1. The town walk
THE ROUTE IS MARKED IN RED (map no. 1):
Rynek (walk begins by the Town Hall) – ul. Głęboka – Castle Hill – ul. Zamkowa – Friendship Bridge (border crossing) ul. Hlavní – ul. Vrchlického – ul. Masarykovy sady – ul. Sokola Tůmy – ul. Hlavní – ul. Odboje – Náměstí ČSA – ul. Štefánikova – ul. Nádražní –ul. Tyrąová – ul. Ostravská – ul. Sokolovská – ul. Lidická – ul. Rozvojová – ul. Gymnazijní – ul. Divadelní – ul. Frýdecká – ul. Nádražní – ul. Střelniční – ul. Dukelská – ul. Střelniční – Freedom Bridge (border crossing) – al. J. Łyska – ul. Przykopa – ul. Schodowa – ul. B. Limanowskiego and back along – pl. J. Słowackiego – pl. Wolności – ul. P. Stalmacha – ul. ks. I. Świeżego and back along – ul. P. Stalmacha – pl. J. Poniatowskiego – ul. Górna – pl. Kościelny – ul. Bielska and back along – ul. Wyższa Brama – Górny Rynek – ul. Garncarska and back again – Górny Rynek – ul. J. Kochanowskiego – pl. ks. J. Londzina – ul. J. Michejdy – ul. Zamkowa – ul. Stroma – pl. Teatralny (or ul. Michejdy – ul. Kluckiego – ul. Mennicza – pl. Teatralny) – ul. A. Fredry – Stary Targ – ul. Mennicza – ul. Bóżnicza – ul. Mennicza – Rynek – ul. ks. L. Szersznika – ul. Szeroka – ul. T. Regera – ul. Srebrna – ul. Nowe Miasto – ul. Śrutarska and back again – ul. Trzech Braci – ul. Sejmowa – pl. Dominikański – ul. Ratuszowa – Rynek.
Length of walk – 19.5 km
POINTS OF INTEREST ALONG THE ROUTE
1. Rynek 1 – The Town Hall (fig 1) extends across the whole of the south side of the Market Square. The first town hall was built from two houses which Kazimierz II, the Prince of Cieszyn, donated to the town in 1496. It has been modified many times. Evidence of Renaissance modifications is the entrance hall with groin vaulting supported by a stone column. The present building was renovated and extended in the 1840s according to the design of the well-known Viennese architect Joseph Kornhäusel and the builder Andrzej Kment. The building which had previously housed the Regional Court (Rynek 2) was joined to the town hall in 1906 and the courtroom became the council chambers of the Town Council. Its interior – ornate wood panels decorated with the coats of arms of Cieszyn noblemen and symbols of craftsmen’s guilds – dates from 1914.
2. ul. Głęboka 15 – Cieszyn Library (formerly Dom Niemiecki, the German House) dating from the end of the 19th century built in Dutch neo-Renaissance style with an elaborate, many-gabled façade and interesting interior – a painted hall, stuccowork on the stairwell and ceilings, and above all the cellars of the so-called Masonic lodge, which were in fact owned by the Schlarafia association.
3. ul. Głęboka 17, 19, 21 – townhouses with arcades from the turn of the 18th century with small arcades built on, examples of how the town used to look (fig. 2)
4. The Castle Hill – had already been settled by the 5th century B.C. The fortified stronghold founded in the 9th century was raised to the rank of castellany sometime before 1155 and in 1290 became the capital of the independent Duchy of Cieszyn. A magnificent Gothic castle was built in the 14th century. The upper castle consisted of living quarters surrounded by a defensive wall with turrets and a tower. The castle chapel was located within the courtyard. The lower castle consisted of servants’ quarters, stores and outbuilding, dungeons, towers and a drawbridge. The Thirty Years’ War in 1618-1648 and the dying out of the Cieszyn Piast line in 1653 led to the fall of the Duchy’s seat. Cieszyn passed to the Habsburgs, who, in 1840, employed the architect Joseph Kornhäusel to rebuild the Castle Hill extensively in neoclassicist style. A summer Hunting Residence was built on the foundations of the lower castle while the rest of the grounds were transformed into a park. Only the Piast Tower and the Rotunda of St. Nicholas remain from the days of past splendour. In 1914 „man-made ruins” were built on the remains of the keep, which was recently reconstructed according to its original 13th-century form.
5. The Hunting Lodge (former Habsburgs’ residence) – was built in the 19th century on the remains of the Gothic castle’s outer walls. This neoclassicist building housed the Archduke of Cieszyn’s guest rooms and the administrative offices of the Komora Cieszyńska. Cieszyn Music School has been based there since 1947, and among its former pupils are Stanisław Hadyna, Karol Stryja and Jan Sztwiertnia. An orangery, where Franz Liszt performed, was built next to the lodge. Just inside the castle’s courtyard is a monument to the distinguished teacher and poet, Jan Kubisz.
6. The Rotunda of St. Nicholas (fig. 3) – is the oldest and most precious monument in the Cieszyn region. This Romanesque chapel was built in the first half of the 11th century. Close to it was the palatium – the living quarters of the castle’s commander. For centuries it was the castle chapel and also the place where the stronghold’s senior commanders met to plan strategy and for reasons of defence in times of war. Most probably Cieszyn’s oldest graveyard was located next to the chapel. The Rotunda, which had been restyled during extensive neoclassicist modifications to the Castle Hill, had its original appearance restored to it in 1955.
