Turew Palace

From the palace at Turew, General Dezydery Chłapowski reshaped the landscape of the whole area. A Napoleonic officer, a general of the November Uprising and a farmer trained in England, he planted belts of trees along the fields that still shelter the crops from wind and form distinctive avenues around the village. The Baroque residence with its neo-Gothic chapel stands in an 18th-century park of about 22 ha, and for more than 70 years its interiors have been used by the Polish Academy of Sciences.

History: from wooden manor to research station

The Chłapowski family bought Turew in 1730 and held it until 1939. Around 1760 Stanisław Chłapowski turned the old wooden manor into a palace, and after 1780 Józef Chłapowski added a porch to the façade. After the Napoleonic Wars Dezydery bought the estate from his father; in 1820–1830 he remodelled the residence in neo-Gothic style and in 1846–1847 added the chapel. After a fire in 1880 Zygmunt Chłapowski restored the palace in 1908–1909 with the Poznań architect Stanisław Borecki. During the war the Germans occupied it, and afterwards a state farm used it for several years and wrecked the interiors. Since the early 1950s the palace has belonged to the Academy of Sciences – for decades it housed a research station studying farmland and forest environments, and since autumn 2022 it has been owned by the Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry.

What to see

• The façade with its three-bay central projection and porch topped by a pediment with a coat of arms, plus a low neo-Gothic crenellated tower by the eastern projection.
• The domed roof superstructure that dominates the building.
• The neo-Gothic Chapel of the Immaculate Conception in bare brick, linked to the palace by an annex with a gateway passage.
• The Baroque entrance gate from the late 18th century, north-west of the palace.
• A memorial boulder to the general in front of the residence.

The park and its oaks

The 18th-century park was transformed into an English landscape garden in 1860–1870 by the renowned gardener Augustyn Denizot. It has protected veteran trees, including oaks with girths of 700 and 780 cm – the larger one is named "Dezydery". In early spring the park is carpeted with flowering snowflakes. An educational path of about 1 km with 16 stops runs through the park, explaining wildlife-friendly farmland design.

Tripto tip

The national heritage institute notes that access is restricted: the palace is the seat of a research institution, so do not expect to go inside and do not cross marked boundaries. What remains is the park, the exterior and the routes of the General Dezydery Chłapowski Landscape Park: the 12 km nature trail Rogaczewo Małe – Rąbiń – Turew, or the cycling loop "Trees with a history, birds of today" (28.5 km), which shows the field shelterbelts in practice. In May, walk the avenue of flowering hawthorns near Rąbiń. One hour is enough for the palace and park; allow half a day for the trails.