Legnica’s Grenadier Barracks as a cultural capital in the urban space

Marta M. Rudnicka-Bogusz

doi:10.37190/arc210103

Abstract

The purpose of the article was to demonstrate that in garrison towns, barracks are a cultural capital because they are on many levels the carriers of intangible heritage and tradition related to the presence of the army in historic towns. Second incentive was an introduction to the discussion on their protection through suitable revalorization from the point of view of preserving their typological characteristics. The article presents a synthetic description of the evolution of Legnica garrison before World War II, the development of the Grenadier barracks complex at Hutników Street in Legnica and a detailed stylistic analysis of the 19th century buildings making up the complex. In the course of the research, it was possible to establish the determinants thanks to which the historical barracks of Legnica are not only the features of the city, its resource, but its cultural capital, i.e. a resource that can be used both materially and ideologically to build prestige etc. Legnica became a garrison town at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, which significantly affected the cultural landscape, population and real-estate market. Majestic barracks, built with state money, proved the government’s special attention and enhanced the aesthetic value of the city’s landscape. An ascetic, yet expressive style helped build an impression of the wealth of the state that founded the barracks and the clearly defined typology of complexes allowed for their immediate recognition in the urban space. A vast supply of barracks was one of the reasons why post war the military took up seat in Legnica, which is also one of the founding myths of the city. That is why it is so important that the barracks in the garrison cities are revitalized with respect to historiographic values as exemplified by the Grenadier Complex, and not rebuilt, densified or demolished. The regeneration efforts must observe the plan and architectural form of buildings, which are the hallmarks of military architecture.

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2021

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DOI: 10.37190/arc210103

Marta M. Rudnicka-Bogusz*

Legnica’s Grenadier Barracks

as a cultural capital in the urban space

Introduction:

the beginnings of Legnica’s relationship

with the Prussian army

Among Silesian towns, Legnica is the one whose shape

has been most inuenced by its ties with the military. Al-

though in the beginning Legnica’s role as a strategic out-

post was underestimated, the city gradually strengthened

its relationship with the military, which helped it to build

its economic strength and achieve a high administrative

rank before the war. Owing to its location, the city was

used as a military outpost by numerous military units,

whose presence stimulated the construction boom and

boosted the market of services and trade [1]. The shape

of the city was strongly inuenced by the development of

the garrison at the turn of the 19

and 20

centuries, prior

to World War I. The barracks in Legnica were a source of

pride for its inhabitants, in particular because members of

the imperial court visited the city to oversee the develop-

ing garrison. Military parades made local festivals more

attractive and military associations participated in local

aairs: garrison life and city life were intertwined [2].

From the end of the First Silesian War in the summer of

1742, until the withdrawal of the Russian Army in 1993,

Legnica functioned as a garrison for various military units,

which is reected in its contemporary physiognomy.

As in other garrison towns on the eastern frontier of Prus-

sia, and later Germany, the barracks complexes of Leg nica

were built in the suburbs, forming a loop around the town.

In Legnica, this process took 64 years (Fig. 1) and started

in the Chojnowskie suburb at Hutników Street (which was

formerly called Grenadierstrβe) with the construction of

Grenadier barracks in 1874–1888 and the accompanying

lazaret building (1877). In 1913 this complex was expand-

ed to include the Wilhelm I Barracks at Tarasa Szewczenki

Street, which stood on the opposite side of the quarter. The

collapse of the monarchy and the economic crisis halted

the expansion of the garrison, which resumed only 22 years

later, after the transformation of the political system.

Therefore, the construction of barracks in Legnica star 

ted

rather late. Although in the 16

century Legnica was

already the second largest stronghold in Silesia

after

Wrocław [2, p. 9], no barracks were built here until the

quarter of the 1870s. This was probably because Leg-

nica, which remained under the supremacy of Austria,

was not a garrison and its defense lay in the hands of the

town guard. After Legnica came under the Prussian rule,

it became a base for troops for the rst time in its history,

but this did not immediately lead to the construction of

barracks. Until 1714 BrandenburgPrussia did not have

a standing army [3]. As a result of conscription introduced

at that time [4], the army grew from 40,000 to 80,000 sol-

diers [5]. However, even Frederick William I’s military

reforms did not spark a construction boom for barracks in

Legnica (which took place, for example, in Wrocław [6]).

Therefore, initially townspeople were required to provide

quartering for the growing number of soldiers [7], which

led to numerous tensions between the civilians and the

army [8]. This was especially troublesome in time of war,

when housing and tributes were demanded not by domes-

tic soldiers, but by the occupants [9].