7. The Piast Tower – is so called owing to the crests of the Piast lineage with characteristic eagle which can be seen on the quoins of the tower’s battlement. The tower represents the remains of the 14th-century Gothic castle. (fig. 4); with a height of 29 m, the tower offers panoramic views of Cieszyn and the Silesian Beskid and Silesian-Morawian Beskid Moutains.
8. The Keep – known as the „Old Tower” – was most probably built in the 13th century as part of the upper castle’s medieval defensive system. It was modified in the 15th and 17th centuries. In 1914 „man-made ruins” were built on the remains of the tower. The tower’s original form was revealed during archaeological excavations in 1993 – 2000.
9. Friendship Bridge (Most Przyjaźni / most Přatelství) – The first bridge to stand here was probably built in the 14th century where a ford had been. Up until the end of the 18th century one of the town gates – the Water Gate – stood on the right bank of the river by the bridge. A concrete and stone bridge was built here in 1880, later replaced by a newer one which became the main border bridge from 1920 to 1938. The present reinforced concrete Friendship Bridge was built in 1953 and links ul. Zamkowa in Cieszyn with ul. Hlavní in Český Těąín.
10. ul. Hlavní Třida 1 – The Český Těąín Printing Works. (fig. 7) The first printing works was founded here in 1806 by the printer Fabian Beinhauer. Tomáą Prochaska from Prague soon bought it from Beinhauer. His grandson, Karel Prochaska, built the present premises between 1886 and 1888. Neoclassicist adaptations in 1892 and 1910 gave the building its present appearance.
11. ul. Hlavní Třida 3 – Exhibition of the Museum of the Těąín Region. There is an exhibition entitled, „Pictures from the Past of Cieszyn Silesia” in temporary premises on the first floor above the restaurant Hubert. The pictures inform visitors about the history of the region, its folk culture, crafts and agriculture. You can see the jewellery that adorns the Cieszyn folk costume, cieszynki hunting rifles, Cieszyn coins, furniture, folk textiles, religious sculptures and more. The plans for the construction of an archaeology park on the site of the stronghold in Chotěbuz-Podobora not far from Český Těąín can also be seen.
12. Sady Masaryka – founded at the beginning of the 19th century and originally called aleje arcivévodou Albrechta after Archduke Albrecht. The project to plant horse chestnuts, limes and false acacias along the avenue was begun in 1813 by forest manager Dünbier. The present name of the avenue commemorates the two-day visit to Český Těąín by the first president of Czechoslovakia, T. G. Masaryk, in 1930.
13. Masarykový sady 8 – The National Tax Office (fig. 5). The building which once housed the offices of the Komora Cieszyńska. It was built midway through the 19th century. The first Czech Technical School of the Silesian People’s Educational Association (Slezské matice osvěty lidové) in Český Těąín was based here from 1921 to 1935. The Gestapo had its headquarters here from 1939 to 1945, which fact is commemorated by a plaque by Štěpán Mikula.
14. Masarykový sady 18 – It is the oldest known building in Český Těąín. The building was constructed in the empire style (a type of neoclassicist architecture) in 1836 and was recently renovated. The year of construction is shown on a metal relief above the door. The house is linked to a folk legend about a Český Těąín „Doctor Faustus”, which says that it was lived in by a merchant who would make his own wares in a smoky room with a large fireplace.
15. Masarykový sady 24 – The Roman Catholic neo-Gothic parish church of the Heart of Jesus, built in 1894, was designed by the Viennese architect, Ludwik Satzke. (fig. 6) It has three naves with a transept and a chancel. Characteristic for this church is its moulded portal and large rose window above it. There are two towers; the smaller one on the eastern side and the taller western one with a bell and a clock. The firm Stufflesser of St. Ulrich in Austrian Tyrol carried out the neo-Gothic interior decoration.
16. Masarykový sady – The sculpture of St. John Nepomuk – the life-sized polychromatic sculpture of the saint, with a halo, holds a cross and palm leaves. The sculpture dates from the end of the 18th century. It is carved in sandstone and stands on a three-metre-high plinth.
17. Masarykový sady – A monument to those who perished in the First World War unveiled on the initiative of the German Kriegerverein Association of War Veterans on 14 October 1930. (fig.8) The sculpture was designed by Helena Scholz-Železný and carved in granite. There used to be a central bronze relief depicting a soldier in pain and a plaque with the names of four hundred soldiers who fell in World War I. The relief was removed in 1945, its place taken by a cross, and the names of the dead were erased. The monument was reconstructed in 2000 by Martin Kuchař.
18. Masarykový sady 15 – The building which once housed the Workers’ House. It was bought from the owner, Władysław Kuchejda, on 1 October 1909 by the Cieszyn branch of the Social Democratic Party. It was officially opened on 5 June 1910. Previously lectures and singing, theatrical and sporting events had been organised here for Cieszyn workers. The building, which has had an extra storey added to it, is occupied by flats and on the ground floor a restaurant and the Na Saské Kupě Gallery. There is a commemorative plaque on the façade in Polish and Czech.
