Lightning storms ripped across the capital in the early hours of Saturday, leaving a wanton trail of damage in their wake. Łazienki bore the brunt with dozens of trees downed and uprooted.
Writing on social media, the park’s management wrote of the “unprecedented scale of destruction”, adding that the decision to close the park had been taken following consultations with both the Conservator of Monuments and the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.
The ensuing clean-up operation could yet take several days with park officials adamant that they will only reopen once safety can be ensured.
The news comes as a blow to both Varsovians and visitors. Regarded as the green lungs of the city, the park is commonly viewed as the most beautiful in Poland.
Once little more than marshland, the 17th century saw the Grand Marshal of the Crown, Stanisław Herakliusz Lubomirski, order the marshes to be drained and a garden to be laid out. Later passing into the hands of Poland’s last regent, Stanisław II Augustus, the following century saw the surrounding area transformed into the King’s summer playground.
A plethora of landmarks were added, among them palaces, villas, classicist follies, and monuments. Of the more iconic elements, the additions included an amphitheater inspired by Herculaneum featuring a stage set on an island.
Equally prominent, the so-called Palace on the Isle saw Lubomirski’s former bath house reinvented as a luxurious residence designed by royal architect Dominik Merlini and the celebrated designer Jan Chrystian Kamsetzer. It was here that the King held his “Thursday Lunches”, a series of gatherings in which nobility and statesmen would mingle with artists and intellectuals.
It was also on the behest of the last king that a “Chinese Avenue” was added complete with a Chinese-style bridge. Later disappearing, a new Chinese Garden, inspired by Prince Kung’s mansion in Beijing, was brought back in 2012.
Yet despite its deep sense of heritage, Łazienki has been allowed to evolve over time. When Poland was carved up under the petitions, it was during Russian rule that a New Orangery was added. Constructed to store 214 orange trees belonging to Tsar Alexander II, its elegant neo-classicist form is one of the defining images of the gardens.
Only when Poland regained its independence in 1918 were the gardens officially designated as a public park, and they quickly found favor with Warsaw’s population. In 1926, its status was further cemented with the unveiling of a monument to Chopin. Just fourteen years later this would become the first Warsaw monument to be destroyed by the Nazis.
Undoubtedly earmarked for its patriotic significance, its destruction was personally approved by Hans Frank, the head of the General Government in German-occupied Poland.
According to local legend, the day after the monument was hauled off to be smelted into ammunition, a placard appeared on the plinth. “I do not know who did this,” it read, “but I know why: so that I won’t play the funeral march for your leader.”
Rebuilt after the war, since 1959 free weekend piano recitals have been held every weekend in the shadow of Chopin. Something of a rite-of-passage for residents and tourists, these concerts have become one of the best-loved elements of summer in the city.
Balancing the then with the now, Łazienki has remained relevant for a variety of reasons. Inexorably linked with Poland’s proud imperial history, its quaint, genteel gardens bristle with attractions, among them music evenings and gallery exhibitions.
Yet as much as there is to do, Łazienki’s biggest joy remains simply walking the meandering pathways cut into the immaculate parkland that stretches and rolls. Coming under the watchful gaze of the Indian peacocks that have made this their domain, those that visit are left with an indelible vision of Poland’s noble past.
