Editing Royal Castle, Warsaw (section)

=== Castle in the Middle Ages ===
[[File:VarsaviaCastelloCorteAlaGotica.jpg|thumb|right|Medieval wall of the ''Curia Maior'']]

In 1339, the [[Papal Legate]] in [[Warsaw]]<ref name="Suchodolska" /> heard a case brought by the King of [[Kingdom of Poland|Poland]], [[Casimir III the Great]], against the German [[Teutonic Order]]. He claimed that they had illegally seized a slice of Polish territory — the [[Pomerania]] and [[Kuyavia]] regions. The documents in this case are the earliest written testimony to the existence of [[Warsaw]]. At that time a fortified town surrounded by earthen and wooden [[defensive wall|ramparts]], and situated where the Royal Castle now stands, it was the seat of Trojden, [[duke of Masovia]]. At the end of the 13th century, during the Duke Conrad's rule, the wooden-earthen [[Gord (Slavic settlement)|gord]] called "Small Manor" ({{langx|la|Curia Minor}}) was erected. The next duke, [[Casimir I of Poland|Casimir I]], decided to build the Great Tower ({{langx|la|Turris Magna}}), possibly one of the first brick building in Warsaw.

In the middle of the 14th century, the Castle Tower was built, and its remains up to the first storey have survived to this day. During the reign over Masovia by Duke [[Janusz I of Warsaw|Janusz I the Elder]], the ''Curia Maior'' (Big Manor) was erected between 1407 and 1410.<ref name="Suchodolska" /> Its façade, which was still standing in 1944, was [[Planned destruction of Warsaw|knocked down by the Germans]], but has been rebuilt since then. The character of the new residence and its size (47.5 m/14.5 m) decided the change of the buildings status, and from 1414, it functioned as a Prince Manor.