19. Masarykový sady 12 – The Business Academy and a primary school. The Fulda Company of Český Těąín began work on its construction on 16 August 1923. The interior is decorated with murals by Aleksander Drobik. The school was officially opened on 12 October 1924. The building is decorated by sculptures by J. Sladký and G. Kafka of Český Těąín depicting friendship.
20. ul. Sokola Tůmy 10 – The building housing the Pavel Kaleta Arts Primary School was founded here in 1882 as a four-year German primary school and the first school in Český Těąín. The District Council had its headquarters in this building until 1929 and in 1945 the Základní umělecká ąkola (The People’s Arts School) was opened here.
21. ul. Hlavní Třida 15 – Muzeum Těąínska-Muzeum Ziemi Cieszyńskiej (fig.9). The museum carries out research on the Czech part of Cieszyn Silesia and is an important social and cultural institution for Český Těąín and the whole region, with fascinating and valuable exhibits. The most important of them belong to the ethnographical collection, including; agriculture, crafts, folk costumes, textiles, jewellery, folk furniture, folk art etc. There are also exhibits representing decorative arts, history, botany and mineralogy. There is an impressive book collection in the Silesia museum library, including Tranosti, written by Jiří Třanovský (1592-1637), who came from Cieszyn. The museum was built in neoclassicist style in the years 1884-85 by the builder A. Jedek, and is presently undergoing renovation. There is an exhibition entitled, „Pictures from the Past of Cieszyn Silesia” in temporary premises on the first floor above the restaurant Hubert on the left hand side of ul. Hlavní. These pictures inform visitors about the history of the region, folk costumes, crafts and agriculture. You can see the jewellery that goes with the Cieszyn folk costume, cieszynki hunting rifles, Cieszyn coins, furniture, folk textiles, religious sculptures and more. The plans for the construction of an archaeology park on the site of the stronghold in Chotěbuz-Podobora not far from Cieszyn can also be seen. The museum also contains the Regional Information Centre.
22. ul. Odboje 4 – The town house, with the inscription M. L. May. It is one of few examples of Jewish architectural heritage to have survived in the town. It was owned by Moses Lobel May, who was for some time the leader of the orthodox Jewish association Shomre Shabos. For a short period it was used as a house of prayer.
23. Náměstí ČS Armády 1 – The town hall (fig.10) was built in 1928 on land given to the town by Johanna Tetla, whose cottage stood in the centre of the market square until 1932. The interior decoration was finished on 1 February 1929. The Fulda company carried out the construction work according to the neo-Renaissance plans of the architect Vilém Richter. The main feature of the façade is the apex with curved elements and the clock. On the projection is a plaque commemorating Jiří Tř anovský and decorated with relief emblems of Bohemia, Moravia, Silesia and Slovakia. The plaque by O. Eckert has the following inscription „Jiří Třanovský, the celebrated Czech national bard, whose Cithara Sanctorum of 1636 became the source of spiritual and national strength and the symbol of the unity of Czechoslovakia, was born in Cieszyn in 1592 and was active in Bohemia, Moravia, Silesia and Slovakia”. Similar plaques can be found in Prague and Liptovský Mikuláą.
24. ul. Nádražní 4 – The building occupied by the ČSOB Bank began life in 1929 as a branch of the Central Bank of German Savings Accounts. In 1931 the Silesian People’s Bank took over the building and it was used later as an office for Čedok, the travel agency. Banking returned here in 1994.(fig.11)
25. Bus Station – The only remaining building of the Thonet-Mundus bent wood furniture factory, where at the beginning of the Second World War the production halls were used to form up transports to concentration camps. On the building is a commemorative plaque to the victims of Nazism which was unveiled on 28 October 1968.
26. ul. Tyrąová – The health centre was built in 1931 as the headquarters of the local branch of the General Health Insurance Fund. V. Barvíř of Český Těąín designed the building and V. Nekvasil’s firm carried out the building work. Today there is the health centre, private clinics, and the headquarters of the General Health Insurance Fund of the Czech Republic (VZP).
27. Komenského sady – The park was founded soon after the houses in the vicinity were built and looked after by a municipal association set up to beautify the town. An „Esperantists’ lime-tree” was planted here and several erratic blocks from around Český Těąín (fig.119), evidence of the southernmost extent of the northern glacier in the Quaternary Period (from 8,000 B.C. onward) were put here. At one time a World War Two IL 10 warplane stood here, which later became part of the monument against Nazism behind Český Těąín Theatre.
28. ul. Tyrąová 2 – The building dates from 1929 when it was built to house the district administration offices. In addition there was the court, the procurator’s office, the notary’s office, the prison and a police station. During the administrative reorganisation of Czechoslovakia in 1960 Český Těąín lost its status as a district town and the school of agriculture took over the premises.
29. ul. Ostravská 67 – Český Těąín Theatre (fig.12) (Těąínske divadlo) was given this building in 1961. The theatre began life in Český Těąín on 6 October 1945 in a room in ul. Střelniční. Between 1946 and 1961 it was based in the Hotel Piast, from 1948 being run by the state. In 1951 the Polish Theatre in Český Těąín was founded; the only Polish theatre company operating outside Poland. It has been a co-organiser of the Na Granicy/ Na Hranici International Theatre Festival since 1990. Český Těąín library and the astronomical observatory are also based here. In front of the theatre is a lime tree planted during the celebrations marking the thousandth anniversary of Poland with a commemorative plaque on a marble plinth with the inscription „Czechoslovakian-Polish Friendship Tree”. It was planted during the celebrations marking the thousandth anniversary of Poland on 14 May 1966”.
