Sigismund's Column

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Sigismund's Column (Template:Langx), originally erected in 1644, is located at Castle Square, Warsaw, Poland and is one of Warsaw's most famous landmarks as well as the first secular monument in the form of a column in modern history.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The column and statue commemorate King Sigismund III Vasa, who in 1596 had moved Poland's capital from Kraków to Warsaw. It is part of the Historic Centre of Warsaw, which was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

On the Corinthian column which used to be of red marble and is Template:Cvt tall, a sculpture of the King, Template:Cvt tall, in archaized armour is placed.<ref name="perelki" /> Sigismund's Column now stands at Template:Cvt and is adorned by four eagles. The king is dressed in armour, carries a cross in one hand and wields a sword in the other.<ref name="warsawvoice" />

HistoryEdit

17th centuryEdit

File:Construction of Sigismund Column.JPG

Construction of the Sigismund's Column, detail of the 1646 engraving by Willem Hondius.

Erected between 1643 and 1644, the column was constructed on the orders of Sigismund's son and successor, King Władysław IV Vasa. It was designed by the Italian-born architect Constantino Tencalla and the sculptor Clemente Molli and was cast by Daniel Tym.<ref name="sztuka">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Sigismund's Column was modelled on the Italian column-shaped monuments in front of Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, erected in 1614 to designs of Carlo Maderno, and on the Column of Phocas in Rome<ref name="sztuka" /> (Władysław Vasa had seen both of them during his visit to Rome in 1625). The King was portrayed in an archaized armour and a richly decorated coronation robe. He wears a crown holding in his right hand a sabre and supports with his left hand a Latin cross, which stands on the column's socle. His right leg is placed on a helmet embellished with ostrich feathers while the Order of the Golden Fleece is depicted on the monarch's chest.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

The monument was supposed to symbolize royal virtues and to represent both the secular and sacral nature of royal power.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The erection of the column primarily served political purposes as it glorified the House of Vasa and further strengthened the king's power and influence. That is why it was located at the square right in front of the Kraków Gate, the most important communication route of the capital at the time.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

The column was ceremonially unveiled on 24 November 1644.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It provoked a conflict between King Władysław IV and papal nuncio Mario Filonardi, who protested against the fact that the figure of a secular person was depicted on the monument. Traditionally, only the figures of Christ, Virgin Mary and saints could be revered in this way.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

In 1681, the monument was surrounded with a wooden fence, which was later replaced with a permanent iron fence.

18th and 19th centuriesEdit

The marble column itself was renovated several times in the next few centuries, most notably in 1743, 1810, 1821 and 1828. In 1854, the monument was surrounded with a fountain featuring marble tritons sculpted by the German, August Kiss.<ref name="sztuka" />

In 1863, the column was renovated again under the supervision of architect Józef Orłowski.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The monument still needed work, and between 1885 and 1887, it was replaced with a new column of granite.<ref name="sztuka" /> Between 1927 and 1930, the monument was again renovated and was restored to its original appearance when the fountain and the fence around it were removed.Template:Citation needed

File:Overthrown statue of King Sigismund 1945.jpg

Toppled statue, 1945

20th centuryEdit

On 1 September 1944, during the Warsaw Uprising, the monument's column was demolished by the Germans, and its bronze statue was badly damaged.<ref name="warsawvoice">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="sztuka" /> The damaged statue was transported on a sleigh to St. Anne's Church.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In the spring of 1945, it was displayed at the National Museum in Warsaw in an exhibition titled Warsaw Accuses (Polish: Warszawa oskarża).<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

In 1945, Henryk Golański established a special committee whose objective was to restore the monument.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The statue was eventually repaired, and in 1949, it was set up on a new column, made of granite from the Strzegom mine, a couple of metres from the original site.<ref name="perelki">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The original broken pieces of the column can still be seen lying next to the Royal Castle.Template:Citation needed In 1965, the column was officially inscribed on the country's register of historical monuments.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In the same year, the column was depicted on a 10-zloty commemorative coin issued by the National Bank of Poland on the 700th anniversary of Warsaw.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

The inscriptionEdit

On the side of the pedestal facing the Krakowskie Przedmieście is a plaque bearing these words in the finest lettering:<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

HONORI·ET·PIETATI

SACRAM STATVAM HANC SIGISMVNDO III VLADISLAVS IV NATURA AMORE GENIO FILIVS
ELECTIONE SERIE FELICITATE SVCCESSOR
VOTO ANIMO CVLTV GRATVS
PATRI PATRIAE PARENTI OPT MER ANNO DNI MDCXLIII PONI IVSSIT CVI IAM
GLORIA TROPHEVM POSTERITAS GRATITVDINEM
AETERNITAS MONVMENTVM POSVIT AVT DEBET

The inscription on the bronze plate of the column:

"King Sigismund III, by virtue of free election King of Poland, by virtue of inheritance, succession and law - King of Sweden, in love of peace and fame the first among kings, in war and victories not inferior to anyone, took prisoners of Tsar and Moscow chiefs, he conquered the capital and lands [of Moscow], defeated the Russian army, regained Smolensk, broke the power of Turkey near Khotyn, ruled for forty-four years, in the forty-fourth king"

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GalleryEdit

OriginalEdit

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Trzony Kolumny Zygmunta III Wazy przy Zamku Królewskim w Warszawie 2021.jpg
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