Primate's Palace, Warsaw
Encyclopedia
Primate's Palace is a historical palace at the Senatorska Street in the Śródmieście district of Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...

, Poland
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...

.

History

The construction of the palace began in 1593, from the initiative of the Bishop of Płock Wojciech Baranowski. After he became the Primate of Poland, he transformed the palace to the headquarters of the Primate. It was demolished during the years of the Swedish Deluge in 1655-1657. Architect Józef Fontana was hired for the reconstruction. It was however plundered again in 1704 by Saxons, Vlachs and Cossacks.

Until 1795 the rooms in the palace served as the home of Primates of Poland. The building was gradually expanded. At the end of the 17th century it was expanded by architect Tylman van Gameren
Tylman van Gameren
Tylman van Gameren was a Dutch-born Polish architect and engineer who, at the age of 28, settled in Poland and worked for Queen Maria Kazimiera, wife of Poland's King Jan III Sobieski...

. In the first half of the 18th century it was rebuilt to 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...

 style to serve as a residence of Primate Adam Ignacy Komorowski. In 1777-1786 the palace was thoroughly reconstructed to the Classicist style. The main body of the building was expanded with the side wings with pavilions. Architects of the interior were Jan Chrystian Kamsetzer and Szymon Bogumił Zug.

Since the 18th century it served various purposes and housed numerous institutions. In the interwar period it housed the Ministry of Agriculture. The palace was destroyed during the Nazi Invasion of Poland, after the war it was gradually restored. It then served the city administration and for example, civil weddings occurred there. Today, it houses offices of various companies and its historical halls are used for conference and exhibition purposes.
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