pride. The Medical University
is housed in the Palace.
Surrounding the Palace are the grounds. The garden front has a terrace raised on columns, which forms a podium for viewing the parterre
in the French taste with a main central allée and French sphinx
es, and a later "English garden," in the naturalistic taste associated with the English park, surrounding the grounds. The central axis continues to a guest pavilion. Other outbuildings include the Arsenal (1755), Orangery
and Italian and Tuscan Pavilions.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
.
It was developed on the site of an earlier building in the first half of the 18th century by Jan Klemens Branicki
Jan Klemens Branicki
Count Jan Klemens Branicki was a Polish nobleman, magnate and Hetman, Field Crown Hetman of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth between 1735 and 1752, and Great Crown Hetman between 1752 and 1771....
, a wealthy Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth hetman
Hetman
Hetman was the title of the second-highest military commander in 15th- to 18th-century Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which together, from 1569 to 1795, comprised the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, or Rzeczpospolita....
, into a residence
House
A house is a building or structure that has the ability to be occupied for dwelling by human beings or other creatures. The term house includes many kinds of different dwellings ranging from rudimentary huts of nomadic tribes to free standing individual structures...
suitable for a man whose ambition was to become king of Poland. The palace complex with gardens
Garden à la française
The French formal garden, also called jardin à la française, is a style of garden based on symmetry and the principle of imposing order over nature. It reached its apogee in the 17th century with the creation of the Gardens of Versailles, designed for Louis XIV by the landscape architect André Le...
, pavillons
Pavilion (structure)
In architecture a pavilion has two main meanings.-Free-standing structure:Pavilion may refer to a free-standing structure sited a short distance from a main residence, whose architecture makes it an object of pleasure. Large or small, there is usually a connection with relaxation and pleasure in...
, sculptures
Garden sculpture
The predominant garden types in the ancient world were domestic gardens and sacred gardens. Sculpture of gods and kings were placed in temple compounds, along with sacred lakes and sacred groves. It is not known whether statues were placed in Greek domestic gardens but the Romans transported a...
, outbuildings and other structures and the city with churches, city hall and monastery
Monastery
Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
, all built almost at the same time according to French models was the reason why the city was known in the 18th century as Versailles de la Pologne (Versailles
Versailles
Versailles , a city renowned for its château, the Palace of Versailles, was the de facto capital of the kingdom of France for over a century, from 1682 to 1789. It is now a wealthy suburb of Paris and remains an important administrative and judicial centre...
of Poland) and subsequently Versailles de la Podlachie (Versailles of Podlachia
Podlaskie Voivodeship
Podlaskie Voivodeship , is a voivodeship in northeastern Poland. It borders on Masovian Voivodeship to the west, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship to the northwest, Lublin Voivodeship to the south, the Belarusssian Voblasts of Grodno and Brest to the east, the Lithuanian Counties of Alytus and...
).
History
The Palace was built for Count Jan Klemens BranickiJan Klemens Branicki
Count Jan Klemens Branicki was a Polish nobleman, magnate and Hetman, Field Crown Hetman of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth between 1735 and 1752, and Great Crown Hetman between 1752 and 1771....
, Great Crown Hetman
Hetman
Hetman was the title of the second-highest military commander in 15th- to 18th-century Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which together, from 1569 to 1795, comprised the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, or Rzeczpospolita....
and patron of art and science, raised in the French milieu of the Polish aristocracy, who transformed a previous house into the suitably magnificent residence of a great Polish noble, a rival to Wilanów Palace
Wilanów Palace
Wilanów Palace is a royal palace located in the Wilanów district, Warsaw. Wilanów Palace survived the time of Poland's partitions and both World Wars and has preserved its authentic historical qualities, also is one of the most important monuments of Polish culture.The palace and park in Wilanów...
, making a start in 1726. He also laid out the central part of the town of Bialystok, not a large place in the 18th century, with its triangular market.
The original wooden manor of the Raczkowicz family that occupied the site was transformed in the 16th century into a brick two-storey castle for Piotr Wiesiołowski the Younger. The architect was Hiob Bretfus, who constructed the a gothic
Polish Gothic
The Gothic style arrived in Poland in first half the 13th century with Dominican and Franciscan orders. The first elements of the new style is evident in the foundation built during the bishop Iwo Odrowąż in Dominican Trinity church in Kraków...
