Royal Castle, façade viewed from the Vistula River

The Royal Castle in Warsaw – a Cultural and Historical Monument of national importance.

Formerly the residence of kings and the seat of the Parliament of the Polish-Lithuanian Republic – today a museum, an educational centre, a centre for arts and culture, open to the general public, and also a place where important state ceremonies are held.

The Castle was reconstructed and together with the Old Town of Warsaw, has been added, to the UNESCO World National Heritage list.

The Castle's apartments have been restored according to their use and function during the reign of King Stanislaus Augustus (1764-1795). It was rebuilt thanks to the dedication of Poles living both in Poland and abroad. Preserved fragments of the original stonework, mouldings, woodcarving, and relics of murals were incorporated into the walls, which were reconstructed in the years 1971 – 1984. The interiors have been furnished with, among other things, works of art which were salvaged from the original Castle: paintings by Bernardo Bellotto [known as Canaletto], Marcello Bacciarelli, Jan Bogumił Plersch, the sculptures of André Le Brun and Giacomo Monaldi, the bronzes of Phillipe Caffieri the Younger and French furniture dating from the second half of the eighteenth century. The museum's collections have been expanded with gifts from the Polish state and foreign governments and also exhibits deriving from private collections.