Day 12 – Palace Piszkowice (Schloss Pischkowitz)

 After picking up Phil, we drove towards Klodzko Land, with a stop for lunch in a beautifully restored Uroczysko Siedmiu Stawow https://www.uroczysko7stawow.pl/en/

The Kłodzko land is an interesting part of Poland that is surrounded on all sides by the Sudetes, but historically it is not part of Silesia. For centuries it had been closer to Czechia from here, but under 18th-century treaties the region fell into the hands of Prussia. Preoccupied with the vision of losing their new conquest, the Prussian kings then expanded or built massive fortresses in Kłodzko and Srebrna Góra, which amaze not only lovers of military architecture. Prussian land owners also built beautiful castles, palaces and manor homes in the hills covering the area. There were about 600 of them before the war. Now, there are about 250 left, most in ruins, but some are being reborn. One of the lucky ones is Piszkowice palace.

 

The history of Palac Piszkowice dates back to the 14th century when the lands surrounding the small defensive fort belonged to the von Haugwitz family. The surviving baroque structure was built at the beginning of the 18th century atop the medieval foundations.

Following 1945 the condition of the palace deteriorated with an ever increasing speed. Initially the building housed an elementary school, kindergarten, and a teacher’s flat. After the school was closed, the building was sold to a string of private investors who did nothing. Finally in 2015, new owners (two young Canadians) undertook the massive project of restoring the building and the surrounding gardens to their former glory.

There are now 5 rooms with bathrooms available on the top floor. They are spacious and very tastefully furnished. There is a common area on the top floor too – with a coffee maker, an electric kettle and teas, and a small refrigerator for common use. The second floor is still being restored and workers were there every day of our 3-day stay. On the ground floor, there is a large common area (salon), a dining room where a great breakfast is served every morning, and a study/office. The main staircase has not been restored yet so we used a side staircase to climb up to our rooms. Climbing a lot of steep stairs was a bit inconvenient, but on the other hand one has to admire the amount of work, effort and money that went into raising this beautiful place from ruins. Martin, the owner, told us that they recently bought farm buildings that belonged to the palace before 1945. The plan is to restore them and expand the hotel. However, it looks like they don’t have sufficient funding to complete the palace restoration, let alone undertake another big project. Bo saw on some historic real estate sites that the palace was up for sale ( asking price is about 6 mln zlotys) and asked Martin about it. He said that their (his and his partner’s) intent was to stay for 10 years and then move on. It will be 10 years in 2025 since they started the restoration – they want to move to the south of France.




Since there is no restaurant in Piszkowice, we drove to another palace about 5 miles away – Palace Kamieniec. Poor Al had to drive a very narrow road among fields and trees, up and down hills, but it was worth it. The completely restored Kamieniec palace is lovely and has a charming and very good restaurant. This 18th-century Baroque palace was also dilapidated and it wasn't until 2009 when the current owners, Katarzyna and Wojciech, restored it to its original elegance. It looks like a well prospering hotel now.

The landscape around Piszkowice is glorious.
























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