From residential garden to downtown square: transformations of the Saxon Garden in Warsaw

Blanka Melania Ciężka

doi:10.37190/arc250409

Abstract

A large portion of today’s European downtown parks are former residential gardens gradually incorporated into the cities’ public space. The Saxon Garden in Warsaw is an example of a park that underwent transformation from a palace complex to public urban space.

The article presents successive stages of the Saxon Garden’s transformation from the 18th century to contemporary times, analyzing changes in its function, spatial composition, and relationship with the surrounding urban fabric. The impact of historical events, particularly World War II, on the present shape of this complex is also discussed.

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Blanka Melania Ciężka*

From a Residential Garden to an Inner-City Square:

Transformations of the Space

of the Saxon Garden in Warsaw

DOI: 10.37190/arc250409

Published in open access. CC BY NC ND license

Abstract

A large proportion of today’s European inner-city parks are former residential gardens that have been gradually incorporated into the public realm

of cities. The Saxon Garden in Warsaw is an example of a park that has undergone a dierent evolution from most similar ensembles – instead of

becoming an enclosed space, it has been transformed into an inner-city square accessible around the clock and traversed by numerous circulation

routes. Its location next to Piłsudski Square, a place marked by a dicult history, means that the Garden remains a space that has never been fully

conceptually resolved, entangled from the outset in a permanent state of spatial and functional tension resulting from the unstable urban fabric of its

surroundings.

This article is based on an analysis of archival sources and the scholarly literature, as well as a detailed comparative analysis of the form, layout

and furnishings of the Saxon Garden and its setting, which makes it possible to capture the specicity of its development against the background of

transformations of public spaces in European city centres.

Keywords: Saxon Garden, public space, urban greenery, urban planning, park

Introduction

Many contemporary public city parks are former resi-

dential gardens which, due to their location within growing

urban boundaries or in their immediate vicinity, were grad-

ually integrated with the city and now form part of its green

inner-city public spaces. An interesting case of such a park

is the Saxon Garden in Warsaw, laid out under Augustus II

as the residential garden of the Saxon Axis. Today it func-

tions more as a transitory inner-city square, woven into the

city’s circulation network.

The aim of this article is to answer the question of which

elements in the changing accessibility of the Saxon Garden

in Warsaw determined that a residential space of such out-

standing historical signicance transformed into an inner-city

square with only a partially preserved structure. The time-

frame of the research spans from the creation of the garden in

the 1720s to the present day.

State of Research

Although the Saxon Garden has a relatively extensive

literature – it appears both in publications on the forms of

Polish historic gardens (Bobrowski 1954; Ciołek 1954) and

in studies on the Saxon Axis (Bernatowicz 1995; Bie niecki

1960; Kłosek-Kozłowska 2017) – no one has so far attempt-

ed to answer why it turned into an inner-city square and

which events determined this. The Saxon Garden appears

partly in the context of the urbanism of Pił suds ki Square

and of the history directly related to the former Sa xon

Palace building (Zieliński 2019; Wójtowicz 2019; Rot ter -

mund 1969; Jonkajtys-Luba 1995; Trybuś 2012; Stę piński

1988). All these works focus primarily on the space of the

square itself, the sources of its decomposition, its trans-

port value and buildings; the space of the Saxon Garden

is treated marginally. The only monographic work devoted

* ORCID: 0009-0008-9982-9383. Muzeum Warszawy (Museum

of Warsaw), e-mail: blanka.ciezka@muzeumwarszawy.pl

100 Blanka Melania Ciężka

specically to the Garden remains Elżbieta Charazińska’s

book (1979).

Description of the Research Method

The applied research method consists in analysing how

the function of the Saxon Garden has changed since its in-

ception and what relationship the garden has had with the

surrounding urban space, with particular attention to the

built urban fabric, public spaces (their function and signif-

icance for the city) and the transport network. Equally im-

portant is a comparative analysis of the layout and forms

of the Saxon Garden and its immediate setting. To this end,

historical studies, city plans, iconographic materials and ur-

ban design projects (including unrealised ones) were anal-

ysed, as they reveal ways of thinking about this space – and

the evolution thereof.

A Private Court Garden within the Saxon Axis

The Saxon Garden was created as one element of the late

Ba roque urban composition of the Saxon Axis, which ini-

tially served three functions: residential, military and trans-

port (Bie niecki 1960, 484). In its early form it was a typical

for mal residential garden, functionally connected with the

palace itself. As a private space it had no links with the urban

public realm, even though it was already surrounded on all

sides by the expanding city. This resulted from two factors.

First, the Saxon Axis began to be implemented in an area

of pre-existing urban structures, which entailed extensive

demolitions and expropriations and, above all, condemned

the Saxon Garden from the moment of its creation to a spa-

tial and functional deadlock in relation to an unstable urban

fabric.

