Malbork Castle

Malbork Castle
Zamek w Malborku (Polish)
Malbork Castle from across the Nogat
LocationMalbork, Poland
Coordinates54°02′23″N 19°01′40″E / 54.03972°N 19.02778°E / 54.03972; 19.02778
Built13th century
Official nameCastle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork
TypeCultural
Criteriaii, iii, iv
Designated1997 (21st session)
Reference no.847
RegionPoland
Designated1994-09-08
Reference no.M.P. z 1994 r. Nr 50, poz. 420[1]
Malbork Castle is located in Poland
Malbork Castle
Location of Malbork Castle in Poland
Malbork Castle is located in Pomeranian Voivodeship
Malbork Castle
Malbork Castle (Pomeranian Voivodeship)

The Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork,[2] commonly known as Malbork Castle (Polish: Zamek w Malborku; German: Ordensburg Marienburg), is a 13th-century castle complex located in the town of Malbork, Poland. It is the largest castle in the world measured by land area and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[3]

It was constructed by the Teutonic Order, a German Catholic religious order of crusaders, in the form of an Ordensburg fortress and named Marienburg in honour of Mary, mother of Jesus. In 1457, during the Thirteen Years' War, the castle was sold by Bohemian mercenaries to King Casimir IV of Poland in lieu of indemnities. It then served as one of several Polish royal residences and the seat of Polish offices and institutions, interrupted by several years of Swedish occupation, fulfilling this function until the First Partition of Poland in 1772. From then on, the castle was under German rule for over 170 years until 1945, albeit largely falling into disrepair as military technological advances rendered the castle a mere historical point of interest.

The construction period is a point of debate, but most historians generally accept the 132 years between 1274 and 1406 as the construction time. The castle is a classic example of a medieval fortress and, upon its completion in 1406, was the world's largest brick castle.[4]

UNESCO designated the "Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork" and the Malbork Castle Museum a World Heritage Site in December 1997.[5] It is one of two World Heritage Sites in the region (north-central Poland), together with the "Medieval Town of Toruń", which was founded in 1231. Malbork Castle is also one of Poland's official national Historic Monuments (Pomnik historii), as designated on 8 September 1994.[1] Its listing is maintained by the National Heritage Board of Poland.

  1. ^ a b Zarządzenie Prezydenta Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej z dnia 8 września 1994 r. w sprawie uznania za pomnik historii., M.P., 1994, vol. 50, No. 420
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference unesco was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference touropia was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference emery was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference unesco847 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).