Jabłonna

In 1773 the brother of the King Stanisław August - Michał Poniatowski, then Bishop of Płock and later the primate of Poland, bought the property in Jabłonna with the intention of turning it into an elegant palace-and-park residential complex. In 1774 he commissioned the royal architect, Dominik Merlini, to design the new residence. The construction of a three-building complex was proposed: a one-storey palace, which was intended to be the residence of the owner, was to be situated in the middle and flanked on both sides by separate three-storey pavilions. The pavilion on the left was named Royal, because it served as the residence of the King Stanisław August. The pavilion on the right was intended for guests and a two-story annex attached to it - for the primate's chancellery personnel. A scenic English-style park was developed in the 1770s and 1780s, based on the design of architect Szymon Bogumił Zug. The same architect also constructed a series of pavilions, of which three still remain today: the Grotto, the Orangerie and the Chinese Pavilion.

Originally, the central palace combined the austerity of the classical style with the baroque picturesqueness. The first manifested itself in the massively uplifted central part, the second in the front elevation, which was enlivened by a quadrangular turret crowned with a sphere. Inside, a round living room formed the centre of the interior. It was significantly higher than the rest of the rooms on the ground floor. The room was decorated with stucco ornaments by Antonio Bianchi (added in 1775) and with painted decorations by Szymon Mańkowski (added in 1777). The entrance to the living room was through a right angel vestibule, from which on the left side one had access to the stairs leading to the tower, and on the right an access to the antechamber. On both sides of the living room other important rooms were situated: on the right the dining room, and on the left - the winter garden. Private apartments consisting of bedrooms and dressing rooms were located in distant parts of the building. Inside the palace there were also underground rooms that were used for social occasions in the summer. These contain decorations painted in 1776 by Antonio Tavelli.

In 1794 Jabłonna was inherited by the Prince Józef Poniatowski, the nephew of the primate, who was frequently present here from 1798 to 1806. His personal apartments were located on the ground floor of the right-hand annex. After Józef Poniatowski's tragic death in the battle of Leipzig, Jabłonna became the life-estate of his sister Teresa Tyszkiewicz. In 1822 the residence was inherited by Anna Dunin-Wąsowicz of the Tyszkiewicz family - primo voto Potocka, secundo voto Dunin-Wąsowicz. Anna who was both an art collector and talented drawer, immediately began the process of transforming the estate into a centre memorialising the Prince Józef Poniatowski. 

In 1837 the palace was rebuilt according to the design of Henryk Marconi. On both sides of the central projection of the facade additional quarters were built: on the right - a dressing room and bedroom and on the left - a pantry and corner room. The middle part of the elevation was divided by a sequence of Ionic pillars. The niches in the side wings were decorated by sculptures and on the park side some iron verandas were built. Inside the palace only the living room remained unchanged. The winter garden chamber was redecorated in the Moresque style. On the right side of the palace, the bedroom and the dressing room had been connected in order to form a large library room. Outside the palace, on its north side a columnar pergola was added, where a lapidarium was established. Among some preserved pieces of sculptures one can find a Roman medallion exhibiting the bust of Emperor Nerva and a relief presenting a bust of a bearded man. The relief was carved by Baccio Bandinelli in the 16th century.

After Anna Dunin-Wąsowiczowa had owned the palace, also the park had been transformed. The trees were grouped into huge clusters and the yard in front of the palace was planted with new trees and shrubs. In addition, following the Henryk Marconi's design, a few new buildings were erected, along with large stables and coach houses.

Jabłonna was owned by the Potocki family until 1945. In 1944 the palace was burned by the German army. Since 1953 Jabłonna has been owned by the Polish Academy of Sciences. Under its auspices the palace was transformed into the conference and recreational centre. The reconstruction of the palace was executed according to the design of Mieczysław Kuźma, the reconstruction of the park according to the design of Gerard Ciołek. In the course of this renovation, the central part of the palace was restored to look as it did at the end of the 18th century, while its side parts, added in the first half of the 19th century, retained their original appearance. Only their elevations were changed. Further, the cast-iron decoration in the Moresque chamber was removed, allowing the chamber and other rooms to regain their classical character. The furnishing and decoration of the palace interior was completed after 1945. The representative halls and chambers of the palace were decorated with old furniture and paintings from the end of the 18th and the first half of the 19th centuries.

Official website of the Jabłonna: www.jablonna.pl