Second, the transport function of the Saxon Axis meant

that the composition contained within its boundaries both

routes serving the royal residence and public roads (Bie-

niecki 1960, 486–487). Their location in the immediate vi-

cinity of the Saxon Garden posed no problem in the early

century, but the situation changed dramatically once the

decision was made not to develop the Saxon complex any

further while urban trac continued to grow (Fig. 1).

According to Tadeusz Tołwiński, a series of city squares

formed around the central mass of the Garden on a shared

com munication orbit in a later period: Teatralny, Bankowy,

Pił sud skiego and Małachowskiego Squares (Tołwiński 1963,

159–160). Already in the early period, on the western side,

the interior of the Garden was linked to the marketplace of

Wielopole. From the east the palace forecourt was connect-

ed to the busy Krakowskie Przedmieście street. Kró lew ska

Street, bordering the Saxon Garden to the south, was re gu-

lated symmetrically to the existing northern road along the

city walls, where private estates belonging to the Sanguszko

family and later to Heinrich Brühl were also located

(Bieniecki 1960, 473).

From 1735 the Garden was enclosed to the south by a brick

wall with bastions; from the west access was provided by

the Iron Gate (Żelazna Brama), to which guardhouses were

later added (Charazińska 1979, 34). In social terms it was

also an isolated space, although here certain changes can be

observed. In many studies, 27 May 1727 is cited as the date

on which the Saxon Garden was opened to the “inhabitants

of the capital” or made accessible “to the public” (Cha ra ziń-

ska 1979, 44). This aspect seems to require deeper study,

since other examples of opening residential gardens to the

public in Europe suggest that these could not have been the

“inhabitants of the city” at large, but only selected represen-

tatives of the higher social strata. Paul Keenan (2010) oers

a good analysis of the social structure of visitors to the Sum-

mer Garden in Saint Petersburg in the mid-18

cen tury, cit-

ing decrees that specied who could enter the gar den and

when, and that set strict requirements for visitors’ attire – it

had to be “neat and European”. This alone meant that the

visitors could only be a very narrow group of the better-born.

The Garden in the Context

of the Abandonment of the Saxon Axis

The year 1763 brought a fundamental change in the di -

rection of development for the Saxon Garden. At that time

the Saxon Palace ceased to be a royal residence. The Garden

therefore lost its function as a residential garden, and the

funds allocated for its upkeep diminished, while the formu-

la of its use became more relaxed. This is evidenced by

facts cited by Charazińska (1979, 47–49): ower beds and

parterres were replaced with lawns, benches appeared along

the alleys, and Baroque structures were gradually replaced

with rows of trees providing shade for walkers. Small

kiosks selling beer were set up by the Iron Gate, at the

entrance to the Garden. The water reservoir in the central

part of the Garden, which had previously supplied the royal

fountains, was turned into a place where cold drinks were

sold, while baked goods from the bakery operating in a side

wing of the former royal palace were carried through the

alleys and sold to visitors. In 1804 the Grand Salon was

con verted into a dining pavilion (Charazińska 1979, 50–51).

Fig. 1. C.F. von Werneck, plan of Warsaw (fragment),

scale approx. 1:2500–1:4200, 1732

(source: AGAD, Cartographic Collection, 86–21)

Il. 1. C.F. von Werneck, plan Warszawy (fragment),

skala ok. 1 : 2500 – 1: 4200, 1732

(źródło: AGAD, Zbiór Kartograficzny, 86–21)

From a Residential Garden to an Inner-City Square: Transformations of the Space of the Saxon Garden in Warsaw 101

During this period the Saxon Garden became surrounded

by new streets and blocks of buildings developed without

an overarching plan. The development of the Baroque axis

had from the outset required excessive nancial outlays and

had already slowed down in the Saxon period (Bieniecki

1960, 490). When Stanisław August Poniatowski came to

the throne, work on the Axis was entirely abandoned. In

1757 the Bielino jurisdiction was created, but it was not in -

tegrated into the transport network of the Saxon complex

from the west, which meant that the development of its

structure – including the main artery, later Marszałkowska

Street – proceeded independently of the Saxon complex

(Bie niecki 1960, 489). In the western part of the complex,

around Chłodna Street, a network of new streets also

emerged, including Grzybowska Street. However, it was

not connected to Królewska Street, which could have creat-

ed an east–west transport axis leading all the way to Kra-

kow skie Przedmieście. Thus the eastern part, with the Gar-

den, and the western part lost their connection.