-renaissance
Renaissance in Poland
The Renaissance in Poland lasted from the late 15th to the late 16th century and is widely considered to have been the Golden Age of Polish culture. Ruled by the Jagiellon dynasty, the Kingdom of Poland actively participated in the broad European Renaissance...
structure with a moat
Moat
A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that surrounds a castle, other building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive water defences, including natural or artificial lakes, dams and sluices...
and earth remparts. Shortly after the property was inherited by Stefan Mikołaj Branicki he commissioned the transformation of the castle into a baroque
Baroque architecture
Baroque architecture is a term used to describe the building style of the Baroque era, begun in late sixteenth century Italy, that took the Roman vocabulary of Renaissance architecture and used it in a new rhetorical and theatrical fashion, often to express the triumph of the Catholic Church and...
mansion. The structure was thoroughly reconstructed between 1691-1697 by Tylman Gamerski, including one of the towers adapted to a staircase. During the subsequent reconstruction the side outbuildings were enhanced, the Ionic colonnade
Ionic order
The Ionic order forms one of the three orders or organizational systems of classical architecture, the other two canonic orders being the Doric and the Corinthian...
above the main entrance was erected and the whole structure was adorned with sculptures. Further expansion of the palace was conducted by Jan Klemens Branicki and his wife Izabella Poniatowska
Izabella Poniatowska
Countess Izabela Poniatowska was a Polish noblewoman . She was a sister of Stanisław Antoni Poniatowski, who in 1764 became King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, and reigned as Stanisław II August....
. Starting in 1728 the reconstruction of the palace was directed by Johann Sigmund Deybel. Under his supervision, the structure was enhanced, the tympanum and domes on the towers were added. Deybel is also the author of the main façade. The existing pavilions and outbuildings were merged with the main building (corps de logis) according to French model to form wings surrounding a horseshoe court - the courtyard of honor (cour d'honneur), which was closed with a gate built in 1758 by Jan Henryk Klemm. Among notable architects employed in reconstruction was Pierre Ricaud de Tirregaille. After the death of Deybel, in the years 1750-1771, the rebuilding of the palace was supervised by Jakub Fontana, who was an author of the palace's vestibule
Vestibule (architecture)
A vestibule is a lobby, entrance hall, or passage between the entrance and the interior of a building.The same term can apply to structures in modern or ancient roman architecture. In modern architecture vestibule typically refers to a small room or hall between an entrance and the interior of...
, rococo
Rococo
Rococo , also referred to as "Late Baroque", is an 18th-century style which developed as Baroque artists gave up their symmetry and became increasingly ornate, florid, and playful...
interiors and the staircase with statues by Jan Chrysostom Redler (1754). The fence between the initial (avant cour) and honor courtyard was adorned in 1757 with two monumental sculptures by Redler - Hercules fighting the dragon and Hercules fighting the hydra. Interior decorations were conducted by artists such as Szymon Czechowicz
Szymon Czechowicz
Szymon Czechowicz was a prominent Polish painter of the Baroque, considered one of the most accomplished painters of 18th century sacral painting in Poland. He specialized in sublime effigies of painted figures...
, Louis Marteau, Augustyn Mirys
Augustyn Mirys
Augustyn Mirys was a Polish painter.-External links:...
, Jean-Baptiste Pillement
Jean-Baptiste Pillement
Jean-Baptiste Pillement was a painter and designer, known for his exquisite and delicate landscapes, but whose importance lies primarily in the engravings done after his drawings, and their influence in spreading the Rococo style and particularly the taste for chinoiserie throughout...
, fresco painters such as Georg Wilhelm Neunhertz (in 1738) and Antoni Herliczka and stucco decorators Samuel Contesse and Antoni Vogt.
The newly created Versailles de la Pologne concentrated many great artists, poets including Elżbieta Drużbacka
Elzbieta Druzbacka
Elżbieta Drużbacka was a Polish poet.Much of her work deals with the beauty of nature; her best known work isDescription of the Four Seasons ....
and Franciszek Karpiński
Franciszek Karpinski
Franciszek Karpiński was the leading sentimental Polish poet of the Age of Enlightenment. He is particularly remembered for his religious works later rendered as hymns and carols. He is also considered one of the most original Polish writers of the early partitions...
and scientists. A theater, orchestra and ballet were established. Among notable guests were King Augustus II the Strong
Augustus II the Strong
Frederick Augustus I or Augustus II the Strong was Elector of Saxony and King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania ....
