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Gorski Palace in Vilnius, late 18th century., photo dr hab. Anna Sylwia Czyż, prof. ucz., all rights reserved
Fotografia przedstawiająca Pociej (Gorski) Palace on German Street
Fragment of the façade of the Gorski Palace in Vilnius, late 18th century., photo dr hab. Anna Sylwia Czyż, prof. ucz., 2014, all rights reserved
Fotografia przedstawiająca Pociej (Gorski) Palace on German Street
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ID: POL-002143-P

Pociej (Gorski) Palace on German Street

Vilnius | Lithuania
lit. Vilnius
ID: POL-002143-P

Pociej (Gorski) Palace on German Street

Vilnius | Lithuania
lit. Vilnius

The Pociej (Gorski) Palace has one of the most beautiful classicist facades in Vilnius. Elegant and modest, it is the hallmark of the renowned architect Augustyn Kossakowski, who also worked for King Stanislaw August.

The palace is located in the very centre of old Vilnius, right next to the Town Hall and the Treasury House, as well as St. Nicholas Church and the Jewish quarter.

The establishment of a representative seat at this location is linked to the person of Matthew Vorbek Lettow (d. 1624), who came from the impoverished Protestant nobility settled in Elblag. It was later held by his son Matthias (1593-1663), a thoroughly educated physician to Władysław IV. The seat was then a two-storey building with fourteen rooms and had access to running water. In the courtyard there was a wooden stable for four horses, and an orchard was cultivated. The dining room, where "banquets" were held, attended by Calvinists Krzysztof II Radziwiłł (1585-1640) and the Kiszkos, led by the Roman Catholic Bishop of Samogitia Stanisław (died 1626), was located on the ground floor, while the ground floor was used for utility purposes. One of its rooms was occupied by a pharmacy.

Expecting the occupation of Vilnius by the Muscovites, in 1655 Matthias Vorbek-Lettov packed not only the most valuable items but also a library of "excellent authors worth several thousand" "onto carts", but lost at least some of these possessions due to the plundering "soldiers of Mr Poklonsky". He described this fact in detail in his diary.

The palace, restored after the turmoil of war, was then in the hands of Matthias Vorbek-Lett's sons, Alexander (born 1642) and Christopher (born 1621), who like their father belonged to the town's Lutheran elite. After 1701, the seat already belonged to the Pociej family, most probably thanks to Anna, daughter of Aleksandr Vorbek-Lettov, first wife of Casimir Aleksandr Pociej (1666-1728), castellan and governor of Vitebsk.

Casimir Alexander was inherited by his son Alexander (d. 1770), "not familiar with philteria or the great world", but an efficient farmer. In 1748 and 1749, the palace burned down in the great fire of the city. It is not known when exactly the residence came into the hands of Michał Józef Gorski (d. 1776), castellan of Samogitia. Together with his wife Anna, née Woyn, he led an active social life not only at his estate in Birynyany, but also in Vilnius, hence the need to organise a residence. The Gorskis undertook the reconstruction of the palace according to the designs of Augustyn Kossakowski (1737-1803). The palace gained one of the most beautiful early-classical facades in Vilnius. In order to emphasise the symmetry of the building, its designer grouped three window openings on the axis, but the entrance gate was left - originally - slightly shifted to the right side. The façade was decorated with rustication, with a frieze in the form of a meander and serration, cutting off the upper storeys from the commercial part in the ground floor with a smooth, wide frieze. The representative piano nobile on the first floor, on the other hand, is exposed and crowned with triangular pediments.

Time of origin:
2nd half of the 18th century.
Creator:
Augustyn Kossakowski(preview)
Bibliography:
  • A.S. Czyż, Pałace Wilna XVII-XVIII wieku, Warszawa 2021, s. 393-398.
Publikacja:
05.08.2024
Ostatnia aktualizacja:
05.08.2024
Author:
dr hab. Anna Sylwia Czyż, prof. ucz.
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