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Castle Square, Warsaw

Coordinates: 52°14′51″N 21°0′49″E / 52.24750°N 21.01361°E / 52.24750; 21.01361
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Castle Square
Castle Square in 2024, with Sigismund's Column (left), Royal Castle (right) and Warsaw's Old Town and St. John's Cathedral (top)
Map
Native nameplac Zamkowy (Polish)
NamesakeRoyal Castle, Warsaw
TypeSquare
Maintained byWarsaw City Council
LocationŚródmieście, Warsaw, Poland
Coordinates52°14′51″N 21°0′49″E / 52.24750°N 21.01361°E / 52.24750; 21.01361
SouthRoyal Road
TypeCultural
Criteriaii, vi
Designated1980
Part ofHistoric Centre of Warsaw
Reference no.30bis
Designated1994-09-08
Part ofWarsaw – historic city center with the Royal Route and Wilanów
Reference no.M.P. 1994 nr 50 poz. 423[1]

Castle Square (Polish: plac Zamkowy, pronounced [ˈplat͡s zamˈkɔ.vɘ]) is a historic square in front of the Royal Castle – the former official residence of Polish monarchs – located in Warsaw, Poland. It is a popular meeting place for tourists and locals. The square, of somewhat triangular shape, features the landmark Sigismund's Column to the south-west, and is surrounded by historic townhouses. It marks the beginning of the bustling Royal Route extending to the south.[2]

History

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Castle Square, with tower of St. Anne's Church at right

The column commemorating King Sigismund III of Poland (a work by Clemente Molli, erected in 1644) is the oldest and one of the symbolic landmarks of the city and the first secular monument in the form of a column in the country.[3]

On the east side of the square stands the Royal Castle, reconstructed after the devastation of World War II.[4] It was formerly the residence of the dukes of Mazovia, and then of the Polish kings and grand dukes of Lithuania from the 16th to 18th centuries.[5] The Germans bombed and blew it up at the beginning of World War II (September 1939), and then it was completely destroyed in 1944–45 (see picture below). The rebuilding of the Old Town continued until the mid-1960s and the Royal Castle opened to visitors in 1984. In 1980, Warsaw Old Town was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List as an example of near-total reconstruction of a historic centre.[4]

Castle Square in 1910
Castle Square destroyed during the German occupation of Poland (1939–1945) and the planned destruction of Warsaw, view in 1945[6]

In 1949, the square was connected by an escalator to the newly formed Route W-Z (East-West Route), which runs under Castle Square through a tunnel; and the viaduct (leading to the Silesian-Dąbrowski Bridge) was built in the place of Pancer Viaduct, destroyed during World War II. In 1907, the viaduct was modernized to handle electric trams that went over there less than a year later.

This square has witnessed many dramatic scenes in Polish history. Patriotic demonstrations took place there during the period before the outbreak of the January uprising of 1863. On 27 February 1861, Russian bullets killed five people.[7] On 8 April 1861, five rota of infantry and two troops of Russian cavalry (about 1,300 people) led by General Stepan Aleksandrovich Khrulyov  [ ru ] carried out a bloody massacre of civilians, resulting in the deaths of more than 100 people.[8][9]

During martial law on 3 May 1982, the square became the scene of the particularly brutal riot, with ZOMO police rushing through demonstrations.[10]

Events

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The square is a hub for tourists and locals, who gather to watch street entertainers, participate in rallies, watch concerts and even engage in breakdancing. In 1997, at the Castle Square, US President Bill Clinton gave a speech welcoming Poland to membership in NATO.[11] On March 26, 2022, President Joe Biden delivered a public speech in the courtyard of the Royal Castle, with crowds gathering in the square outside the castle.[12]

Castle Square featured the United Buddy Bears exhibition in summer 2008 – an array of 140 two-metre-high sculptures, each designed by a different artist, touring the world as a symbol of cultural understanding, tolerance and mutual trust.[13] According to official information, more than 1.5 million visitors were counted.

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  • Copper-Roof Palace, Castle Square 2
    Copper-Roof Palace, Castle Square 2
  • Royal Castle, Castle Square 4
    Royal Castle, Castle Square 4
  • Castle Square 1/13 (9/11/13a/13b)[14]
    Castle Square 1/13 (9/11/13a/13b)[14]
  • Castle Square 15/17/19
    Castle Square 15/17/19
  • Mansjonaria House, Świętojańska Street 2
    Mansjonaria House, Świętojańska Street 2
  • Warsaw Friends Association, Castle Square 10[15]
    Warsaw Friends Association, Castle Square 10[15]
  • Castle Square 10 and 6/8 towards Kanonia Street
    Castle Square 10 and 6/8 towards Kanonia Street
  • Tunnel under the square
    Tunnel under the square
  • Tunnel under the square
    Tunnel under the square

Details

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See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Zarządzenie Prezydenta Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej z dnia 8 września 1994 r. w sprawie uznania za pomnik historii., M.P., 1994, vol. 50, No. 423
  2. ^ "Warszawa - Historic City Complex with Royal Route and Wilanów Palace - Zabytek.pl". Zabytek.pl. Archived from the original on 5 December 2021. Retrieved 29 August 2025.
  3. ^ Mączewska, Katarzyna (December 2021). "Column of Sigismund III Vasa in Warsaw". Culture.pl. Archived from the original on 7 October 2024. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  4. ^ a b "Historic Centre of Warsaw". whc.unesco.org. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  5. ^ Cymer, Anna (27 May 2021). "The Royal Castle in Warsaw". Culture.pl. Archived from the original on 23 January 2025. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  6. ^ Source: (Polish): Adolf Ciborowski: O zniszczeniu i odbudowie miasta (A City Destroyed and Rebuilt), Warszawa 1969, Poland: "Interpress" Publishers, p.63
  7. ^ "Patriotic-religious demonstrations in 1861. A prelude to the January Uprising. - English content - Przystanek Historia". przystanekhistoria.pl (in Polish). Archived from the original on 16 August 2024. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  8. ^ Culture, View Theories and Practices of Visual. ""The Five Fallen" as a Meta-image of Polish Culture in the Mid-19th". View. Theories and Practices of Visual Culture. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  9. ^ Kieniewicz, Stefan (1983). Powstanie styczniowe (in Polish). Warszawa: Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe. ISBN 978-83-01-03652-2.
  10. ^ Darnton, John (4 May 1982). "POLISH PROTESTERS CLASH WITH POLICE IN SEVERAL CITIES (Published 1982)". The New York Times. p. 1. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  11. ^ "Archiwum działalności Prezydenta RP w latach 1997–2005". prezydent.pl (in Polish). 15 January 1998. Archived from the original on 15 May 2007. Retrieved 1 July 2008.
  12. ^ "'Kyiv stands strong' says Biden in address outside Warsaw Castle". euronews. 21 February 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  13. ^ "United Buddy Bears in Warsaw". buddy-baer.com. 15 January 1998. Archived from the original on 20 May 2025. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  14. ^ "Plan Placu Zamkowego - Warszawa - Stare Miasto". www.warszawska.info. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  15. ^ "Kontakt - Towarzystwo Przyjaciół Warszawy". www.tpw.org.pl. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
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