30. ul. Ostravská 73 – The construction of the hospital was begun on 1 October 1930 with the laying of the foundation stone owing to the financial assistance of an association specially founded seven years earlier. The hospital, designed by Kraus from Český Těąín, was officially opened on 5 June 1937.
31. Náměstí M. Luthera 1 – The Church of Martin Luther was built in the Rozvoj district in 1927. The church, whose outline suggests a Romanesque basilica, was designed by architects Kozieł and Schön of Bielsko and built by the E. Fulda building firm of Český Těąín. The vicarage (with a bas-relief of Dr. Martin Luther) was built four years later by the R. Lewak company of Český Těąín.
32. ul. Frýdecka 30 – The building of the gymnasium took place between 26 June 1932 – when the foundation stone was laid – and 23 June 1935 when it was officially opened. The construction work lasted so long owing to financial difficulties. Jaroslav Fragner, one of the creators of modern Czech architecture, was commissioned to design the school. The four-storey building with a flat roof and a façade divided by regular rows of windows is included on the list of cultural monuments built in the functionalist style.
33. ul. Frýdecká 28 – The meeting-house of the Hussite Congregation (presently the church of the Seventh Day Adventists and the church of Czech Brethren) was designed by E. David and built in 1929 by the construction firm of Ženatý from Ostrava.(fig.13)
34. ul. Nádražní 2 – The ČD railway station was built in 1889, replacing the previous station building dating from 1871 which was located in ul. Jablunkovska. The Bohumin-Cieszyn line was opened in 1869. The old station was built two years later after the building of the rail connection between Cieszyn and Žilina. In 1888 the connecting line Frýdek-Cieszyn-Bielsko was built which led to the building of the present imposing eclectic railway station with a central hall and two wings. (fig 14)
35. ul. Nádražní 1 – The post office. When the town was divided the post office ended up on the Polish side of the River Olza and the Czech Post Office was left with no alternative but to build a new one. The post office was designed by the Prague architect, Zdražil, and opened in 1931. The building work was carried out by the firm of J. Dvořák of Slezská Ostrava. Today pedestrian subways are located where the post office garages once stood.
36. ul. Nádražní 18 – The Hotel Piast, which was designed by Edward David, was officially opened on 19 December 1931. It was built owing to the efforts of the savings and loan bank (Towarzystwo Oszczędności i Zaliczek). The modernistic five-storey building has a façade with fluted pilasters conjoined with openwork balconies at the height of the second floor. It contained a hotel, restaurant, the Polonia café and a ballroom. Almost all the Polish associations and institutions were based here. Český Těąín Theatre was located here from 1946 until it moved to a purpose-built building in ul. Ostravská.
37. ul. Střelniční 13 – The Český Těąín Gasworks was the only industrial installation to end up in Český Těąín after the division of the town. The gasworks was built according to a resolution of Cieszyn Town Council of 4 June or 29 August 1881. The resolution came about owing to the need to install better street lighting in public places in the town. The building was designed by B. Kühnel, and went into operation on 30 October 1882. A few years after the division of Cieszyn the gasworks was still supplying gas to Cieszyn in exchange for electricity from the power station on the Polish side.
38. ul. na Nivach 6 – The Na Nivách Silesian Lutheran Church was designed by the architect Edward David and built in 1932. The church, built on the plan of a Greek cross, has a neo-Gothic elevation with certain modern elements. The Český Těąín firm of Pluskal and Riedel were responsible for the construction of the church, while the altarpiece was carved by sculptor Henryk Nytra of Dolní Bludovice.(fig.15)
39. ul. Střelniční 22 – The Český Těąín Polish Language Primary School and Gymnasium was designed by Edward David and built in 1925. On the side elevation of the building is a mural of area 37 m2 carried out in 1957 by the renowned sculptor F. Świder.
40. ul. Střelniční 1 – The Střelnice Cultural and Community Centre is a one-storey neoclassicist building with a two-storey projection and a pediment roof with a lucarne. It was designed by Theodor Herzmanský and built in 1882. Těąín Theatre was located here for several months in 1945. In 1949 it became a cultural centre for children and young people. Now various clubs and folk, singing, theatre and dance groups meet here. The centre collaborates with the Friends of Music Society and the Friends of Art Society. It is one of the organisers of important international cultural events such as the Kino na Granicy/ na Hranici Film Festival, the Na Granicy/ Na Hranici International Theatre Festival, the Three Brothers’ Festival, Skarby z Cieszyńskiej Trówły Festival, the International Festival of Organ and Chamber Music and Choral Song, the Early Music in Cieszyn Festival and the Cieszyn Jazz Autumn Festival (fig. 16).
