March 23, 2005

Phoenix from the ashes

Warsaw, Poland

Warsaw's baroque Royal Castle, with it's sumptious interiors and furnishings, is the equal of almost any in Europe, yet just 35 years ago it didn't exist.

The original palace, along with almost all of the old town, was reduced to rubble by the Nazis in 1944 in reprisal for the ill-fated Warsaw Uprising. The Soviet Red Army idly watched from the opposite bank of the river as the Germans systematically destroyed the city over the course of three months.

The old city and, much later, the palace have since been painstakingly rebuilt and the results are remarkable. The only hints that the palace is not original are in the ceiling frescos, not quite the quality of the 18th century masters, and the clocks, which all work.

Posted by David at March 23, 2005 04:39 AM