Old Town Market

Square^4

Rynek Starego Miasta

Map D2. @ 116, 175, 180, 195,

503. v 13, 23, 26, 32. Historical
     Museum of Warsaw Tel (022) 635


504. 
     

     11am–6pm Tue, Thu,

     
     

     10am–3:30pm Wed, Fri,
     10:30am–4:30pm Sat–Sun. ¢ Mon,
     pub hols & one weekend a month.
     & free on Sun. = Note: A 20-min
     English-language film about Warsaw
     is screened at noon daily.

     
     

Painstakingly restored after

World War II, the Old Town

Market Square was the centre

of Warsaw public life until

the 19th century, when the

focus of the growing, modern

city moved. The tall, ornate,

and colourful houses, which

lend the square its

unique character,

were built by

wealthy merchants

in the 17th century.

The houses on

one side form the

Historical Museum

of Warsaw (Muzeum

Historyczne m st

Warszawy). This

displays the city’s

history through

paintings, photo-

graphs, sculpture and

archaeological finds. There

is also a film show, with

footage of the Nazis’ sys-

tematic destruction of

Warsaw in 1944. Today,

café tables and stalls line

the square, and horse-drawn

carriages offer tours

of the Old Town.

176 CENTRAL EASTERN EUROPE

For hotels and restaurants in this region see pp218–21 and pp222–5

The Historical Museum of Warsaw in the Old Town Square

Royal Castle^2
Zamek Królewski

Plac Zamkowy 4. Map D2. Tel (022)
355 5170. @ 100, 116, 175, 178,
180, 195, 222, 503, N44. v 13, 23,
26, 32. # 10am–4pm Tue–Sat,
11am–4pm Sun. & free on Sun.

Warsaw’s Royal Castle stands
on the site of an original castle
built here by the Mazovian
dukes in the 14th century. It
was transformed between
1598 and 1619 by King
Zygmunt III Waza, who asked
Italian architects to restyle the
castle into a polygon. The
king chose this castle as his
royal residence in 1596, after
the Sejm (Parliament) had
moved here from Cracow in

1569. In the 18th century,
      King Augustus III remodelled
      the east wing in Baroque style
      and King Stanisław August
      Poniatowski added a library.
      In 1939, the castle was burnt,
      and then blown up by the
      Nazis in 1944. Funded by
      public donations, it was
      reconstructed between 1971
      and 1988.
      The castle’s fascinating
      interiors are the result of
      its dual role: being a royal
      residence as well as the seat
      of Parliament. It houses royal
      apartments as well as the
      Chamber of Deputies and
      the Senate. Some of the
      woodwork and stucco is
      original, as are many of the
      furnishings and much of the
      art. The coats of arms of all
      the admini stra tive regions of

Cathedral of

St John^3

katedra św Jana

Świętojańska 8. Map D2. Tel (022)

831 0289. @ 116, 175, 178, 180,

195, 222, 503. v 13, 23, 26, 32.

# 10am–noon, 4–6pm daily.

http://www.katedra.mkw.pl

Completed in the early 15th

century, Cathedral of St John

was originally a parish church.

Gaining collegiate status in

1406, it was not until 1798

that it became a cathedral.

The coronation of Poland’s

last king, Stanisław August

Poniatowski, in 1764,

and the swear ing of

an oath by the

deputies of the Sejm

to uphold the 1791

Constitution took

place here.

After World War II,

various elaborate

19th-century addi-

tions were removed

from the façade, and

the cathedral was

restored to its

Mazovian Gothic style.

The interior features religious

art, richly carved wooden

stalls and ornate tombs,

including those of Gabriel

Narutowicz (1865–1922),

Poland’s first president, assa-

sinated two days after taking

office, and Nobel Prize-

winning novelist Henryk

Baryczkowski

Crucifix

Sienkiewicz (1846–1916).

In a chapel founded by the

Baryczka family hangs a

16th-century crucifix, which is

credited with several miracles.

A painting on display in the
Senators’ Room, Royal Castle

the country are depicted on

the walls. Among the

paintings are 18th-century

works by Bellotto and

Bacciarelli. The Lanckoroński

Gallery, on the second floor,

has a collec tion of paintings

including two by Rembrandt

• Portrait of a Young Woman
  and Scholar at his Desk.