This transitional period was also the time when the con-

text of Saxon Square began to gain importance for the Gar-

den. The former palace courtyard, which had served as yet

another buer for the Garden on the side of Krakowskie

Przed mieście, began to evolve into a public square once the

gates located on its northern and southern sides were re -

moved in 1791 (Bieniecki 1960, 490). Indirectly this also

brought the Saxon Garden closer to the city’s public life

– this time from the east. At the same time – a fact of great

importance for the later period – removing the gates made it

possible to create a transport route linking Wierzbowa Street

with Ewangelicki (now Małachowskiego) Square, running

directly along the western frontage of the Saxon Palace.

The period of the Duchy of Warsaw was a time of stagna-

tion for the Garden: devastated and degraded, it ceased to be

frequently visited; public life shifted to the Krasiński Gar den,

opened to the public in 1768. As in the case of the 18

-cen-

tury Saxon Garden, the social structure of visitors to the

Krasiński Garden in this period requires study. When in 1816

Prince Konstanty, the viceroy of War saw, moved into the

Brühl Palace, the Saxon Garden was reduced to a technical

backyard – horses were grazed there and preparations for

military parades were carried out (Cha razińska 1979, 58).

Transformation into a City Park

In terms of integration with the urban space, the period

of the Congress Kingdom of Poland was the most dynamic

for the Saxon Garden. Jarosław Zieliński notes that it was

then that “the Saxon Garden (…) became more of an urban

interior than a part of a palace complex” (Zieliński 2019,

117). In my view, at that time it was not part of a palace

complex at all, as such a complex no longer existed. The

building of the former palace, handed over to government

administration at the end of the 18

century, became a lycée

in 1802, its wings were rented out as housing, and after

being remodelled to a design by Wacław Ritschel / Adam

Idźkowski it was turned into a commercial tenement house

(Bieniecki 1960, 492–493).

Tadeusz Bernatowicz writes that this was the time when

“the process of incorporating the Saxon Garden into the

structure of the modern city” occurred (1995, 96); however,

he does not add that this was part of a broader concept of

regulating inner-city squares and ordering public spaces.

This process, initiated by the Construction Council (Rada

Budownicza), included the construction or reconstruction

of representative squares: Zamkowy, Teatralny, Ewangelicki,

Trzech Krzyży and Bankowy (Pietrzak-Pawłowska 1973,

25). Because of its location, the Saxon Garden had to be

in cluded in this process: to implement these plans, its ad -

ministrative status had to be changed. In 1815 the Ministry

of the Interior approached the Treasury Commission with

a request to prepare a project for transforming the Saxon

Garden into a public city park (Charazińska 1979, 58). This

led to changes within the Garden (1815–1827) and its

adapta tion to the landscape style. The design was prepared

by James Savage, succeeded after his death by gardener Jan

Stro bel (Bieniecki 1960, 493–494).

The Garden was considered in the context of creating

a representative and functional sequence of urban interiors

(Kło sek-Kozłowska 2017). This seems to be conrmed by

seemingly minor yet important facts: when regulating

Żelaznej Bramy Square, the Grand Salon was demolished

in order to obtain a visual connection with the square, and

the new entrance was set back deeper into the park (eec-

tively at the cost of reducing its area); on the side facing

Ewan gelicki Square, the greenery was composed so that the

body of the Evangelical church would be visible from the

Gar den; new gates were created (from Marszałkowska, Ża -

bia, Niecała and Królewska Streets); the brick wall was

replaced with an openwork fence. In this way the space of

the Saxon Garden interpenetrated the surrounding urban

space and together with it formed public spaces.

As part of the reconstruction of the former Saxon Palace

in 1839–1842, the Garden received its most spectacular

visual and transport connection with Saxon Square, created

by piercing the central part of the palace body with a col-

onnaded passage (Zieliński 2019, 156). The Saxon Garden

certainly took over the function of a well-performing and

– in contemporary terms – engaging public space, which

Saxon Square itself did not possess. This is evidenced by

the rich service and entertainment infrastructure with which

it was equipped throughout the 19

century. In this respect

it did not dier from other former residential gardens in

Europe adapted to public use, such as Hyde Park in London,

the Summer Garden in Saint Petersburg or the Tui le ries in

Paris. Yet one may ask whether this socially oriented role

of the Saxon Garden did not also stem from a deliberate

policy on the part of the authorities and whether it did not

serve as a kind of “lightning rod” for the problematic space

of Saxon Square, intended as a place for manifesting power

(Fig. 2).

The Neighbourhood of Piłsudski Square

The formula of the Saxon Garden as the exclusive “Sa-

lon of Warsaw” began to be exhausted at the end of the 19

century. The causes of this phenomenon have not yet been

clearly identied. Social transformations and new needs of

the urban community inhabiting adjacent areas, which the

Garden was no longer able to satisfy at that stage, most like-

102 Blanka Melania Ciężka

views and public demonstrations (Hübner-Wojciechowska

1991). It still did not provide a public function that would

meet the everyday needs of residents.