41. Freedom Bridge (Most Wolności/most Svobodý) – Originally the Jubilee Bridge (Most Jubileuszowy/Jubilejní most), dating from 1903 and built to celebrate the 55th jubilee of the rule of Emperor Franz Joseph I, stood here. After 1918 it was renamed the U Střelnice Bridge (most U Střelnice) and is now called the Freedom Bridge (Most Wolności/most Svobodý). During the Second World War the retreating Polish Army tried to destroy the bridge but after minor repairs the Germans continued to use it. At the end of the war it was the Germans’ turn to attempt to blow it up (one of its pillars was used in the construction of the new bridge). Inadequate regulation of the river and frequent spring and autumn floods weakened the bridge and in 1970 it was finally washed away in a flood which took with it five Polish firemen. Their bodies were never found. There is plaque commemorating this tragedy on the customs building on the Polish side of the border. The present Freedom Bridge was built in 1974, and links ul. Střelniční in Český Těąín with ul. 3 Maja in Cieszyn. (fig. 17)
42. ul. Przykopa 18 – The site of the former medieval water-mill, later adapted as production halls for the Juwenia works.
43. ul. Przykopa -This group of cottages dating from the 18th and 19th centuries with footbridges over the Młynówka is called Cieszyn Venice. They were once lived in by craftsmen such as; tanners, weavers, drapers, tawers and smiths who needed a supply of running water to carry out their work. (fig. 18)
44. ul. Pokoju 1 – Originally the location of the printing works of Dziedzictwo im. bł. Jana Sarkandra (a Catholic association), built in 1929, and from 1949 the Cieszyn Printing Works.
45. ul. B. Limanowskiego 9 – The site of the former Baroque military hospital built in the second half of the 18th century and adapted in the 19th century.
46. pl. J. Słowackiego 2 – The neoclassicist Antoni Osuchowski Grammar School. The building dates from 1909 and up until the First World War was the German Elementary School, during the First World War the Headquarters of the Austrian Army, from 1922 the Macierz Gymnasium. After the Second World War it was the headquarters of the UB (the communist secret police); from 1946 a gymnasium and after that a grammar school. In front of the school is a monument to Paweł Stalmach by Jan Herma, unveiled in 1988.
47. pl. Wolności 7 – The neo-Renaissance Nicholas Copernicus Grammar School and Primary School no.4, built in 1879. It was originally a German girls’ elementary and middle school. During the First World War it was used as barracks for soldiers convalescing from malaria. A monument by Jan Herma depicting an eagle and unveiled in 1988 stands in front of the school.
48. pl. Wolności 5 – A building dating from 1905 whose original function was as a dormitory for Lutheran schoolgirls. Jan Herma’s monument to victims of the Nazis and unveiled in 1965 stands in front of the building (previously there was a monument to Franz Schubert on the same spot).
49. ul. P. Stalmacha 14 – A neoclassicist building housing Macierz Ziemi Cieszyńskiej. This organisation was established on the initiative of Paweł Stalmach in 1885 and originally called Macierz Szkolna dla Księstwa Cieszyńskiego. In its first phase it organised Polish schooling, then after Poland regained its independence it organised cultural activities. It now popularises the Cieszyn region, partly by publishing.
50. ul. ks. I. Świeżego 6 – An eclectic building dating from 1907. It housed the first Polish Elementary School and from 1909 the private Polish Middle School, whose headmaster just before the outbreak of the First World War was Hieronim Przepiliński, the founder of scout and girl – guide troops.
51. ul. P. Stalmacha 34 – A building designed in eclectic style with ornate decoration built for Alphonse Matter in the second half of the 19th century. From 1895 the Gymnasium of Macierz Szkolna dla Księstwa Cieszyńskiego was based here, and during the inter-war period, the School of Commerce.
52. pl. J. Poniatowskiego 9 – A building designed in eclectic style dating from the end of the 19th century. It was the headquarters of the Austrian army garrison until 1918 and then became the headquarters for 4th Podhale Rifles Regiment. On the wall are plaques and in the niche below the lowest plaque there are eight urns containing earth from battlefields of the Second World War (brought here in 1991) and an urn from the Polish mass graves in Mednoe (brought here in 1992). An incomplete list of victims of camps in Kozelsk, Ostashkov and Starobelsk contains the names of 126 people from the Cieszyn region.
53. pl. Kościelny – The Lutheran Church of Jesus (fig.19, 20 and 21) is late Baroque, built in the years 1709 to 1722 (the church tower was built in 1750) on the basis of the agreement of Altranstadt as one of six „churches of grace”. It is a cruciform basilica with three levels of galleries and a two-storeyed choir loft with a late Baroque concert organ. There are 3,500 pews and the church can accommodate 6000 people in total. The church contains an antique library established in the mid 18th century by F. Bludowski and B. Tschammer. The churchyard, of which few tombstones remain, has been converted into a park.
54. pl. Kościelny 3 – A Baroque building with a mansard-roof dating from 1725, originally a Lutheran school, becoming the Theological Gymnasium for Lutheran youth in 1810. From 1850 to 1872 it was the Royal Imperial Lutheran Gymnasium and in 1904 it was converted into living accommodation.
55. pl. Kościelny 4 – The late neoclassicist building of the Lutheran Parish (fig. 22) in Biedermeier style. 56. pl. Kościelny 5 – A neo-Gothic building (fig. 23) built in 1869 originally as the Royal Imperial Lutheran Gymnasium. After 1872 it was a state gymnasium, after 1945 a technical school and after 1951 a technical college.
57. pl. Kościelny 6 – An eclectic building (Fig.23) dating from 1865, formerly the Alumneum (a dormitory for Lutheran schoolchildren), now the Lutheran vicarage.
