University of Warsaw

Construction of the future main campus of the University of Warsaw began when Krakowskie Przedmieście was an actual suburb of Old Warsaw. The royal residence Villa Regia (Kazimierzowski Palace) was adapted for the newly established School of Knights (Cadet Corps) in 1765-1766. Two other residences, the Tyszkiewicz-Potocki Palace and the palace belonging to Kazimierz Poniatowski, later replaced by the Uruski Palace, were also acquired by the University of Warsaw in the 20th century. During this time, the St. Roch Hospital served as the clinical hospital of the medical school from 1811 to 1818. These buildings separated the School of Knights and its barracks from Krakowskie Przedmieście, leaving a relatively narrow path and isolating the developing campus from the city.

From 1808, the Kazimierzowski Palace was used by the Law School. Due to wartime activities, the palace served as the headquarters for Prussian authorities and a temporary hospital for the returning army from the Moscow campaign. After the stabilization of the Kingdom of Poland, it became the home of the Warsaw Lyceum and the University itself. The palace park below the escarpment was adapted for the Medical School and later the university, primarily for medicinal herbology. The park initially served as a botanical garden, but a new location in Łazienki Park was established in 1818. Subsequently, the Astronomical Observatory was constructed in the new garden, marking the university's first buildings outside the main campus.

In the 1820s, the palace underwent reconstruction, becoming the university library in the 19th century. Additional neoclassical wings were added between 1815 and 1816, serving as residences for university rectors and teachers, while the northern wing housed the Government Commission for Religious Affairs and Public Enlightenment. More wings were built in 1817-1818, with the southern wing housing the mineralogical cabinet and the north wing serving as a chemical laboratory and high school classes. The Palace of Fine Arts Pavilion was built between Krakowskie Przedmieście and the Mineralogical Pavilion, initially intended for a zoological cabinet.

After the November Uprising, the University of Warsaw and the Warsaw Lyceum were abolished. The Warsaw Real Gymnasium continued as its successor, along with the School of Fine Arts, which occupied the Auditorium Building from 1846 to 1865. In 1841, the gymnasium moved to a new building south of the Rector's Building. In 1862, this building became the seat of the Main School of Warsaw, known as the Main School. The campus was redeveloped during this time, including the buildings around the Kazimierzowski Palace and the Uruski Palace. The library building of the Imperial University of Warsaw (BUW) was constructed between the Rector's and Poseminary Buildings in 1891-1894, and a new ornamental gate with statues of Athena and Urania was erected in 1910.

During the interwar period, additional university buildings began to emerge outside the campus (Hoża 69, the beginnings of the Ochota campus). Furthermore, the university rented spaces near the campus, such as in the Staszic Palace. However, within its grounds, symmetrically to the BUW (Library of the University of Warsaw), an Auditorium Maximum was built as an extension of the main university building. The Museum Building, destroyed in a fire, was also reconstructed. In 1923, the Tyszkiewicz-Potocki Palace was purchased by the Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego. Later, it housed the Polish Academy of Literature, and the National Library utilized its premises.

During World War II, the campus buildings were used as barracks for the German gendarmerie. Due to bombings in 1939 and attempts by the Krybar Group during the Warsaw Uprising to retake the area, 90% of the campus was destroyed to varying degrees. The Museum Building and the Main School Building survived with almost no damage. The Auditorium Maximum was converted into a stable and a weapons depot. Its reconstruction from 1951 to 1955 involved significant alterations. The Kazimierzowski Palace burned down, and its reconstruction lasted until 1954, significantly changing its interior, creating the Golden Hall and the Senate Hall. The Vice-Rector's Building burned down in 1939 and was rebuilt in 1949. The Pokuratorski and Mineralogical Pavilions were so heavily damaged that new buildings were erected in their place. South of the Kazimierzowski Palace, in 1952, the Polonistics Building and the building for the university cafeteria and professors' club were constructed. In 1953, north of the palace, the Pedagogy Building, later known as the UW Information Technology Center, was built. After the war, the university received the destroyed St. Roch Hospital, which, after reconstruction, partially became a university clinic and partially a university office building and bookstore. This area is now known as the Small Courtyard. In 1946, the university took over the Czetwertyński Palace, whose renovation lasted from 1948 to 1951. In the years 1948-1956, the Tyszkiewicz-Potocki Palace, transferred to the university, was also rebuilt. The area of the palaces, connected with the university grounds, began to be referred to as the upper courtyard. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, it was enclosed from the east, and the Polygraphy Building was constructed on the site of the former Potocki Palace coach house. In 1950, as a result of an education system reform, the Auditorium Maximum was transferred to the newly formed Medical Academy. After the war, besides the buildings directly adjacent to the existing campus and incorporated into it, such as the Merchants' House at 8 Oboźna Street (formerly Rapacka's House), the university also received buildings located nearby but slightly farther away, such as the Zamoyski Palace. In the 1970s, the campus area expanded towards Powiśle when the building of the Higher School of Foreign Languages was constructed on Browarna Street. Full development in this direction became possible when the university was granted additional land in Powiśle in the 1990s. In 1995, the UW Senate adopted a resolution to gradually relocate university units scattered outside the three main clusters (Center, Ochota, Służewiec) back into these areas. The Center Cluster was to focus mainly on humanities units. In subsequent plans, the central area of the UW and its expansion, primarily in Powiśle, were to become a university district. Ultimately, these plans were reduced. The university buildings, including the main campus and nearby structures, close enough to not be considered part of the diaspora, are now referred to as the Center-Powiśle Cluster, with the buildings in Powiśle being managed by the "Powiśle" Real Estate Office, and the central area and diaspora buildings by the UW Economic Office. Some major renovations of the main campus buildings took place after the former occupants moved to other locations. In 2003-2005, the old library building was renovated after the library moved to a new building in Powiśle. The Main School Building was renovated after being taken over by the Institute of Archaeology from the Faculty of Biology. In 2014, the Auditorium Maximum once again became the property of the University of Warsaw. After its renovation, it has been used by the Faculty of Political Science and International Studies since 2017. In the 21st century, two more buildings were constructed on the central UW campus. In 2004-2005, the Collegium Iuridicum III building was completed. In 2011, the Historical Faculty building was constructed on the site of the former storage building near the Museum Building. In 2009, a new gate was also built on Oboźna Street. In the 21st century, the oldest building on the main UW campus is the Kazimierzowski Palace - the rector's residence and the venue for Senate meetings. The Auditorium Maximum contains a hall for 1200 people, which is the largest on the university campus.