Clash with the Transport Factor

The urban development of Warsaw made the transport

fac tor increasingly strongly aect the Saxon Garden, lo-

cated across the main direction of the city’s growth, which

progressed largely on the north–south axis, parallel to the

Vi stula. With the growing importance of southern districts

and the need to connect them with northern ones, a project

to extend Marszałkowska Street through the Saxon Garden

was already proposed in 1888, bu t public opposition halted

its implementation (Bieniecki 1960, 510). The seven gates

to the Garden at the end of the 19

century testied not only

to the park’s popularity but also to the fact that it was sur-

rounded, from many sides, by a living urban organism clam-

ouring for new routes (Fig. 3).

In 1904 the municipal authorities presented a concept for

a vehicular connection through the Garden from the gate at

Marszałkowska to the gate at Niecała (Charazińska 1979,

124). Before the First World War, a proposal was made to

unblock trac on the northern side – to connect Kotzebue

Street (now Fredry) at the Garden’s boundary with Saxon

Square through the Brühl Palace site (Charazińska 1979,

130, 131). Although neither of these ideas was realised, the

internal structures of the park were adapted – the number of

owerbeds and lawns was reduced in favour of new alleys,

which testied to the need to create a miniature network of

routes within the Saxon Garden to link the parts of the city

lying on its opposing sides.

ly played a part. The eastern side was becoming a grand,

representative area of the city, with services aimed at

a high-status clientele, the residences of the urban elite and

a carefully conceived architectural setting. To the west of the

Garden, by contrast, the district acquired a clearly industri-

al and commercial character, with marketplaces and dense

residential development (Kłosek-Kozłowska 2017, 13–14).

The Saxon Garden was not helped in maintaining its

prestige by the problematic proximity of Saxon Square

which, instead of serving residents, was used by the occu-

pying authorities to manifest their dominance. A symbol of

this was the obelisk-monument to the Fallen Poles (ocers

loyal to the tsar) erected on the axis of the square in 1841

(Zieliński 2019, 144–150). Sold in 1864 by the heirs of Sk-

warcow to the Russian authorities, the Saxon Palace lost its

commercial function – controversial from the perspective of

its original use, but contributing to the animation of the sur-

rounding space, including the Garden – and became the seat

of military authorities. The ultimate dismantling of the spa-

tial composition of Saxon Square came with the construc-

tion, in 1894–1912, of the Orthodox cathedral of St Alexan-

der Nevsky, whose massive Byzantine-style body did not

cor respond to any of the existing buildings and dominated

the Garden (Zieliński 2019, 176–183).

Surprisingly, the situation of the Saxon Garden in this re-

spect did not improve after Poland regained independence.

Saxon Square, marked by its dicult history, began to be

treated as a space of memory, with a strong patriotic and

representative dimension, with patriotic symbols placed

there – the monument to Prince Józef Poniatowski and the

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (Zieliński 2019, 222, 223).

The square again became a place for parades, military re-

Fig. 2. Plan of Warsaw by officers of the General Staff of the Russian army, officers of the Corps of Military Engineers and Józef Koriot (fragment),

scale approx. 1:4200, 1846 (source: Museum of Warsaw, ref. MHW 17386)

Il. 2. Plan Warszawy oficerów Sztabu Generalnego armii rosyjskiej, oficerów Korpusu Inżynierów Wojskowych i Józefa Koriota (fragment),

skala ok. 1:4200, 1846 (źródło: Muzeum Warszawy, sygn. MHW 17386)

From a Residential Garden to an Inner-City Square: Transformations of the Space of the Saxon Garden in Warsaw 103

Modernism in urbanism – to put it briey and syntheti-

cally – was characterised by privileging motorised trac

in cities and simultaneously abandoning the values of tra-

ditional urbanism in the creation of multifunctional public

spaces (Stangel 2013, 29–39). A park located in the very

city centre occupied an area where new arterial roads could

be routed. In 1917 Tołwiński revived the idea of a thorough-

fare through the western part of the Garden – i.e., extend-

ing Marszałkowska Street to Bankowy Square (Tołwiński

1917). The Saxon Garden was entered into the national

re gister of monuments in 1921 (Kłosek-Kozłowska 2017,

20), yet at the same time it found itself, as a result of com-

prehensive urban studies and development plans for the in-

ner city drawn up in the 1920s, in the heart of the so-called

“city” – its geometric centre was dened as the intersection

of Mar szałkowska Street and the Saxon Axis (Tomaszew-

ski 1965, 96–97), which at that time did not exist. This was

analogous to the situation of the Congress Kingdom peri-

od – the Garden again found itself at the centre of planned

regulatory works, except that this time they conicted with

the Garden’s space and could not inuence it favourably.

