Kwidzyn Castle (German: Marienwerder) is a large brick Gothic castle in the town of Kwidzyn,

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

. The castle is modeled on the Gothic castles of the Teutonic Knights'.

Description

The castle is located by Gdańska Street (''Ulica Gdańska'' in Polish) in Kwidzyn. The castle was used as a

chapter house A chapter house or chapterhouse is a building or room that is part of a cathedral, monastery or collegiate church in which meetings are held. When attached to a cathedral, the cathedral chapter meets there. In monasteries, the whole communi ...

for the

Pomesanians Pomesanians were a Old Prussians, Prussian clan. They lived in Pomesania (; ; ), a historical region in modern northern Poland, located between the Nogat and Vistula Rivers to the west and the Elbląg River to the east. It is located around the m ...

, who built it at the beginning of the 14th century, in a square formation with a

courtyard A courtyard or court is a circumscribed area, often surrounded by a building or complex, that is open to the sky. Courtyards are common elements in both Western and Eastern building patterns and have been used by both ancient and contemporary a ...

and square keeps in the corners of the castle's square formation, and a

dansker A dansker (also ''danzker'') is a toilet facility, belonging to a castle, that is housed in a tower over a river or stream. The tower, a type of garderobe tower, is linked to the castle over a bridge, which has a covered or enclosed walkway. The ...

supported by five arcades. King

Władysław II Jagiełło Jogaila (; 1 June 1434), later Władysław II Jagiełło (),Other names include (; ) (see also Names and titles of Władysław II Jagiełło) was Grand Duke of Lithuania beginning in 1377 and starting in 1386, becoming King of Poland as well. ...

took over the castle, while heading battles against the Teutonic Knights in 1410. The Second Peace of Toruń ceded the castle back to the Teutonic Knights. During the 17th century Deluge campaigns, the

Swedes Swedes (), or Swedish people, are an ethnic group native to Sweden, who share a common ancestry, Culture of Sweden, culture, History of Sweden, history, and Swedish language, language. They mostly inhabit Sweden and the other Nordic countries, ...

partially destroyed the castle. After the First Partition of Poland until

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, a court was located in the castle. In the 18th century, the castle was dismantled and transformed into offices and a school. This transformation was halted by Frederick William IV in 1854, from which time the restoration of the castle was made. Currently, the preserved north-western and western wing houses the Branch of the Castle Museum in Malbork (''Oddział Muzeum Zamkowego w Malborku'' in Polish). The largest

and a well with a porch have also been preserved. File:Kwidzyn castle, Poland.jpg, File:Kwidzyn castle's cannons.jpg, File:Kwidzyn castle cannon from 1863.jpg, File:Kwidzyn Castle windows.jpg, File:Kwidzyn Castle museum entrance.jpg,

References

{{Reflist

External links

Kwidzyn Castle

The Association of Castles and Museums around the Baltic Sea
Buildings and structures completed in the 14th century Gothic architecture in Poland Houses completed in 1875 Castles in Pomeranian Voivodeship Kwidzyn County

Description

See also

References

External links