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On the Trail of Polish Gothic Castles Tour
Tour ID:
1115
Tour Theme:
Historic and Cultural Tours
Countries:
Poland
Duration:
5 Days / 4 Nights |
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Introduction:
Discover Medieval Poland on the trail of gothic castles. Our tour guide will
show you what life was like in ancient Poland. The tour starts and ends in
Warsaw but can be customized to your request. For more details see the Day by
Day Itinerary. Below are the tour highlights...
 At
the end of the 14th century the Teutonic Knights built a castle in Ryn
which served as a base for their wars with Lithuanians. The castle was a seat of
the Teutonic Knights Commander till 1525. The first Commander was the future
Grand Master of the Order, Konrad Wallenrod (the title character of the poetic
novel by Adam Mickiewicz). Two years after building the castle, another Grand
Master of the Order, Winrich von Kniprode, came toRyn in order to inspect and
take over the castle. He came back to Malbork by waterway and since 1378, Ryn
had a connection with the Baltic Sea. Since 21st of July 1723 Ryn has been a
certified town. The certificate was given to it by the king of Prussia, Fryderyk
Wilhelm I. In 1853 the castle was converted into a prison. At present, in one of
the wings there is the local administration council office. The courtyard is a
good place for events, such as: family meetings at the castle, musical meetings
or feasts with knights' tournaments which take place almost every day. Other
monuments in the town are: a Dutch windmill, a mill and many tenements. The area
of Ryn is famous for its picturesque glacial landscape with many forests and
lakes. Rynskie Lake is connected with the Great Mazurian Lakes. Sailors will
find numerous marinas, camping sites and holiday camps here. Trails and bicycles
routes lead to many interesting places of the area, among others, to the
Teutonic signalling mound near a village called Orlo. A wonderful location of
the town between two lakes: Rynskie and Orlow in Kraina Wielkich Jezior
Mazurskich (the Land of Great Mazurian Lakes) and charming villages at the
waterway from Wêgorzewo via Giycko to Ruciane Nida give tourists a great choice
of recreational activities throughout the year.
 Ketrzyn
is a 30-thousands town situated on the border between Warmia and Mazury, at an
intersection of routes leading to Wêgorzewo, Mršgowo, Bartoszyce and Giycko.
This convenient location gives Kêtrzyn an opportunity to develop in the fields
of tourism and trade. The town is attractive not only because of its location at
the intersection of trails leading to Reszel, wiêta Lipka and to the Great
Lakes. It is also known for many tourist sights (among others: a baroque
basilica in wiêta Lipka and the remains of Wilczy Szaniec (Wolfschranz or Wolf's
Lair)- Adolf Hitler's military headquarters in Gierlo¿) and for a developing
chain of hotels and numerous leisure facilities. Kêtrzyn (called Rastenburg
until 1946) was founded by the Teutonic Knights in place of a Prussian
settlement, Rast which developed around a wooden watchtower. On 11 November,
1357 the Commander of Balga, Johann Schindekopf, made the settlement a certified
town. The castle of Kêtrzyn was built in the second half of the 14th century in
the south-east wing of the settlement. There were, among others, a chapel, a
bakery, a kitchen, a mill, a malt-house, a brewery, a meat warehouse, a crops
silo, a pantry, an armoury and a powder magazine. The most representative wing -
the north wing belonged to the pfleger - a kind of a prosecutor, a clerk
wielding on behalf of the Order.
 Lidzbark
Warminski is an 18-thousands town at present. It is situated on the "Kopernikowski
Route",Castles in Lidzbark Warmiński where the Symsarna flows into the £yna. The
town is 48 km from the capital of the Province of Warmia and Mazury, Olsztyn and
30 km from the state border in the north. Lidzbark Warminski was the capital of
the historic land of Warmia for almost 400 years. Because of its location,
numerous monuments of high class and its outstanding inhabitants, it is often
called "the Pearl of Warmia". The most famous inhabitants of the town were,
among others, Nicolas Copernicus (he lived there between 1503 and 1510) and
Ignacy Krasicki (1767-1795), a writer, an art lover, a participant of the, so
called, Thursday Dinners at the court of the last king of Poland, the creator of
the castle gardens and the orangery.
