he exact date of the construction of the castle in Brzeg is unknown, but it is known from documents that during the reign of Henry I the Bearded in 1235, a defensive structure already existed here. The castle at that time probably did not yet have brick elements. It was located between the Wrocław and Castle gates, surrounded by a moat and walls connected to the city fortifications. At the end of the 13th century, Bolko I erected a free-standing square tower of final defense, called the Lions Tower, next to the castle. From the creation of the Duchy of Legnica-Brzeg in 1311 until the death of the last of the Piast princes of Brzeg, George II William, in 1675, the castle in Brzeg was their main seat. In 1342, it received the official status of the capital of the duchy. This situation influenced the frequent reconstructions
photo by ZeroJeden, VI 2006
and modernizations of the stronghold. Initially, the castle consisted of one residential building erected within the perimeter walls and probably farm buildings.
In 1358, Louis I began expanding the castle by building a new residential building on the site of the current southern wing. During this expansion, a Gothic collegiate church dedicated to St. Jadwiga, the patron saint of the Silesian Piasts, was built next to the castle in 1368-1369, which has survived to this day. The collegiate church served as a princely necropolis for a long time. In the years 1481-1490, work was still being carried out on the Lions Tower.
The next major reconstruction was undertaken by Frederick II in 1544, and continued by his successor George II. The work was completed in 1560. The reconstruction turned the Gothic stronghold into a magnificent Renaissance residence, which few monarchs in this part of Europe could boast of. The existing wings were rebuilt and two more were built: the north-eastern and south-eastern wings with a gate passage. The wings surrounded a vast courtyard with
Aerial photo, photo by ZeroJeden, VII 2019
cloisters on three sides, while on the fourth side it was closed by a curtain wall with an attic. The passage was defended by a gate tower built in 1554 with a magnificent portal. The sculptural decoration presents busts of Piast princes and kings (in the upper row: Piast, Ziemowit, Leszek, Ziemomysław, Mieszko I, Bolesław the Brave, Mieszko II, Casimir the Restorer, Władysław Herman, Bolesław the Wrymouth, Władysław II and Bolesław the Tall, in the lower row - Silesian princes Henry I the Bearded, Henry II the Pious, Bolesław II the Horned, Henry V of Legnica, Bolesław III Legnica-Brzeski, Louis I of Brzeski, Henry VIII of Brzeski, Henry IX of Brzeski Chojnowski, Ludwik III Oławski, Jan Lubiński, Fryderyk I Legnica-Brzeski, Fryderyk II Legnica-Brzeski). George II clearly emphasized his descent from the family of Polish rulers by founding this tower.
The works on this expansion were supervised by Italian architects. Jakub Parr and his son Franciszek were in charge of the residence, the work of his father is the sculptural decoration
photo by ZeroJeden, IV 2002
of the gate tower and the cloisters in the courtyard. After the completion of construction work in 1560, the interior furnishings were started. At the end of the 16th century, work on modernizing the fortifications was commissioned to Bernard Niuron. In 1595, he added a large defensive bastion on the north-eastern corner of the city walls.
The death in 1675 of the last of the Brzesko Piast line - Duke George IV Wilhelm - ended the period of glory of this residence. The duchy fell into the hands of the Austrian emperors. The Habsburg governors took care of the castle, but they did not show much concern for the building.
During the battles between the Prussian and Austrian troops in 1741, the Prussian king Frederick II ordered the bombardment of Brzeg. The castle lay in ruins - the towers, upper floors of the buildings, and cloisters were destroyed. Fortunately, the priceless facade of the gate tower survived. An inn and warehouses were set up on the castle grounds, and all the valuable interior furnishings that survived the bombardment were taken away. Unfortunately, no attempts were made to rebuild the castle. No significant conservation or reconstruction work was carried out, only the Swedish historian August Hahr secured the facade of the gate tower and the ground floor rooms of the eastern wing of the castle.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the castle was restored, but on a small scale. The City Museum was opened in the halls of the eastern and southern wings. More detailed research on the castle was conducted by Jerzy Rozpędowski from 1959. A thorough renovation took place from 1966. In
Frederick Bernard Wernher, Topography of Silesia 1744-1768
1988, the basic reconstruction of the castle complex was completed, and in 1999, work on creating garden layouts around the castle was completed. The rebuilt castle currently houses the Silesian Piast Museum.
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e exact date of the construction of the castle in Brzeg is unknown, but it is known from documents that during the reign of Henry I the Bearded in 1235, a defensive structure already existed here. The castle at that time probably did not yet have brick elements. It was located between the Wrocław and Castle gates, surrounded by a moat and walls connected to the city fortifications. At the end of the 13th century, Bolko I erected a free-standing square tower of final defense, called the Lions Tower, next to the castle. From the creation of the Duchy of Legnica-Brzeg in 1311 until the death of the last of the Piast princes of Brzeg, George II William, in 1675, the castle in Brzeg was their main seat. In 1342, it received the official status of the capital of the duchy. This situation influenced the frequent reconstructions 
