The Dietel Palace

The Henryk Dietel Palace is one of the most fascinating and magnificent examples of industrialists' palaces from the end of the 19th century. With its original architecture, the palace stands out from other monuments of this kind, located not only in Sosnowiec, but also in Poland.

The palace owes its present Neo-Baroque character to several reconstructions. The last renovation works were performed by the Warsaw architect Antoni Jabłoński- Jasieńczyk at the beginning of the 20th century.

The first plans of the building, signed by Waligórski, come from the 80s of the 19th century. A complete project was developed in 1890. Around 1900, during the finishing works, a walled garden structure with an orangery and elements of landscape architecture, was erected.

The palace, together with a park, old factory buildings, working-class housing estate and an Evangelical church, was a part of a patron complex.

A magnificent residence was built for the Saxon industrialist Henryk Dietel, who built the first combed wool mill in the Kingdom of Poland and the Russian Empire. The palace remained the Dielet family's residence until 1945.

The original furnishing was partly preserved within the historical interiors of the palace. The representation rooms were situated on the first floor of the palace. The dining room and the study are maintained in the Neo-Baroque style, whereas the main ballroom and the so-called boudoir are characterised by the Second Rococo style. The mansion also has an eclectic pipe room, Art Nouveau office as well as a Classical salon.

A real jewel of the palace is the richly ornamented and stylish bathroom which was often used for the purposes of film directors.

Unfortunately, devastation of the mansion and of the adjacent park in the past has left some dark marks on the history of the palce. Until the end of the last century the palace furnishing had been partly plundered. In 1997, as a property owned by the State Treasury, the palace in a catastrophic condition was sold by the District Office in Będzin to a private owner. Leaking roof, cracked external walls and lack of heating resulted in persistent damp and progressive mould. Since the take-over, the present owners have been conducting renovation works and the palace stands a chance of regaining its original splendour. With huge financial outlays much work has already been done.