 Olsztyn
was famous for the Castle of the Chapter of Warmia. The oldest part of the
castle was built in 1348. Later, one more storey was added to the building and
in the 15th and 16th centuries the south wing and the upper part of the tower
came into existence. Among many unique, original exhibits which can be found in
the castle, on the cloister wall there is an astronomical table made by Nicolas
Copernicus. The museum offers visitors meetings called "Sunday in the Museum".
During such meetings, visitors can, for example, try on an armour or perform in
a concert. Other regular events taking place at the castle are famous nationwide
meetings called "Let's Sing Poetry" and monthly concerts of a chamber ensemble
"Pro Musica Antiqua" - a band under the patronage of the Musuem of Warmia and
Mazury. At the High Gate, which is an entrance to the Old Town of Olsztyn, there
is a starting point of the Red Trail of Nicolas Copernicus. This trail goes
through Dobre Miasto, Lidzbark Warminski, Pieniê¿no and Braniewo to Frombork.
 Nidzica,
a historical town at the Nida, called the gate to Mazury. It is situated at an
important tourist artery from Warsaw to Olsztyn, leading to the Great Mazurian
Lakes. Nidzica was founded in the area of former Prussian tribes of the Sasins
which were colonized by Polish settlers from the nearby Mazowsze and Kurpie in
the 14th century. Nidzica became a certified town in 1381. The certificate was
give to it by the Grand Master Winrych von Kniprode. The Gothic castle raised in
those times remained and is a characteristic architectural element of the town.
There are also remains of the city walls and a part of the turret in the east, a
"small cloister", St Wojciech Church.
 Ostroda
is one of the oldest towns of Pojezierze Mazurskie. The most interesting
monument of the town is a Gothic castle built in 1393 by the Teutonic Knights in
place of a wooden 13th-century fortress. It was a seat of the Commanders of the
Order. The castle, destroyed during the war, was rebuilt in 1977. Nowadays, many
events take place in the courtyard and in the castle rooms. Other buildings
worth seeing are: a Neo-Gothic church built in 1856 - 1875 with an early 20th
century tower and a Neo-Gothic lutheran church from 1907.
Malbork was founded by the monks - knights, members of the Order of St
Mary's Hospital of the German House in Jerusalem (this is the full name of the
Teutonic Knights). In the 13th- 15th centuries at the right high bend of the
Nogat, they built a three-part fortress and a town.
 The
settlement was given the Chelmno town charter which quickened the development of
the town. In the 15th century, within the town there were 174 houses, 85 of
which were situated along the street market which can still be seen on the plan
of the Old Town. The castle was placed on the UNESCO List of the World Culture
Heritage in 1997, which proves its high value.
The castle of Sztum, built in 1326-1331, served as a bridgehead protecting the
fortress of Malbork from the south. The castle was also a residence of the Grand
Master of the Order of the Teutonic Knights. It had belonged to the Order till
1466 when under the Torun Peace Agreement it was annexed by the Kingdom of
Poland and became a residence of Polish Starosta. Also, in Sztum, land
judgements for the Malbork Province took place and since the 16th century, there
had been meetings of noblemen, the so-called small seyms.
The former Prussian possession
was taken over by the Teutonic Knights in 1233 and in the same time it became a
certified town. Between 1285 and 1587 the Marienwerder (St. Mary's Island) was a
seat of the bishop. In 1440 the Prussian Union (for fighting the TeutonicKnights)
was founded here.
The castle of Brodnica was built by the Teutonic Knights in 1305-1339. It
served as a fortress protecting the strategic ford of the Drwêca leading to
Brodnica, a town which was called the key and the gateway to Prussia..
Discover
ancient Poland and it's Gothic Castles!!!
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