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Set on the river Oder, Wroclaw, formerly Breslau, is
the foremost city of Lower Silesia, with a long tradition of culture,
both German and Polish. Our hotel is just by the church of St Mary Magdalene,
known for its beautiful Romanesque portal, and close to the market square
and the Gothic Town Hall. We will be shown the cathedral quarter, the
splendid Baroque Aula Leopoldina and the Panorama of Raclawice. There
will also be an excursion to the Baroque abbey church of Trzebnica
and we plan to include an evening concert, part of the annual Cantans
Festival.
We will drive south-east to Brzeg, capital of an independent
Piast duchy from the early 14th century until 1675. The Italianate Renaissance
castle is known for its ornate sculpted gatehouse and contains a museum
of Silesian art. We stop to see the frescoes in the church at Malubowice
and visit the 19th-century castle of Moszna and the ancient
town of Nysa, once capital of the dukes of Wroclaw. There
will also be an excursion to the fine Cistercian abbey of Lubiaz,
and the Benedictine abbey at Legnickie Pole, with the
Baroque church of St Jadwiga, by the Bohemian architect, Dientzenhofer.
Leaving Wroclaw, we drive to Swidnica to see one of
the ‘peace’ churches conceded to Silesian Protestants after
the treaty of Westphalia. After visiting the vast Hochberg von Pless castle
of Ksiaz we continue to our hotel, a privately-owned
manor-house on the estate at Lomnica, in the valley of
Jelenia Gora. With its mountain scenery, this became
a fashionable area for Prussian families to build their summer residences.
A number of homes, set in a vast park landscaped by Peter Joseph Lenné,
are now being restored and we hope to arrange several private visits.
We will also visit an 18th-century palace in Cieplice;
an Art Nouveau villa at Jagniatkow and the magnificent
Baroque abbey of Krzeszow.
Just over the German border is the well-preserved town
of Görlitz, with fine Renaissance and Baroque buildings
and the interesting Museum of Silesia. Nearby, unusual 14th-century secular
frescoes have been discovered in a medieval tower at Siedlecin.
A visit to the great ‘peace’ church in the medieval city of
Jawor, one of the largest timber-framed religious buildings
in Europe, completes our week in Silesia.
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PRICE
l £2,440
The cost includes accommodation in a first-class hotel in Wroclaw (4 nights)
and a comfortable hotel near Jelenia Gora (3 nights); economy class air
travel London (Heathrow) / Warsaw / Wroclaw / Warsaw / London (Heathrow)
by scheduled services; ground transport by private coach; all meals except
one dinner; tickets for one evening performance; guides; taxes; entrance
fees and the services of a lecturer and a tour organiser.
Price without flights £2,260
l Single room supplement
£250
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