Bobolice Castle, Bobolice, Poland

The Bobolice Castle was built by King Casimir III the Great in the middle of the 14th century, probably in place of an earlier wooden structure. The castle was a part of the defence system of royal strongholds protecting the western border of Poland on the side of Silesia. In 1370, immediately after becoming King of Poland, Louis I the Great granted the castle to Wladyslaw Opolczyk, Duke of Opole, as a prize for his support of the king’s dynastic plans. Nine years later Opolczyk leased the castle to Andrzej Schoen, a Hungarian from Barbalas; the new owner manned it with Germans and Czechs, who robbed local inhabitants and conspired with the Teutonic Order. Dissatisfied with their behaviour, the Polish king W³adys³aw Jagie³³o invaded Bobolice in 1396 and took over the castle with adjacent estates. From that time on, the stronghold was owned by a number of families.

The beginning of the decline of the castle dates back to 1587, when it was heavily devastated during the invasion of Maximilian III, Archduke of Austria, a rival of Sigismund III Vasa to the Polish throne. The castle was reconstructed by the then owners, the Krezowie family, but in 1657, during the Deluge, it was plundered and totally ruined by Swedish troops. The condition of the stronghold was so bad that when King John III Sobieski arrived here in 1683, he had to spend the night in a tent.

In the 19th century a huge treasure was found in stronghold cellars. It is supposed that its part may be stored in the legendary tunnel between Bobolice and Mirów. In 1882, after parcelling out the land, the already deserted walls were acquired by the peasant family of Bary³ów. Now the castle belongs to the Lasecki family, who decided to rebuild it in 1999.

The castle is situated on a steep rocky hill (360 m above sea level). Up till now, only the upper part of the stronghold (the residential building with at least two storeys and remnants of the cylindrical wall tower) has survived. The castle was accessible through a drawbridge over the dry moat, and the entire construction was surrounded by walls with battlements, made of local white limestone. Currently reconstruction works are under way in order to restore the entrance gate and the circumferential wall around the castle grounds.

References:

Wikipedia

Castles and fortifications in Poland

User Reviews

jmz ARTS (2 months ago)
Overpriced, extremely over priced over-rated, poor quality This review applies to both Mirów & Bobolice Castles, visited Saturday 2nd November 2024 Firstly, don't bother, don't waste your time. You can see all you need to see from outside the walls, there isn't much else in the grounds or actually inside the castles. Secondly. How did national ancient monuments come to be sold to a private buyer who now makes a profit from them, ...only in Poland. The entrance fee to the grounds is extortionate, hence not advertised on the websites, also there are aditional fees for entrance to the inside of the castles, extortionate again as there is nothing to see. In Bobolice if you want to go to the restaurant, you have to pay the entrance fee to the grounds of the castle.

Kai H (6 months ago)
Expensive for what it is - a modern reconstruction that is used as a film set. Minimal explanation of the props, sets of armour, etc on display in the rooms. Nice views of the surrounding countryside. Lots of self-aggrandizing posters about how the owner of the estate (a politician) financed all the restoration etc himself, seemingly to justify the relative expense of a visit.

Grzegorz Bryk (9 months ago)
Great experience. I was there on Friday. It was so quiet, only a few people around. You can hear only birds singing

Michał Niezgoda (9 months ago)
Great place to visit and enjoy the wonderful setting of the castle. It is privately owned.

David Popescu (2 years ago)
Amazing castle Unfortunately employees are very rude. Especially the lady at the hotel reception. I asked her to show me the room to see if I like it or not, I wanted to find accomodation in the region. Price of 390 zlot seemed good to me, but when I asked her 2 show me she said ' I won' t show it to you'. Very disrespectful attitude. If this didnt happen, the castle is amazing.

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