Not far from Grodno there is a village with a beautiful name Svyatskwhere you can see the real palace end of the 18th century. The construction of this palace and park complex was carried out according to the project of the then popular Italian architect Giuseppe de Sacco. He has many significant objects of the Grodno region on his account: the Poniatowski Theater, the square and the palace of Tyzengauz, residence Stanislavovo.

Volovich Palace in Svyatsk

Volovich Palace is a whole complex of buildings, where the central place is occupied by a two-story manor in the classical style of architecture with baroque elements. In an arc, 2 wings adjoin the main volume, connected by a colonnaded arcade. The courtyard has the shape of a circle, enclosed by a small fence with an entrance gate.

Manor palace in Svyatsk

Palace in Svyatsk

The Holy Palace was built in 2 stages. So in 1779, by order of the Grodno marshal Yuzef Volovich, the central part was completed - the estate itself. Then, already in the first half of the 19th century, the wings were completed and the English park was expanded. A little later, various outbuildings and a family tomb were built.

Chapel tomb of Valovichi in Svyatsk old photo
Zdymak crushed yes 1939, from the allegro website

The Volovichi owned the estate in Svyatsk until the end of the 19th century. According to rumors, this rich and prosperous estate was lost in cards or billiards. Whatever it was in reality, but after the Volovichi, the owners changed quickly and their names did not remain in history for a long time.

What did the palace look like in Svyatsk
Banquet hall, Zdymak 1933, Narodowe Archiwum Cyfrowe Poland
What did the palace look like in Svyatsk
1933

The fate of the palace differs from the typical stories of most gentry estates of that time on the territory Belarus. It fell into disrepair under the Gumnitskys, who divided the rich lands of the Volovichi into several fractional plots. The palace itself, under their management, not only was not inspected, but was also devastated: all valuables and relics were taken out. In 1929, the negligent owners of Svyatsk came up with the idea to completely dismantle the old palace for building materials. Fortunately, this did not happen.

Manor in Svyatsk

After the 30s, when the palace and park complex became the property of the Ministry of Health of Poland, a sanatorium for drug addicts was located within the walls of the palace. At the same time, a large-scale reconstruction was carried out.

Old photo of the palace in Svyatsk
zdymak 1933, Narodowe Archiwum Cyfrowe Poland

During the war, the building was converted into a hospital, and then again into a sanatorium, which worked in Svyatsk until 2005.

Svyatsk palace and park complex

After the closing of the sanatorium, the former Volovichi Palace was empty and gradually collapsed, until in 2016 work began on its reconstruction. For 2023, the first stage of construction work is already being completed, and probably soon part of this attraction will be opened to the public.

Svyatsk Belarus

Svyatsk is located 20 kilometers from Grodno along the highway H6054, below is the point with the location of the object on the map:

Along the way you can see fort of the Grodno fortress at number 2, as well as drop into the urban village Sopotskin.

5 1 vote
Rate this article
Subscribe
notice
0 Comment
Inline feedback
View all comments