Kończyce Małe Castle

Kończyce Małe Castle is a Renaissance residence in Cieszyn Silesia that from the outside resembles a manor house more than a fortress. It is a fortified manor, regarded as the only one of its kind in Cieszyn Silesia. Today it houses, among other things, a hotel, a restaurant and a Regional Room.

Where the building came from

The original Gothic castle was built at the end of the 14th century by the Golasowski family. In 1560 it was extended by Jerzy Sedlnicki, as shown by the stone portal with the Odrowąż coat of arms. The estate then passed to the Czela family, one of the oldest noble families in the Duchy of Cieszyn.

Piotr Czela gave the building a Renaissance style and turned it into a four-wing residence with an arcaded courtyard. Other seats of the Cieszyn nobility did not have such a stately courtyard, which is why the castle is sometimes called the Cieszyn Wawel. The whole was surrounded by a moat, and was additionally protected by marshes and a nearby pond.

Later owners and rebuilding

In 1657 Kończyce Małe was bought by Wacław Pełka of Nowe Miasto, who made the castle a family seat. The Pełkas owned the village for about 180 years. In the 1820s an English-style garden, cut by a poplar avenue, was laid out on the site of the filled-in moats, and the castle became a residence with no defensive features.

In 1837 the widow of Jerzy Pełka sold the estate to Jan Andrzej Folwarczny. His son carried out a renovation and rebuilding of the seat in 1880. The last owner was Hildegarda Wurzian, who left the castle before the Red Army arrived. Wartime action in 1945 seriously damaged the building, and in 1946 the estate was taken over by the State Treasury.

What it looks like today

After the rebuilding in 1956-1958 two perpendicular wings survived, and in 1960 a third was added, with a performance hall. Another general renovation took place in 1993-1995. The building is entered in the heritage register, which describes its style as Renaissance and its material as brick.

In the entrance hall the vaults are barrel vaults, and in the ground-floor rooms they are groin-and-barrel and sail vaults. On the courtyard side one sees irregularly spaced arcades of the loggia closed with basket arches, and above them a gallery with a panelled parapet. Four windows have stone Renaissance surrounds from around the mid-16th century, and on the upper floor a rusticated Renaissance portal has survived. The roof is a Polish-style broken roof, originally covered with shingles.

Concerts within the Cieszyn music festival "Viva il Canto" take place in the courtyard.

Nearby

Past the castle runs the green cycle route no. 13 from Rybnik through Jastrzębie-Zdrój to Ustroń, and the Castles Trail on the Piotrówka. Not far away, in the neighbouring village, lies the palace park in Kończyce Wielkie.

In the municipality there is also the palace in Zebrzydowice.

In the village itself it is worth looking in at the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and in the area you will also find the brine graduation tower in Dębowiec.

Practical information

• Address: ul. Staropolska 5, Kończyce Małe (Zebrzydowice municipality, Cieszyn County).
• The castle serves hotel, catering and cultural functions, so access to the interiors depends on what is currently going on in them. Before a visit, check with the venue whether you can go in and see the courtyard.
• You can reach the site by bicycle on route no. 13.