The Royal Castle of Dobczyce

A wooden fortification had already been erected in Dobczyce during the reign of the first members of the Piasts (around the 10th century). According to the legend the castle was built by one of Mieszko’s I warriors – Dobek, who arrived in this land together with his sons. Władysław Jagiełło ordered the conservation of the castle and donated incomes from the Wieliczka salt mine for this purpose. In its peak time the castle housed 70 rooms and three towers. Kazimierz Jagiellończyk changed the castle into an academy for his sons. In the 16th century financial problems forced Stefan Batory to hand it over to Sebastian Lubomirski, who converted it into a renaissance residence. In the 18th century the castle was utterly deserted. During the November Uprising in 1830 its walls were dismantled and used to build a nearby church, which has been there to present days. In the 1960’s the renovation works were undertaken. At present the castle houses a Regional Museum of PTTK – the Polish Tourist Country-Lover’s Society.