The constant presence of army troops started to aect

the appearance of the city and its investments. Since the

soldiers were not stationed in barracks, but in private

dwellings, they gathered in a prearranged location if there

was an alarm. In 1747, the former main guardhouse where

the town guard (Hauptwache) used to gather was replaced

with a new one [10] – a small, more elegant brick building

* ORCID: 0000000161375517. Faculty of Architecture, Wro-

cław University of Science and Technology, email: marta.rudnicka@

pwr.edu.pl

22 Marta M. RudnickaBogusz

a seat in Głogów and the second with a seat in Wrocław,

as well as three governmental districts: in Wrocław, Gło

gów and Opole. One of the most important tasks of these

chambers was to exercise military control over the move-

ment, quartering, and provisioning of troops, which is

why the most important garrisons were located in the seats

of chambers, and these towns were the rst to construct

barracks. The position of Legnica in this administrative

hierarchy was inuenced by Prussia’s defeat in a conict

with Napoleon’s armies in 1806 [8, pp. 240, 241]. This

led in 1808 to sweeping administrative reforms involving

the military, such as the merging of chambers and gov-

ernmental districts. Although after the Treaties of Tilsit in

1807 Silesia remained in Prussian possession, Napoleonic

troops took post in the fortress of Głogów. Therefore, the

town could no longer function as the seat of the chamber

and during the next administrative reform in 1809 the seat

divided into districts (Kreis) administered by Landrat, which coexisted

with judicial units – administrative divisions (Regierungsbezirk) [12].

with an arcade. In 1842, it was replaced by a building with

a portico, which in 1913 was redesigned to function as

a café and has survived the turmoil of history until today.

Guardhouses with rooms for ocers and sentries were

built next to four of the city’s main gates. In 1752, a gar-

rison lazaret was built in Szpitalna Street with municipal

funds [11, p. 173] and training grounds were established

in the Głogowskie suburb (Glogauer Haag), located to

the north of the city and its fortications. However, there

was still no barracks so newly arriving soldiers were quar-

tered in public buildings, such as the castle or a monas-

tery, which were hastily adapted to function as dormitories.

Legnica was only the seat of the county. After Silesia

was annexed by Prussia as a result of the Silesian Wars, the

public administration system of BrandenburgPrussia was

introduced in this region. After the annexation by Prussia,

two chambers were established in Silesia in 1741

one with

Under the direction of presidents, the new provincial authorities,

the socalled War and Domain Chambers, governed departments that were

Fig. 1. Location of barracks

complexes in Legnica

(elaborated by M. RudnickaBogusz)

Il. 1.

Rozmieszczenie kompleksó

koszarowych w Legnicy

(oprac. M. RudnickaBogusz)

1 at Poznańska Street (Scharnhorst Kaserne)

2 at Słubicka Street (Ziethen Kaserne)

3 at Chojnowska Street (Füsilier Kaserne)

4 at Kawaleryjska Street

5 at Hutników Street (Grenadierkaserne)

6 garrison lazaret at Złotoryjska Street (Siegeshöhe

Kaserne)

7 at Złotoryjska Street (Siegeshöhe Kaserne)

Legnica’s Grenadier Barracks as a cultural capital in the urban space 23

of the new governmental district was moved to Legnica

and remained there after subsequent reforms related to the

provisions of the Congress of Vienna in 1815. For the rst

time in history Legnica became important enough on the

administrative map that it received its own purpose fully

built barracks. The notion of form and style of Silesian

barracks is all the more interesting because this subject

has not been yet thoroughly explored, but merely men-

tioned in passing by Grzegorz Podruczny in his doctoral

thesis written in 2005 entitled Pruskie budownictwo woj-

skowe na Śląsku w latach 1740–1807 [Prussian military

construction in Silesia in the years 1740–1807] [13].

Grenadier Barracks complex

– the first period of garrison creation in Legnica

In 1828 and 1835 the Prussian, Austrian and Russian

armies took part in a military exercise in Legnica, and

in 1867 the city celebrated the 50

anniversary of King

Wilhelm I’s command over the grenadier regiment named

in his honor. In the 1870s a prisonerofwar camp for the

French was established in Legnica. During all these events,

the soldiers arriving here had to be quartered in improvised

rooms and in townspeople’s houses, as in the past. The

construction of the grenadier barracks did not begin until

1874 when preparations started for the 60

anniversary

of King William I’s assumption of command over the

regiment. It is possible that the decision to build perma-

nent barracks was inuenced by the victory in the war

with France in 1871. The contributions obtained as a re-

sult of the wars with Austria and France helped Prussia,

among other things, to strengthen the army and increase

its combat potential through proper drill and shorter re-

action time. The growth of the army and the introduction

of systemic solutions for military training necessitated the

construction of new barracks, which started to appear in

large numbers on the outskirts of garrison towns. To ac-

complish this, a chain of barracks complexes was to be

built near major exit roads or railroads in order to move

troops quickly. Improvements in the economy coincided

with the dismantling of historic fortications in cities. The

land made available for the city was used for largescale

construction projects, including barracks complexes. This

allowed them to remain close to city centers but also to

grow without being constrained by high urban density.

Vast barracks complexes resembled entre cour et jardin

palaces with avantcorps and auxiliary buildings arranged

on a grid plan, thus creating one or more internal squares

to serve as training grounds. Vast courtyards were the es-

sence of 17

century barracks [14]. Regular military drills

during typical combat exercises designed to increase the

maneuverability of large formations of soldiers produced

highly specialized and diverse units and a professional of-

cer corps that prided itself on discipline.

