Bytów Castle

Bytów was one of the last castles built by the Teutonic Knights — and one of the first in this part of Europe designed from the outset for firearms. Its three round towers with gun loops, completed by 1399, are regarded as the earliest known towers in Central Europe adapted for gunpowder warfare. Today the walls house the West Kashubian Museum, a hotel with a restaurant and a library. The Kashubians are a West Slavic people of northern Poland with their own language and culture.

A fortress on the western border

The Teutonic Order bought the Bytów lands in 1329, but only began building a brick castle at the end of the century, on a rise in the south-east of the town, right on the western border of their state. The main works took place in 1398–1402, and around 1404 the well-known master builder Nikolaus Fellenstein was involved. Grand Master Konrad von Jungingen inspected the progress in person several times. The fortress of fieldstone and brick was laid out on a 52.5 × 72.5 m rectangle; its permanent garrison numbered from a few to a dozen or so knight-brothers with their squires and men-at-arms.

Towers with ventilation

The Mill, Rose and Field Towers (Młyńska, Różana, Polna) were open to the courtyard on their lower floors. This let the smoke from gunpowder weapons clear quickly — an innovative solution at the time and a forerunner of later artillery bastions. The fourth corner was occupied by the square Powder Tower, linked to the Convent House. In this four-storey building the ground floor held a bakery and brewery, the first floor the refectory, chapel and the administrator's chamber, and the top two floors served as storerooms.

Pomeranian dukes, Swedes and Prussians

In 1466 King Casimir IV Jagiellon granted the castle as a fief to Duke Eric II of Pomerania. The Griffin dukes added the Renaissance Ducal House in 1560–1570 and the Widows' House in 1623. During the Swedish invasion of the 1650s the Powder Tower was blown up and the castle burned, leaving only the outer walls. From 1657 it belonged to the Electors of Brandenburg and later the kings of Prussia; in the 19th century it housed a court and a prison. The Powder Tower was rebuilt in the 1930s. After 1945 the Soviet NKVD used the castle as a prison and transit camp for local residents. The final reconstruction took place in stages in 1957–1962 and 1969–1990.

What you'll see

The West Kashubian Museum occupies the oldest, northern wing — the former Convent House — together with two adjoining towers and a stretch of wall. Its exhibitions cover Kashubian culture as well as the Teutonic and ducal periods. The Renaissance Ducal House contains a hotel with a restaurant, and the Widows' House a library. Walk around the outside too: it is the best way to see the round towers and the massive walls, whose foundations are almost 3 m thick.

Tripto tip

The castle is at ul. Zamkowa 2, a few minutes' walk from the centre of Bytów. Allow 1–1.5 hours for the museum and a walk around the walls. Opening hours vary by season, and on Mondays the museum usually offers free entry to the permanent ethnographic exhibition only — check current rules and prices before you go. Staying overnight in the castle hotel is a good idea if you want to see the courtyard in the evening, without the tour groups.