The Castle of the Pomeranian Princes in Szczecin
The Castle of the Pomeranian Princes in Szczecin is a renaissance castle located at the Castle Hill in Szczecin. It was a historical headquarters of the Gryfici family, who were the rulers of the Pomeranian duchy.
Before 1124, the Caste Hill was the location of the Slavonic settlement with a wooden mansion of prince Warcislaw I. After moving the capital from Usedom to Szczecin by prince Barnim I in 1235, the mansion was expanded.
The origins of today’s castle date back to 1346, when Barnim III began to build the so-called
„stone house” at the Castle Hill. Next to the stone house, the St. Otton chapel was built.
After the fire in 1530, the castle began to be rebuilt. It took 7 years to complete the restoration, during which the stone housewas built in renaissance style.
Between 1573 and 1582, prince Jan Fryderyk made a general restoration of the castle. The stone castle and St. Otton church were destroyed. The gothic southern wing was left untouched, the eastern wing was increased, and additionally the noirthern and western wings were built.
In 1946, the Regional Management of Spatial Planning began to secure the castle.
During the security works lead by Helena Kurcyusz, a crypt with sarcophagi of the Pomeranian Princes was discovered among others.
Between 1958 and 1980, the castle was rebuilt. It gained back its 16th-century renaissance look, when the brick was reconstructed, based upon the engraving of M. Merian. Not many relicts of the castle’s original interior survived.