Planners treated the streets surrounding the Garden primari-

ly as elements of transport infrastructure, not as spaces with

a social dimension.

In 1934 a competition was announced for the functional

and transport design of Piłsudski Square. Concepts emerged

to connect the square with Powiśle and to design bold so-

lutions such as a tunnel under the entire Garden running

from Że laznej Bramy Square to Aleja na Skarpie, leading

to a bridge over the Vistula (Architektura i Budownictwo

1935). The authors of this idea and winners of the rst prize,

Kazimierz Tołłoczko and Jan Kukulski, proposed what at

rst glance appeared drastic – a two-level metro station un-

der Piłsudski Square and a tunnel under the Garden. How-

ever, the project did not interfere with the Garden’s space;

it envisaged pedestrian trac along the main park alley,

which was to serve as a link between the areas adjoining

the Garden from the east and west. In a way, the planners

continued the urban thinking behind the Saxon Axis; this

solution would also have made it possible to avoid routing

Marszałkowska Street through the western part of the park

(though it must be noted that these were only paper schemes

– the implementation of such a technically advanced project

could have critically aected the Garden’s space and eco-

system). The design was not executed, and in 1935 Mar-

szał kowska Street was extended to Żelaznej Bramy Square,

thereby severing the south-western part of the park with

a motor trac strip. In 1941, the German occupation author-

ities extended Marszałkowska further from Żelaznej Bra my

Square to Bankowy Square, completely cutting o the west-

ern part of the Garden.

After the war, the space surrounding the Saxon Garden

was further subordinated to transport arrangements (Fig. 4).

The route of Marszałkowska Street was eventually adjusted

to the surviving old tree stands in the western part of the

Garden (Fig. 5), and from 1948 tram trac ran along it. Be-

fore 1950 the damaged Garden fence was removed. A low

concrete wall was built in its place, with gaps which seam-

lessly linked the Garden – now in fact a square – with the

surrounding urban space. This is clearly visible at the en-

trance from Królewska Street, which forms a clear connec-

tion between the green space and the pedestrian crossing.

War damage (including the demolition of the General

Sta building) to some extent reopened the Saxon Garden to

the city – the townhouses on Królewska Street and the Sax-

on Palace disappeared. The square became directly linked

with the Garden. The former route connecting Wierz bowa

Street with Ewangelicki Square, used in the 19

century by

pedestrians and horse-drawn trac, had already turned into

an arterial road for cars in the interwar period (Fig. 6). In

the 1980s this route consisted of two three-lane carriage-

ways in each direction. In the late 1960s, in connection with

the reconstruction of the Grand Theatre, a road interchange

linking the areas of Teatralny and Victory (Zwycięstwa)

Squares was created on the former Brühl Palace site, direct-

ly adjacent to the Garden (Fig. 7). The surface of Victory

Square was used as a car park.

The urban composition of the Saxon Axis was entered

into the national register of monuments in 1965. Subsequent

design competitions for the regulation of this area in the

1970s and 1980s began to include proposals for rebuilding

the Saxon and Brühl palaces (Kłosek-Kozłowska 2017, 17).

However, planners’ attention focused on architecture and

Fig. 3. Southern part of the Saxon Garden, view of the entrance

from Królewska Street, 1926 (source: NAC, ref. 3/1/0/9/7361)

Il. 3. Południowa część Ogrodu Saskiego, widok na wejście

od strony ulicy Królewskiej, 1926 (źródło: NAC, sygn. 3/1/0/9/7361)

104 Blanka Melania Ciężka

the immediate arrangements around it, with particular em-

phasis on the area of Piłsudski Square. No interventions in

the Garden itself were envisaged. Nor was this space con-

sidered in terms of its links with other urban interiors of the

former Saxon complex.

New Perspectives on Inner-City Spaces

Towards the end of the twentieth century, planners’ think -

ing about the space of the Saxon Garden began to change. In

1998, as part of the Local Spatial Development Plan for the

Saxon Axis, a concept for the Garden’s restoration was pre-

pared by landscape architects Wojciech Trzópek and Marek

Szeniawski – alongside the reconstructed build ings of the

Saxon Palace, Brühl Palace and the townhouses on Królews-

ka Street, the 19

-century structure of the Saxon Garden as

an enclosed space was to be restored. This can be linked to

a turn in urban planning towards landscape-oriented design,

which favours green infrastructure and the historical tradi-

tions of a given area. The concept referred to the formula

of the garden as an element of an architectural and urban

layout, closely linked to it and dependent on it.

