Historical and Archaeological Museum in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski

The magnificent seat of the Ostrowiec Museum - the palace of the Wielopolski family - is located in Częstocice - today one of the estates of Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski, and formerly an independent village and factory settlement next to the oldest sugar factory in the Kingdom of Poland.

Częstocice itself (as well as other Ostrowiec estates) often changed their owners. The construction of the palace was commissioned by a merchant and banker, Antoni Edward Fraenkel. The building was originally to be erected in the nearby settlement of the Klimkiewicz family, but eventually Częstocice was chosen as its foundation site. The design of the palace was commissioned to Jan Ludwik Marconi, who comes from a family with rich architectural traditions.

Work began in the 1870s and continued until 1899.

All right, but why is the palace primarily associated with the Wielopolski family? The next owner of the Ostrowiec estate, Władysław Laski, allocated Częstocice as a dowry for his daughter Maria. She, in turn, married in 1886 Count Zygmunt Wielopolski.

Since then, Częstocice has become the administrative, economic and cultural center of one of the Wielopolski family lines. It is worth mentioning that in the 1920s, the Częstocice palace was visited by, among others, Charles de Gaulle staying in the area.

After Zygmunt's death, Maria sold the palace and the park to Zakłady Ostrowiecki. Since then, the palace housed a hotel, apartments, and during World War II - a field hospital. After the war, schools operated here, and finally - from the 1960s - a museum.