58. ul. Bielska 4 – The buildings of the Silesian Hospital built by Rev. Dr. T. Haase between 1888 and 1892 as a Lutheran hospital. After 1903 it was administered by the District Government of Austrian Silesia in Opava, after 1922 by the Silesian Diet in Katowice. By the entrance is a 22-metre-high elm with a girth of 363 cm.
59. ul. Wyższa Brama 16 – Formerly the Pod Trzema Murzynami Inn, designed by the architect Florian Jilg in neoclassicist style and built in 1835. There are Ionic pilasters in giant order spanning the two lower storeys in the façade. The name may be linked with the illegible inscription ornamental tablet in the triangular pediment.
60. ul. Wyższa Brama 10 – Formerly the Pod Królem Polskim Inn. A neoclassicist building designed by the architect Florian Jilg and built in 1815. It was owned by the Lutheran Parish from 1879. The name is linked to the march of the Polish army to Vienna in 1683.
61. Górny Rynek – The Order of St. Charles Borromeo convent and chapel. Formerly the residence of Baron Callisch built midway through the 17th century. Since 1876 it has been owned by the nuns of the Order of St. Charles Borromeo. It is a neoclassicist building with a neo-Baroque portal and carved tympanum. In the courtyard (entrance from ul. Wyższa Brama) there is a chapel dating from 1878 with neo-Renaissance interior decoration, valuable paintings by Heinisch and interesting stained-glass windows.
62. ul. Garncarska – The court, which was built in 1905 and forms a complex of buildings with the prison dating from 1896.
63. Górny Rynek – Statue of St. John Nepomuk by the wall probably by Antonio Stanetti, from midway through the 18th century.
64. Górny Rynek 1 – Formerly the Pod Złotym Wołem Inn built in 1800 on the site of the town moat. In the 19th century drivers of cattle trains on their way from Galicia to Vienna would stop here. It was rebuilt in 1874 and 1936. Several institutions and associations were based here, including the Czytelnia Ludowa.
65. ul. J. Kochanowskiego 7 – This neoclassicist building designed by Ignacy Chambrez de Ryvos and built in 1802 housed the Catholic Gymnasium. It was modified in 1860 when an extra storey was built. The plaque set in the portal has the inscription in Latin which reads, „The rare generosity of Franz II erected this building for the purposes of learning at the time the Gaul was nearing Vienna, and it was enlarged thanks to the noble-minded munificence of Albert, Prince of Cieszyn. 1802.”
66. ul. J. Kochanowskiego 14 – The Cselestinum. This dormitory founded in 1796 by the Baron Karol Cselesta Foundation was originally located in ul. Głęboka. A new, neoclassicist building with a porch with giant columns was erected in ul. Kochanowskiego in 1824 for the sons of the nobility being educated in Cieszyn. After the First World War it was taken over by the state but continued to function as a dormitory, closing in 1939. It now houses the Cieszyn Registry Office and the Municipal Police (Straż Miejska).
67. pl. ks. J. Londzina 3 – This school building, dating from 1910 with an L-shaped plan and a central section projecting in a curve, has been the home to many different schools including the German Technical School. It is now the Macierz Ziemi Cieszyńskiej Business and Catering College.
68. pl. ks. J. Londzina – The monastery of the Order of St. John of God, which was begun to be built in 1697, founded by Adam Borek and designed by M. Klein. It was modified and extended in 1788, 1888 and 1912. A pharmacy and hospital were founded in the monastery to serve the needy irrespective of their religion, nationality or wealth. Today the monks run a residential care home in what was the hospital.
69. pl. ks. J. Londzina – The Church of the Assumption of the Virgin (fig. 24) built between 1697 and 1714, founded by Adam Borek and designed by M. Klein. The interior is an example of very interesting Baroque carved ornamentation. The church and monastery together form a regular rectangle.
70. ul. J. Michejdy – The Church of the Holy Trinity (fig. 25) founded by Princess Katarzyna Sydonia and Cieszyn’s Lutheran nobility. Originally wooden, it was rebuilt in 1594, and renovated in 1864. The tower has a bell dating from 1641 decorated with an eagle and Cieszyn’s coat of arms donated by Princess Elżbieta Lukrecja. Many of the people who fell victim to the plague in the 16th century were buried in the graveyard adjoining the church. Several distinguished Cieszyn citizens were buried here too, including Fr. Leopold Szersznik (1747-1814), bibliophile, scholar and the founder of the Cieszyn Museum. At the end of the 19th century the graveyard was converted into a park.
71. ul. J. Michejdy 1 – The building of Primary School no.1 with ornate architectural decoration dating from 1906. Inside is a sports hall dedicated to the great philanthropist, Dr. St. Hassewicz.
72. ul. J. Michejdy 20 – This building, built by Fr. Leopold Szersznik in 1790, housed the shooting range of the Cieszyn Rifle Club (Bractwo Kurkowe), and was used at the beginning of the 19th century. The neoclassicist building stands on the site of the Franciscan church and monastery which existed here between 1470 and 1545.