Fig. 4. Saxon Garden – transformations of surrounding

transport systems in three phases: 2

half of the 18

century,

before 1939, after 1955

(source: Kalinowski 1986, 554)

Il. 4. Ogród Saski – przemiany okolicznych układów

komunikacyjnych w trzech fazach:

2. poł. XVIII w., przed 1939 r., po 1955 r.

(źródło: Kalinowski 1986, 554)

Fig. 5. Gerard Ciołek, site plan of the Saxon Garden

with the extended Marszałkowska Street, after 1950

(source: NID, “Teki Gerarda Ciołka” – TC.pl.6161)

Il. 5. Gerard Ciołek, Plan sytuacyjny Ogrodu Saskiego

z przeprowadzoną ul. Marszałkowską, po 1950

(źródło: NID, „Teki Gerarda Ciołka” – TC.pl.6161)

Fig. 6. Willem van de Poll, Saxon Square with a visible road in front

of the Saxon Palace, 1934 (source: “Światowid” 1933,

via: https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plik:Warszawa_-_Plac_Saski_z_lotu_

ptaka_(1919).jpg)

Il. 6. Willem van de Poll, Plac Saski z widoczną jezdnią przed pałacem

Saskim, 1934 (źródło: „Światowid” 1933,

za: https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plik:Warszawa_-_Plac_Saski_z_lotu_

ptaka_(1919).jpg)

Fig. 7. Aerial view of Victory Square with the then transport system,

1979 (source: NAC, ref. 53–1782)

Il. 7.Widok z lotu ptaka na plac Zwycięstwa wraz z ówczesnym

układem komunikacyjnym, 1979 (źródło: NAC, sygn. 53–1782)

From a Residential Garden to an Inner-City Square: Transformations of the Space of the Saxon Garden in Warsaw 105

This project is cited with regard to the Saxon Garden in

a much later work, the 2016 diploma project by Krzysztof

Moskała (Moskała 2016), supervised by Prof. Danuta Kło-

sek-Kozłowska and Dr. Ewa Pachowska. Its advantage is

that it approaches the space of the Saxon Axis in a compre-

hensive manner – it does not limit itself to the three elements

of the eastern part but also considers the interiors west of the

Garden, such as Żelaznej Bramy Square. This clearly illus-

trates the shift in urban design towards creating connected

public spaces understood as sequences of interiors within

the city. It should be noted, however, that this approach does

not characterise all proposals for this area. Other projects by

planning oces produced in the 21

century, such as that of

the FAAB studio (FAAB 2019), focused on the arrangement

of Piłsudski Square itself, even introducing greenery there,

but ignored the space of the Saxon Garden.

A new perspective on Warsaw’s inner-city spaces was

opened by the debate on the quality of public spaces, con-

solidated in Europe through the New Athens Charter and the

practices of the New Urbanism, and gradually permeating

into Polish urban planning, as shown by the 2006 Devel-

opment Study for Warsaw and the most recent Spatial Con-

stitution (“Konstytucja przestrzenna” 2024), prepared since

2018. The idea of restoring compact inner cities, creating

high-quality public spaces and emphasizing the historical

continuity of places has inuenced a number of urban initia-

tives such as “Nowe Centrum Warszawy” (“Nowe Centrum

Warszawy” 2024) – and although the project’s plans do not

include Piłsudski Square and the Saxon Garden themselves,

they reveal a general approach: a striving to create smooth

connections between individual greened urban interiors. In

the context of the concept for the revitalisation of Żelaznej

Bramy Square, a proposal emerged to restore the transport

link between the square and the Saxon Garden in the form

of a pedestrian crossing and a bicycle crossing running

across this stretch of Marszałkowska Street (“Plac Żelaznej

Bramy” 2024) (Fig. 8). The aim was to emphasise the his-

torical layout of the Saxon Axis.

Following the Act adopted by the Polish Parliament in

2021 on the reconstruction of the Saxon Palace, Brühl Pal-

ace and three townhouses on Królewska Street in Warsaw,

another architectural-urban design competition was an-

nounced. Once again, all attention focused on the architec-

tural fabric and its future use. A very conservative position

was taken with regard to the Saxon Garden – there are no

specic proposals as to the nature of its use programme, nor

is there any reection on the role the Garden is to play in

the urban space. The competition brief stated that its current

shape should be respected – which is in fact at odds with

the plans, since rebuilding the buildings listed in the com-

petition would aect the park area. If they are to be erected

there, a portion of the trees (approx. 150) will have to be

removed, eectively destroying the dense mass of greenery

that now provides a backdrop to the Tomb of the Unknown

Soldier. Press reports (TVN Warszawa 2022) indicate that

some of the trees are to be transplanted to form rows fram-

ing Piłsudski Square on both sides (from Królewska and

Wierzbowa Streets), but this requirement does not appear

in the competition brief. The brief contains only individu-

al suggestions, such as creating a pedestrian link with the

restored Beck Garden or opening the gastronomy complex

onto the Saxon Garden, but these do not amount to a co

herent overarching concept for the area. According to the

competition guidelines, the Garden is to remain unfenced

(SARP 2024).