(1726 to 1727 and again in 1729), King Augustus III
Augustus III of Poland
Augustus III, known as the Saxon ; ; also Prince-elector Friedrich August II was the Elector of Saxony in 1733-1763, as Frederick Augustus II , King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania in 1734-1763.-Biography:Augustus was the only legitimate son of Augustus II the Strong, Imperial Prince-Elector...
and his wife and sons Prince Francis Xavier and Prince Charles (1744 and 1752), Prince Charles of Saxony, Duke of Courland (twice in 1759), Bishop Ignacy Krasicki
Ignacy Krasicki
Ignacy Krasicki , from 1766 Prince-Bishop of Warmia and from 1795 Archbishop of Gniezno , was Poland's leading Enlightenment poet , a critic of the clergy, Poland's La Fontaine, author of the first Polish novel, playwright, journalist, encyclopedist, and translator from French and...
(1760), King Stanisław August Poniatowski (occasionally), Emperor Joseph II Habsburg
Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor
Joseph II was Holy Roman Emperor from 1765 to 1790 and ruler of the Habsburg lands from 1780 to 1790. He was the eldest son of Empress Maria Theresa and her husband, Francis I...
(1780), Grand Duke Paul, future Tsar Paul I of Russia
Paul I of Russia
Paul I was the Emperor of Russia between 1796 and 1801. He also was the 72nd Prince and Grand Master of the Order of Malta .-Childhood:...
, with his wife (1782), King Louis XVIII of France
Louis XVIII of France
Louis XVIII , known as "the Unavoidable", was King of France and of Navarre from 1814 to 1824, omitting the Hundred Days in 1815...
(1798), French, English, Turkish and Russian envoys and Italian actress.
With the first Partition of Poland
History of Poland
The History of Poland is rooted in the arrival of the Slavs, who gave rise to permanent settlement and historic development on Polish lands. During the Piast dynasty Christianity was adopted in 966 and medieval monarchy established...
it went to the Prussian Kingdom and, after 1807, to Russia. In the summer of 1920, briefly, the palace was the headquarters of the Provisional Polish Revolutionary Committee
Provisional Polish Revolutionary Committee
Provisional Polish Revolutionary Committee was a revolutionary committee created under the patronage of Soviet Russia with the goal to establish a Polish Soviet Socialist Republic....
. Branicki Palace suffered from bombing and fires caused by the Germans
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
, with damage totaling approximately 70%. It was restored after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
as a matter of national pride. The Medical University
Medical University of Bialystok
Medical University of Białystok was created in 1950 in a historical building from 18th century, Pałac Branickich, which is the most historically important building for the city of Białystok....
is housed in the Palace.
The palace grounds
A straight avenue centered on the palace passes across the river on a three-arched bridge across the river, which is confined with deep stone embankment walling, to the large enclosed paved forecourt. The central block has two storeys upon a high arcaded basement story, with a pedimented central block displaying Branicki's coat-of-arms and end pavilions that have squared domes in two tiers. The roofline is an Italianate balustrade that masks a low attic story, and the heroic sculptural group of Atlas crowning all.Surrounding the Palace are the grounds. The garden front has a terrace raised on columns, which forms a podium for viewing the parterre
Parterre
A parterre is a formal garden construction on a level surface consisting of planting beds, edged in stone or tightly clipped hedging, and gravel paths arranged to form a pleasing, usually symmetrical pattern. Parterres need not have any flowers at all...
in the French taste with a main central allée and French sphinx
Sphinx
A sphinx is a mythical creature with a lion's body and a human head or a cat head.The sphinx, in Greek tradition, has the haunches of a lion, the wings of a great bird, and the face of a woman. She is mythicised as treacherous and merciless...
es, and a later "English garden," in the naturalistic taste associated with the English park, surrounding the grounds. The central axis continues to a guest pavilion. Other outbuildings include the Arsenal (1755), Orangery
Orangery
An orangery was a building in the grounds of fashionable residences from the 17th to the 19th centuries and given a classicising architectural form. The orangery was similar to a greenhouse or conservatory...
and Italian and Tuscan Pavilions.