73. ul. Mennicza 46 – The present building, owned by the Bludowski family, stands on the site of the mint founded by Prince Mieszko I. (fig.26) The Cieszyn Princes had the right to mint their own coins from the 13th century until the dynasty died out in 1655 (apart from a period of over a century between 1438 and 1559). It was rebuilt with pseudo-Rococo decorations. From the end of the 17th century it belonged to Baron Bludowski. Extended and restored, since 1999 it has housed the Cieszyn Historical Library (Książnica Cieszyńska), a library possessing the most exceptional collections of manuscripts, prints and antique books in Silesia.
74. pl. Teatralny 1 – The Adam Mickiewicz Theatre is situated on the site of the former parish church built at the end of the 13th century and destroyed by fire in 1789. The church was not rebuilt and army barracks were later erected in its place. The Viennese Art Nouveau theatre, built in 1910, was designed by the Viennese architects Felner and Helmer, renowned throughout Europe. It has a rotating stage, orchestra pit and a three-tier auditorium seating 630. It was renamed the Adam Mickiewicz Theatre after the Second World War. (fig. 27)
75. Stary Targ 2 – This eclectic townhouse stands on the site of the town’s brewery, built in 1547, later the court, and at the end of the 19th century the fire brigade.
76. Stary Targ 4 – This is a townhouse (arcaded in its original medieval form), rebuilt in eclectic style in 1888 as the headquarters of the Catholic cultural association Dziedzictwo Błogosławionego Jana Sarkandra dla ludu polskiego na Śląsku Cieszyńskim (The Heritage of the Blessed Jan Sarkander for Poles in Cieszyn Silesia), which was established in 1873 by Fr. Ignacy Świeży. It later housed the Adam Kofin’s restaurant, from where sixty members of a military rebellion led by first lieutenant Jerzy Szczurek set off on 31st October 1918.
77. Stary Targ – The figure of the Madonna and Child (fig. 28) dating from the second half of the 14th century and sculpted by the Prague workshop of Piotr Parler, one of very few stone Gothic figures to be found in the former Duchy of Cieszyn. The original is in the Museum of Cieszyn Silesia.
78. ul. Bóżnicza – The synagogue which stood here in the 19th was burned down by the Nazis in 1939. The Elim Pentecostal Church was built in 1989.
79. ul. Mennicza 4 – A Renaissance townhouse with arcades, modified and extended in the 17th and 19th centuries. It was a staging post on the old postal route from Nysa to Žilina (Slovakia).
80. Rynek (market square) – The present market square was founded towards the end of the 15th century. In 1496, Kazimierz II the Prince of Cieszyn sold the town two buildings for the purpose of building a new town hall. The only remaining traces of the oldest medieval buildings by the Rynek are the cellars under Renaissance buildings. After the fire of 1552 which destroyed most of the buildings in Cieszyn (at that time wooden), the Renaissance arcaded buildings that replaced them were constructed of timber and stone or brick, evidenced in the present buildings on the west and east sides of the Rynek. After another fire in 1789 the town was rebuilt in a Baroque-neoclassicist style, on the east side of the market square the arcades were bricked up. Today the characteristic features of that style of architecture are still visible; wide, often decorated, entrance halls, barrel vaulting with lunettes, stone doorways and beamed ceilings. In the second half of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th only a few buildings were totally rebuilt or modernised. In the centre of the Market Square is a well with a statue of St. Florian by Wacław Donay of Skoczów, dating from 1777. The well is a relic of the town’s water supply from the 16th century which conveyed water from the foot of Mały Jaworowy.
81. ul. Mennicza 1 – An eclectic building dating from 1859. The Miejska Kasa Oszczędności bank was based here and later the Komunalna Kasa Oszczędności bank, founded by the mayor, Dr. L. Klucki and the Towarzystwo Oszczędności i Zaliczek savings and loan bank. It currently houses Bank Śląski.
82. Rynek 12 – An eclectic building (fig. 29) built thanks to the efforts of the Towarzystwo Domu Narodowego as the Dom Polski (Polish House) on the site of Franz Schreinzer’s inn. The opening ceremony took place in 1901. Most of Cieszyn’s Polish organisations were based here; a library, the Czytelnia Ludowa, a printing works and the National Council of the Cieszyn Duchy. Today it is the home of the Dom Narodowy Cieszyn Cultural Centre.
83. Rynek 13 – The post office (fig. 29) was built in Art Nouveau style in 1910. The church and convent of the Order of the Grey Nuns of St. Elizabeth stood on this site in the 18th century.
84. Rynek 18 – A town-house modified in the 18th century by the Jesuit Order. On the first floor is a room decorated with murals. The great fire which destroyed all of Cieszyn’s wooden buildings in 1789 started in one of its outbuildings. The fire also severely damaged the construction of the arcaded buildings which led to the arcades being bricked up on this side of the Market Square. The façade is neoclassicist while the side elevation is Baroque. The arcades were re-exposed in the 1980s.
85. Rynek 19 – A building with a Renaissance and Baroque courtyard. There were originally two two-storey Renaissance buildings with arcades in this location. The building which now forms the right half of the present building preserves its Renaissance features. It has a wide entrance hall with rib vaulting with decorated ribs and keystones. Three stone doorways have been preserved on the ground floor. After the fire of 1789 the two buildings were joined together, the arcades were bricked up, the corner axis of the building being partly demolished owing to the need to widen the road leading to the town gate. Since then the two buildings share a single façade. The owners of the building, the Konczakowski family, kept a private museum containing a collection of weapons, antiques, books, furniture and paintings on the first floor.