Today the Saxon Garden has the character of a space that

is a kind of hybrid between a historicising green enclave

and a transitory inner-city square (Fig. 9). Well-maintained

fragments coexist with worn-out elements. In the central

part, the preserved wide, regular alley, a remnant of the Ba-

roque garden, is anked by carefully designed ower par-

terres and rows of well-kept statues – 19

-century copies of

Baroque sculptures by Johann Georg Plersch – and ow

beds. The surface of the alley is concrete, in places paved

with slightly sunken stone slabs. The fountain on the main

axis attracts onlookers, while small mobile kiosks oering

snacks cluster around it. By contrast, severely degraded

small

architectural elements – rubbish bins covered in graf-

ti in the southern part or a peeling information board in

the northern part – give an impression of neglect. On the

northern side the Saxon Garden is neighboured by the emp-

ty Blue Palace, a primary school and an apartment house.

To the east it opens onto the space of Piłsudski Square and,

more recently, fenced-o excavations associated with the

Saxon Palace reconstruction project. To the south it adjoins

Królewska Street, used as a coach park. To the west, apart

from the entrance from Marszałkowska Street, the view is

of a six-lane carriageway of this arterial road and, in the fur-

ther perspective, the architecture of Warsaw’s inner centre.

On the other hand, as an inner-city public space the Sax-

on Garden is a place of high accessibility. Its greenery, due

to the slow process of urban and social transformations act-

ing upon this space, is very intuitively embedded in the city.

Users feel at ease there – this is related to the fact that it

is an inclusive, open, informal space, one that can be en-

tered accidentally when moving from one point in Warsaw

to another, while being green, friendly and characterised by

a harmonious structure of alleys, thanks to its architectural

Fig. 8. Visualisation of the pedestrian link between Żelaznej Bramy

Square and the Saxon Garden, MAU studio, 2021

(source: archives of the Office of Architecture and Spatial Planning

of the City of Warsaw)

Il. 8. Wizualizacja połączenia pieszego pomiędzy

placem Żelaznej Bramy a Ogrodem Saskim, pracownia MAU, 2021

(źródło: archiwum Biura Architektury i Planowania Przestrzennego

m.st. Warszawy)

106 Blanka Melania Ciężka

layout. The Garden’s space is functional and serves local

residents who walk their dogs there, spend time on the park

lawns or engage in physical activities – from jogging and

yoga to cycling (Fig. 10).

Conclusions and Proposals for the Future

There were several reasons why the Saxon Garden trans-

formed from a residential garden into an inner-city square.

The rst was the abandonment of the development of the

Saxon Axis, which caused each of its components to evolve

independently of the others. The Garden’s location directly

adjacent to the routes designed for the complex, combined

with the abandonment of the complex’s further develop-

ment, had a destructive eect on the park. Public roads, es-

pecially in the western part, gradually became part of the

street network of Warsaw’s inner city and were used for

increasingly large-scale transport projects – at the expense

of the Garden’s territory. The abandonment of the develop-

ment of the east–west-oriented Saxon Axis, combined with

the growth of the urban network, led to the eastern and west-

ern parts of the complex (originally two sections meant to

form a unied whole) diverging in terms of building type,

social structure and, nally, transport network. These areas

ceased to form a whole, and their urban interiors gradual-

ly lost their mutual links – there was no coherent plan for

them. As a result, the Saxon Garden, situated in the centre of

the former Axis, adapted to the surrounding areas in a spon

taneous manner, depending on immediate needs, which in

turn led to the degradation of its historic forms.

The transformation of the Garden into an inner-city square

was also inuenced by events of the partition period: con-

scious decisions by the Russian authorities to convert the

Garden into a public park and to downgrade the former ro-

yal residence into a commercial tenement house. The po -

licy of spatially linking the Garden with the rest of the city,

pursued through much of the 19

century, accustomed the

inhabitants of Warsaw to the accessibility of this space and

certainly, to some extent, trivialised it – although this is not

necessarily a negative phenomenon. It represents a departure

from the Garden’s original residential function, but does not

mean that such a space cannot have value for the city. The

domination of the Saxon Garden by transport infrastructure

was also partly a consequence of modernist thinking about

the city, in which functionalism – understood as the number

of connections and the privileging of motorised trac – was

highly important.

Above all, however, the Saxon Garden became an inner-

city square because for a long time there was no concept for

it, nor was any attempt made to subject it to a concrete plan.

