The Wilanow Palace

Constructed in the late 17th century for King John III Sobieski, Wilanów Palace was subsequently expanded by subsequent owners. The palace exemplifies the Baroque suburban residence style known as "entre cour et jardin" or "between the entrance court and the garden," and its architecture combines European art with distinctively Polish building traditions. Ancient symbols are depicted on the elevations and within the palace interiors, glorifying the military triumphs of the Sobieski family.

After John III Sobieski's death in 1696, the palace was passed down to his sons and later to prominent noble families such as the Sieniawskis, Czartoryskis, Lubomirskis, Potockis, and Branickis. In 1720, it was purchased by the influential Polish stateswoman Elżbieta Sieniawska, who further expanded the palace. Augustus II the Strong, who was also King of Poland, resided in the palace between 1730 and 1733, after which the property was passed down to Sieniawska's daughter, Maria Zofia Czartoryska. Over time, each owner altered the palace's interiors, gardens, and grounds to suit the current fashion and their specific needs.

Izabela Lubomirska, also known as The Blue Marquise, inherited the estate in 1778 and refurbished several of the palace's interiors in the neoclassical style between 1792 and 1793. She also oversaw the construction of a corps de garde, kitchen building, and bathroom building, which were designed by Szymon Bogumił Zug.

In 1805, Stanisław Kostka Potocki, the then-owner of the palace, opened a museum within one of its wings, making it one of the first public museums in Poland. Among its notable collections is a neoclassical equestrian portrait of Potocki by the renowned French artist Jacques-Louis David. In addition to European and Oriental art, the central part of the palace displayed a commemoration of King John III Sobieski and Poland's glorious national past.

During World War II, the palace was damaged by German forces, but it was not demolished following the 1944 Warsaw Uprising. After the war, the palace was renovated, and most of the collection stolen by Germany was repatriated. It was reopened to the public in 1962.

Augustyn Wincenty Locci designed the structure of the palace, which is a unique example of different building traditions, including Polish aristocratic mansions with side towers, the Italian suburban villa, and French palaces entre cour et jardin with two oblong wings on each side of the cour d'honneur.

During the first stage of construction between 1677 and 1680, the building was a typical Polish manor house with four alcove towers attached to the one-storeyed square building. Between 1681 and 1688, the building was enhanced and two gallery wings ending with towers were added. This new appearance was probably inspired by Palladio's Villa Montagnana. Shortly after the king's death, the third stage of reconstruction was accomplished, with the pavilion above the main building being erected and the towers being covered with baroque spires, all resembling the Villa Doria Pamphili in Rome.

King Jan III Sobieski and his librarian, Adam Adamandy Kochański, took an active part in the design and construction of the palace. Kochański was responsible for the ideological and artistic programme, with motives and decoration elements playing an essential role in glorifying the monarch, his wife, and the Republic. Busts of the king and queen were among the effigies of ancient characters, gods and goddesses, Roman emperors and empresses, Eagle and Pogonia, personifications of the Commonwealth regions.

The sculptures were issued by sculptors Andreas Schlüter, Stefan Szwaner, and a stucco decorator named Antoni of Wilanów. Some of the sculptures were made in the Low Countries by Louis Willemsens and Artus Quellinus the Elder's workshop, shipped to Gdańsk, and then transported to Warsaw. An ornate sundial on the south wall with Chronos, together with the opposite composition with Uranus on the north wall, underlined the king's patronage of science and orderliness in the Serenissima during his reign. They were executed by Antoni of Wilanów, according to the design by Johannes Hevelius, Adam Adamandy Kochański, and Augustyn Locci.

The side wings embracing a courtyard were initiated by the king, but they were built long after his death by Elżbieta Sieniawska in the fourth stage of the enlargement between 1720 and 1729. Sieniawska was very concerned about maintaining the substantial historical residence of the "Rex victoriossimus" (Victorious King). Despite that, she transformed the palace into a French-style palais enchanté according to a design by Giovanni Spazzio, with two new wings harmonious with the 17th-century corps de logis. She employed the most renowned architects and artists for this undertaking, such as Spazzio, Johann Sigmund Deybel, Józef Fontana, Jan Jerzy Plersch, and Giovanni Rossi. While the original royal palace was decorated with reliefs depicting the deeds of John III, the new wings were adorned with battlefield achievements of Sieniawska's husband and father-in-law - Adam Mikołaj and Mikołaj Hieronim Sieniawski.

The palace interiors were decorated by some of the most prominent Polish and foreign artists, including painters Martino Altomonte, Jan Rayzner, Michelangelo Palloni, sculptor Stefan Szwaner, and stucco decorators Szymon Józef Bellotti, Antoni of Wilanów, and Abraham Paris. The official court painters Claude Callot and Jerzy Siemiginowski-Eleuter supervised their work, with Siemiginowski-Eleuter having a significant influence on the palace's subsequent internal aspects. Adam Kochański, a great admirer of China, also played a role in the internal decoration, filling the palace with luxury Chinese imports and chinoiserie.

The 17th-century palace inventories included works by great masters like Rembrandt, Pieter van Laer, Anthony van Dyck, Ferdinand van Kessel, Raphael, Caracci brothers, Guido Reni, and Bernardo Strozzi. The chambers were filled with precious furnishings, including a silver folding screen, a three-storeyed silver fountain, and a silk baldachin presented by the Shah of Persia. Unfortunately, many of these items were scattered or looted during World War II.

In the 18th century, Giuseppe Rossi, Francesco Fumo, and Pietro Innocente Comparetti were appointed for the decoration of the palace's interiors. Elżbieta Sieniawska embellished the Lower Vestibule with a fresco of Flora and covered the walls of the royal chambers with Genoan velvet. Maria Zofia Czartoryska furnished the palace with new fireplaces made of white-cherry marble and crowned with mirrors in rich rococo frames.

The contract with King Augustus II obliged him to preserve the palace unchanged, and his actions were limited to finishing the new dining room in the southern wing and decorating some unfinished interiors. Julien Poison, Johann Samuel Mock, Lorenzo Rossi, and Martin Schnell executed the plafonds, paintings, and decorative lacquer panneaux in the Chinese Room.