Karpniki Castle

Karpniki Castle is one of the most romantic residences in the Jelenia Góra Valley: turrets and battlements reflected in the moat, with the wooded slopes of Krzyżna Góra in the Rudawy Janowickie hills behind. Beneath its mid-19th-century Gothic Revival dress lies a medieval stronghold and a Renaissance castle whose portal bears the date 1603. Today it is a hotel, but the courtyard and park remain open to visitors.

History: from knight's tower to Prussian residence

The first fortified site at Karpniki (German: Fischbach) was built in the 14th century, probably by a knight named Czirn. Documents from 1369 name Clericus Bolcze as its owner, and it changed hands many times afterwards. In 1475 Kasper Schoff-Gotsch added a tower and two buildings linked by walls, set on an artificial island surrounded by a moat. After 1580 the new owners, the von Kanitz family, rebuilt it in Renaissance style – despite a lightning strike in 1593, the work was completed in 1603.

Over the following centuries the castle belonged to the von Hayn and Schaffgotsch families, among others, and briefly to the state and the Cistercians of Krzeszów. The turning point came in 1822, when Prince Wilhelm of Prussia, brother of King Frederick William III, bought the estate for himself and his wife Marianne. The English Gothic Revival remodelling was led by Friedrich August Stüler, using designs by his teacher Karl Friedrich Schinkel, who visited Karpniki in 1832. Work was completed in 1846.

Curious facts

• A European salon: under the Hohenzollerns the guests included the Russian grand duchesses Olga and Alexandra Feodorovna and Grand Duke Nicholas, the future tsar. Balls, concerts and plays were staged, and a museum of jewels, weapons and stained glass occupied the first floor.
• Wartime depot: during the Second World War, conservator Günther Grundmann set up an art repository here that also held collections looted from occupied countries. The last owner, Prince Ludwig of Hesse and by Rhine, moved his own collection here from Darmstadt.
• A portal saved at the last minute: in 1993 thieves chiselled out the Renaissance portal and prepared it for removal. The theft was discovered in time, and after conservation the portal returned to its place. The Latin inscription above the entrance names successive builders from the von Kanitz family.

After 1945 the castle housed a school, a children's home and a holiday camp, and then fell into decay for years.

What to see today

Since a restoration completed in 2014, the castle has operated as a hotel with a restaurant and spa. According to its official website it has 21 rooms and suites, and the building is heated with thermal water from its own borehole about 2 km deep. The interiors are reserved for hotel guests, while the courtyard and park can be visited. The former English-style romantic garden once featured Marianne's Cottage, a glasshouse, a Swiss chalet and a monument to the Archangel Michael commemorating the princess's brother.

Tripto tips

• Time: allow 45–60 minutes for a walk around the moat and park; the best shots of the castle with water in the foreground are from the ponds.
• Address: ul. Łąkowa 1, Karpniki (Mysłakowice municipality, Karkonosze County).
• Interiors: to see the rooms, book a stay or a meal in the restaurant – confirm access rules directly with the hotel.
• On the trail: a marked trail leads from Karpniki to Cieplice Śląskie-Zdrój, and the nearby palaces of the Jelenia Góra Valley combine easily into a day trip.