Krzyżanowice Palace

Franz Liszt lived and composed in this palace in 1843–1848, and before him Ludwig van Beethoven visited his friend and patron, Prince Karl Lichnowsky. Krzyżanowice Palace, near Racibórz in Upper Silesia, is a neo-Gothic residence with octagonal corner towers and a brick gatehouse in the English style. For almost a century it has been cared for by Franciscan sisters, who run a care home here – and once a year the courtyard fills with music in honour of both composers.

History: from the Praschmas to the Lichnowskys

Krzyżanowice (German: Kreuzenort) was first recorded in 1285. The palace was built in 1700 by Count Johann Bernhard Praschma (the regional tourist board gives the year 1670 and describes "a stately manor house" on the site of an older one). After Praschma's death in 1708 the estate was bought by Baron Karl Gabriel von Wengersky, and on 22 November 1775 it passed to the Lichnowsky family, who owned large estates around Racibórz and in the Opava region.

The Lichnowskys moved in the circles of the greatest musicians of their day. Beethoven visited Prince Karl Lichnowsky, while Liszt came to see his friend Prince Felix, Karl's grandson. Around 1856, on the initiative of another Prince Karl von Lichnowsky (1819–1901), the palace was thoroughly remodelled in neo-Gothic style, most probably to designs by the German architect Carl Lüdecke. In 1930 Prince Wilhelm von Lichnowsky sold the estate and park to the Franciscan sisters, who still run it today.

What to see

• The palace itself, on a rectangular plan: three octagonal towers at the corners and a round tower to the south-east, stepped gables, pointed arches and chimneys in the English cottage style.
• The Knights' Hall of 1860, now a chapel. The triple portal leading into it bears the arms of Karl Lichnowsky and of the von Werdenberg family.
• Memorial plaques to Beethoven and Liszt on the palace wall.
• The gatehouse of 1856 – brick, English neo-Gothic, with crenellated octagonal turrets, a cross-vaulted passage, a cast-iron grille and a plaque with the founding inscription.
• The park around the palace, listed as a historic monument in 2022.

Interesting facts

The palace belonged to six generations of Lichnowskys, until 1930. Every May the municipality holds a concert in memory of Beethoven and Liszt by the palace, attended by delegations from partner towns in the Czech Republic, Austria, Germany and Hungary, who lay flowers beneath the two composers' plaques. German sources also list the poet Joseph von Eichendorff among the palace's guests.

Tripto tip

The palace is a care home run by the Franciscan Sisters of Mary of Perpetual Help, so the interiors are not an open museum. The regional tourist portal describes access as seasonal and by prior arrangement – phone before you go (+48 32 419 40 20). You can see the gatehouse and façades from the street; allow 20–30 minutes to look around outside. Address: ul. Kolejowa 4, Krzyżanowice. The best time to visit is the May concert, when the courtyard is open to everyone. Nearby, the castle ruins at Tworków and the viewing tower over the meanders of the Oder are worth a stop.