Castle in Czersk

he settlement of the castle in Czersk dates back to the times of Bolesław the Brave or Władysław Herman, i. e. the end of the 11th century. The terrain conditions were ideal for building fortifications. The hill that cuts into the Vistula valley ends with three headlands. The first castle was built on the southern headland, which was the best suited for this purpose, but after one of the Lithuanian invasions, which burned the castle, the next defensive structure was limited to the previous fortification on the central headland. The southern part of the hill was occupied by a cemetery, but in the 13th century the value of the southern headland was once again appreciated, and the castle was built on it again.

Multiple Lithuanian invasions ended with damage to the castle, including one such 

photo by ZeroJeden, IV 2005

invasion before the mid-13th century that caused another fire in the buildings. Despite this, the castle in its wooden and earth form functioned until the late Middle Ages.

In the second half of the 14th century, it was decided to replace the previous fortifications with a brick castle. The works were certainly undertaken after 1388, during the time of Duke Janusz the Elder. The height of the ramparts was significantly reduced, and a perimeter wall was built on them, with a stone ground floor and a brick wall above. In the first stage of construction, the gate and southern towers were built, as well as the walls located directly next to them, then the wall connecting these two towers was completed and the western tower was erected and connected with another section of the perimeter wall to the southern tower. The next stage was to close the perimeter of the walls from the north, the castle buildings were probably built even later. They were located along the entire northern section of the walls and by the southern section. The gate tower originally had a 

View from the south-west of the southern tower, photo by ZeroJeden, IV 2005

square plan and four storeys. The first storey, which was accessed by stairs along the eastern perimeter wall, was connected to the defensive line located at the top of the walls and housed an entrance observation room with a drawbridge turnstile. On the second floor, which was accessed by stairs in the thickness of the walls, there was a living room with a barrel vault. This room was certainly heated by a fireplace located in the western corner. The second flight of stairs connected the first floor with the third - defensive. The southern and western towers were originally the same height as the peripheral walls. The only entrance to the southern one was from the level of the peripheral walls and at this height there was a floor with an opening leading to the prison room. In the 16th century, three more floors were added to the tower and it was topped with a spire. The changes meant that it no longer served a defensive function, the windows in the walls were no longer suitable for use as gun ports. It was similar with the western tower, which was slightly extended in the 14th century. While it was originally a strong point flanking the western wall and part of the northern wall, in the 16th century, after being raised by two storeys and topped with a hoarding, it lost all its defensive value. The added elements were "representative" in nature, not defensive. There were two entrances to the tower, one was located above the level of the courtyard and allowed entry to a large vaulted room, the other allowed entry from the perimeter of the walls to the original battlements, later transformed into rooms on the second storey.

The 

Gatehouse from the side of the courtyard, photo by ZeroJeden, IX 2002

construction of the gothic castle was probably completed around 1406, and certainly before 1410.

The heightening of the towers and the general expansion of the complex took place after 1545. At that time, the southern building and a new building were built at the northern wall of the castle. This expansion was associated with the activities of Queen Bona, who chose the castle in Czersk as her residence. The castle's surroundings were also taken care of, and vineyards were planted on the hillsides.

It was then used by the starostas. During the Swedish Deluge it was seriously damaged, and then the retreating invader's troops took refuge in the ruins of the fortress, shelling the Polish army and burning the city. Over the following years, the city was further destroyed by the Cossacks and Rákóczi's troops. The extent of the destruction is evidenced by the fact that in the previously quite economically strong town, consisting of almost 200 farms, less than 20 remained. The misfortune was completed by the plague, after which only 13 residents survived.

However, Czersk retained its city rights confirmed by John III Sobieski. In 1762, the new starosta of Czersk, Franciszek Bieliński, partially renovated the castle by erecting a new building for the archive of town and land records and building an arcade bridge over the moat, but he died shortly afterwards and there was no successor to his ideas. In 1789, the archive building was in danger of collapse, so some of the records were moved to the ruined rooms in the western tower.

However, the castle was soon abandoned for use and from then on it slowly fell 

photo by ZeroJeden, IV 2005

into disrepair, being a source of building material. In the second half of the 19th century, small-scale conservation work began. However, it was not until the 1980s that the castle walls were secured and opened to visitors as a permanent ruin.

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