86. Rynek 20 – The Hotel Pod Brunatnym Jeleniem designed by the Viennese architect Kohler, was built in 1912 with a decorated façade and interior decoration in the style of Viennese neo-Baroque. Originally there were two arcaded buildings here. There was an inn here as early as the 18th century. Among its guests were the signatories of the so-called Cieszyn Peace Treaty, the leaders of the Confederacy of Bar, and Prince Józef Poniatowski; the Austrian Emperor, Joseph II; Franz Joseph and the Tsar of Russia, Alexander (fig.1).
87. ul. L. Szersznika 3 – This building, dating from the beginning of the 18th century housed the Catholic Gymnasium. There is a Greek inscription in the cartouche (infirmary). From 1802 it was a library and the first public museum to be established by the Jesuit Fr. Leopold Szersznik (the oldest museum in Central Europe).
88. ul. L. Szersznika 5 – The late Baroque Church of the Holy Cross was built in 1707 as the monastery church of the Jesuits. It started life as the chapel of the Princess of Cieszyn in 1648, was rebuilt after the fire of 1789 according to Fr. Leopold Szersznik’s plans and in 1773 became the gymnasium church. There are figures of St. Joseph with the Infant and St. Francis in the façade.
89. ul. T. Regera 6 – The former residence of Count Jan Larisch. It was built after the great fire of 1789 on the site of two smaller townhouses. The main façade in ul. Regera is Baroque-neoclassicist. The side elevation rests on the remains of the town’s walls. In the rear wing are splendid stables built in the 1840s. The two-storey-high circular room is topped by domed vaulting with lunettes supported by a central column. The residence’s gardens, below which are cellars in the position of the town’s moat, now form Park Pokoju.(fig.30) It now houses the Museum of Cieszyn Silesia.
90. ul. Nowe Miasto 12 – A Baroque building dating from the 17th century with arcaded outbuildings (fig. 31).
91. ul. Nowe Miasto 27 – A three-storey building (fig. 32) with a rusticated doorway built in the 17th century on the earlier ground floor decorated with Art Nouveau stuccowork in the form of a horse chestnut tree.
92. ul. Śrutarska 39 – A neoclassicist building built in the 18th century close to the town walls, rebuilt after the 1810 fire. It was the town brewery. The town’s crest can be seen on the façade along with a Latin inscription which reads, „This brewery was built for the good of the people under the patronage of Emperor Franz and with the support of Prince Albert of Cieszyn on the strength of a Council resolution.”
93. ul. Trzech Braci – The Three Brothers’ Well is linked to the legend of Cieszyn’s foundation in 810. In the 14th century it belonged to the Dominican Order and up to the 19th century water was drawn from the well for use by the town brewery in ul. Śrutarska. In 1868 a cast-iron pavilion was built over it. Three plaques on its walls used to tell of the foundation of Cieszyn in Latin, Polish and German. After 1945 the German text was replaced with a relief by Jan Raszka depicting the meeting of the three brothers; Bolko, Leszko and Cieszko by the spring. (fig.33)
94. ul. Sejmowa 3 – The site of the Sejm Ziemski, a district court established at the end of the 15th century for settling disputes among the nobility, transferred from the castle to the Sejm building in the mid 16th century. Here, in 1779, the Cieszyn Peace Treaty was signed, ending the War of the Bavarian Succession. The present building was rebuilt after the fire of 1789.
95. pl. Dominikański 2 – The neo-Baroque building of the General Vicary of the Wrocław Bishopric for Austrian Silesia during the years 1770-1925. It was built in 1894 on the initiative of the Vicar Fr. Karol Findiński and designed by Albin Teodor Prokop. The buildings of the former Dominican monastery were pulled down to make way for it. Nowadays it is the vicarage of the parish of St. Mary Magdalene.
96. pl. Dominikański 4 – This eclectic building dates from 1861. The German Teacher Training College was based here, and then the Polish Women’s Teacher Training College (1921-1935). Since 1948 it has housed the Technical Building College.
97. pl. Dominikański – The parish church of St. Mary Magdalene (fig. 34, 35, 36), early Gothic, founded by Eufemia, the wife of Władysław Prince of Opole, in 1289, as one of the elements of the rectangular Dominican monastery. It was the final resting place of the Cieszyn Piast lineage – only the Gothic sculpture of Prince Przemysław I Noszak, one of Cieszyn’s most revered rulers, has survived of the oldest tombstones. The church was rebuilt after the fire of 1789 from the plans of K. Jacobi d’Eckolm and J. Drachny, later modified and extended. It is built on a cruciform plan with a lengthened choir. The interior is late Baroque, with Gothic portals, shafts, tracery and mullions. It includes the Baroque chapel of the Holy Cross founded by Jan Fryderyk Larisch in 1660; the chapel of Our Lady of Cieszyn and the chapel of St. Melchior Grodziecki.
98. ul. Ratuszowa 1 – This neoclassicist building adjoining the town hall housed the theatre and a ballroom. It was built midway through the 18th century, adapted in 1816 by Florian Jilg, and rebuilt, along with the town hall, following the fire of 1848 according to the plans of Joseph Kornhäusel and Andrzej Kment. It now houses the cinema.