The few projects that addressed its space envisaged revit-

alisation in the context of the Saxon Palace reconstruction

and treated the Garden as part of a square–palace–garden

ensemble, which meant that reconstructing the architectural

fabric was seen as a prerequisite for properly taking care of

the Garden.

Inner-city parks originating from former residential gar-

dens, such as Łazienki Królewskie in Warsaw, the Summer

Garden in Saint Petersburg or the Tuileries in Paris, are com-

plexes with a dominant historic edice in their structure,

usually converted into a museum, which means that the sur-

rounding space is protected under dierent legal principles.

These are usually enclosed gardens, closed after dusk and

governed by internal rules of use (excluding bicycles, scoot-

ers or, for example, dogs). The Saxon Garden has not so far

Fig. 10. Main alley of the Saxon Garden open to bicycle traffic, 2023

(source: author’s private archive)

Il. 10. Główna aleja Ogrodu Saskiego dostępna dla komunikacji

rowerowej, 2023 (źródło: archiwum prywatne autorki)

Fig. 9. View towards Warsaw’s inner centre from the Saxon Garden,

showing the interpenetration of the park zone

with the inner-city space, 2023 (source: author’s private archive)

Il. 9. Widok na ścisłe centrum Warszawy z Ogrodu Saskiego,

obrazujący przenikanie się strefy parku

z przestrzenią śródmiejską, 2023 (źródło: archiwum prywatne autorki)

From a Residential Garden to an Inner-City Square: Transformations of the Space of the Saxon Garden in Warsaw 107

been viewed as an autonomous unit deserving of a dened

function and contemporary form, and above all a dened

role within the urban space. The dicult space of Piłsud-

ski Square, historically determined, which has eectively

absorbed attention, has stood in the way. Many designers,

experts and decision-makers have long been engaged in the

struggle over the square, to which the Saxon Palace recon-

struction project was eventually added. It is worth noting

that neither Piłsudski Square nor the Saxon Garden has been

covered by conceptual work within the framework of in-

ner-city revitalisation under the “New Centre of Warsaw”

project, despite the inclusion of three neighbouring squares:

Teatralny, Bankowy and Żelaznej Bramy.

As a place of historical origin and an element of an out-

standing urban composition, and – perhaps most importantly

– as part of Warsaw’s representative areas that shapes the at-

mosphere of the capital’s inner city, the Saxon Garden should

become the subject of a competition for revitalisation. Above

all, this space should be considered in terms of its function

and form within the entire network of urban interiors in this

part of Warsaw, and the role of the Saxon Garden

in contem-

porary Warsaw should be dened. The focus should not be

only on the Garden’s eastern side; its links with the urban

space on the other sides should also be reconsidered. A plan

is needed for connections to the north and south. Rather than

uncompromising reconstruction, a com bination of historical

elements with modern solutions in small architecture and

park infrastructure is advisable, in line with contemporary

principles of public space res toration.

A good idea would be to zone the park and emphasise the

dierent, historically accumulated functions of the areas on

the eastern and western sides of the Garden – which, once

an attractive urban interior has been created in the future

at Żelaznej Bramy Square, could provide a coherent and

natural link between these two places. Furthermore, once

the winning project (whose implementation is currently un-

certain) has been carried out, the Saxon Garden should be

placed under active care, since the shape of this inner-city

area directly aects the perception of Warsaw not only lo-

cally but also globally.

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Streszczenie

Od ogrodu rezydencjonalnego do śródmiejskiego skweru: przekształcenia przestrzeni Ogrodu Saskiego w Warszawie

Duża część dzisiejszych europejskich parków śródmiejskich to dawne ogrody rezydencjonalne, włączane stopniowo w przestrzeń publiczną miast.

Ogród Saski w Warszawie jest przykładem parku, który przeszedł inną ewolucję niż większość podobnych założeń – zamiast stać się przestrzenią za-

mkniętą przekształcił się w dostępny całą dobę śródmiejski skwer z licznymi trasami komunikacyjnymi. Jego położenie przy placu Piłsudskiego, miejscu

o trudnej historii, sprawia, że Ogród pozostaje przestrzenią nie do końca przemyślaną, uwikłaną od początku w trwały stan napięcia przestrzennego

i funkcjonalnego wynikającego z niestabilnej tkanki urbanistycznej otoczenia.

Artykuł opiera się na analizie źródeł archiwalnych i literatury przedmiotu oraz szczegółowej analizie porównawczej formy, układu i wyposażenia

Ogrodu Saskiego oraz jego otoczenia, co pozwala uchwycić specykę jego rozwoju na tle przekształceń przestrzeni publicznych w europejskich centrach

miast.

Słowa kluczowe: Ogród Saski, przestrzeń publiczna, zieleń, urbanistyka, park