Szymbark ' is a village

Village

A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...

 in the administrative district of Gmina Iława, within Iława County, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship

Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship

Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, or Warmia-Masuria Province , is a voivodeship in northeastern Poland. Its capital and largest city is Olsztyn...

, in northern 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...

. It lies approximately 8 kilometres (5 mi) north-west of Iława and 69 km (43 mi) west of the regional capital Olsztyn

Olsztyn

Olsztyn is a city in northeastern Poland, on the Łyna River. Olsztyn has been the capital of the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship since 1999. It was previously in the Olsztyn Voivodeship...

. The village has a population of 395.

The castle

The construction of the castle began in 1301. It was built by the Teutonic Order as a summer residence of one of the four bishops of Prussia

Prussia

Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...

, the Bishop of Pomesania. A Latin inscription above the main gate (Hec Porta Constructa Est Anno Domini MCCCLXXXVI Tempore Fratris Henrici De Skarlin Prepoziti) dates back to 1386 and mentions brother Henry of Skarlin

Skarlin

Skarlin is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Nowe Miasto Lubawskie, within Nowe Miasto County, Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, in northern Poland. It lies approximately north-west of Nowe Miasto Lubawskie and south-west of the regional capital Olsztyn.-References:...

 as constructor. Sometimes he is described as the founder of the castle. The castle became property of the last Catholic and first Lutheran Bishop of Pomesania, Georg von Polentz, after the secularization of the Order. In 1699 it was bought by Ernst Graf Finck von Finckenstein

Finck von Finckenstein

- Origins :The first representative of this family appeared authentically with 'Nicze of Roghusen' in 1388 in Roggenhausen in East Prussia according to the state archive in Koenigsberg. Under its current name, the house appears authentically in 1451 with 'Michael Fincke' who calls himself 'Finck...

 and remained property of the Finckenstein family until

In April 1945, about three month after the conquest by the Soviet Union, and again in 1947 the castle was set on fire and completely destroyed. The ruins were used for the 1996 movie The Ogre

The Ogre (film)

The score is composed by Michael Nyman and features strictly brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments by members of the Michael Nyman Band. The music was rerecorded by Wingates Band, with the woodwind parts transcribed for brass, on the 2006 album, Nyman Brass.-Track listing:#Knights at School...

 by Volker Schlöndorff

Volker Schlöndorff

Volker Schlöndorff is a Berlin-based German filmmaker who has worked in Germany, France and the United States...

 with John Malkovich

John Malkovich

John Gavin Malkovich is an American actor, producer, director and fashion designer with his label Technobohemian. Over the last 25 years of his career, Malkovich has appeared in more than 70 motion pictures. For his roles in Places in the Heart and In the Line of Fire, he received Academy Award...

in the title role.

External links

• Szymbark and John Malkovich
• Szlakiem starych cmentarzy na Mazurach Zachodnich
• pre-war pictures
• 19th century view