The “palatial character” of the complexes increased the

prestige of the military profession and prevented desertion

[15], while helping to improve the relations between the

army and the local populace. Due to the system of draft ex-

emptions, it was mainly the less wealthy who were draft-

ed to the army. The army had been a priority for rulers

and their governments since the time of Frederick Wil-

liam I and, therefore, being part of it was, for these people,

a source of pride, and military service was a career that

guaranteed a path to fame and a stable income. The op-

portunity to live in new, elegant buildings enhanced this

prestige even further. Soldiers who lived together created

almost familylike bonds and were less likely to abandon

each other in battle. After conscription was introduced in

1714, the army was largely drafted from domestic con-

scripts, unlike other armies which consisted of foreigners

and mercenaries. All reservists were required to attend

church in full uniform. Reservists also gathered on their

own initiative in the marketplaces of their villages and

towns to maintain combat readiness. The military thus

permeated to the public consciousness as something om-

nipresent. After the local community was relieved of the

quartering obligations and because most adult men were

reservists with several years of training, there developed

a symbiotic relationship between the local communities

and the regiments recruited from a given canton. Parallely,

the appearance of palatial barracks raised the prestige of

the area, fueled local prosperity, and stimulated the de-

velopment of urban infrastructure. Prussia’s involvement

in armed conicts that took place throughout the 18

and

centuries, fueled the national trauma caused by the

atrocities committed against the civilian population during

the Thirty Years’ War. This might be seen as a source of

support for the autocratic absolute monarchy, which can

defend its subjects through a strong military and a rm

foreign policy [5, p. 61].

Barracks were built of red brick. The façade tectonics

was sculpted with quasimachicolations

, lesenes, socles,

and ceramic friezes. Friezes, ledges and lintels were formed

from bricks arranged in a rowlock and soldier course. In

more prestigious locations the façade was decorated with

details made from glazed Gothicstyle moldings and stone

socles. The Gothic references were designed to evoke as-

sociations with fortied castles. Barracks complexes can

be divided into three types: accommodation for soldiers,

accommodation for ocers with their families, and auxi

liary administrative, economic and storage facilities. The

dormitory buildings originally had a twobay plan and

later threebay for better use of space. Dormitories for

soldiers were divided into rooms with 10–15 beds each.

Because they were heated with masonry stoves [16], the

roofs of the dormitory wings were dotted with chimneys.

Common washrooms were in basements while canteens

in separate buildings. Ocers and their families lived in

separate buildings within the barracks complexes. These

were either villas, divided into 4 apartments, or buildings

with a central staircase for 8 or more families. Noncom-

missioned ocers with families lived in apartments ar-

ranged in side wings of dormitory buildings, positioned to

overlook the landings of side staircases.

A method of shaping the nial of a building using the proper

combination of a cornice and frieze in order to create the appearance of

a machicolation.

24 Marta M. RudnickaBogusz

This trend is visible in the largescale grenadier barracks

complex in Legnica, which determined the urban layout

of the Chojnowskie suburb (Fig. 2). The plan included

a street and the grenadier barracks as its central point. The

complex was built on land that had previously been unde-

veloped and used as gardens [17]. The main axis of this

part of Legnica was Nowy Świat Street (Nicolaistrasse)

which was laid out in 1870. When the decision was made

to build the barracks complex, Hutników Street (Grena-

dierstrasse) was delineated from the complex towards

the Złotoryjskie suburb, running in front of the façade of

Fig. 2. The Grenadier Barracks together with garrison lazaret

and Wilhelm I’s barrack

(elaborated by M. RudnickaBogusz)

Il. 2. Zespół koszar grenadierów z lazaretem garnizonowym

oraz Koszary Wilhelma I

(oprac. M. RudnickaBogusz)

a) Grenadier Barracks complex at Sejmowa Street

b) Wilhelm I’s barracks (the building does not exist) at T. Szewczenki Street

c) Garrison lazaret at Chojnowska Street

Fig. 3. The oldest building in the Grenadier Barracks complex

at 5a Sejmowa Street – façade (photo by M. RudnickaBogusz)

Il. 3. Najstarszy budynek kompleksu Grenadierów,

przy ul. Sejmowej 5a – fasada (fot. M. RudnickaBogusz)

the main barracks building [17, p. 35]. In 1889, after the

complex had been completed, Sejmowa Street (Weissen-

burger Strasse) was laid out, limiting it from the south.

The rst building in the complex, facing the street, was

built in 1874–1882 (Fig. 3). The emperor attended the

opening ceremony of the barracks [2, p. 47]. The building

accommodated soldiers from the 1

Battalion. A barracks

for the 2

Battalion, located along Sejmowa Street, was

built in 1879–1881, and the third building was completed

one year later. A battalion of fusiliers, previously stationed

in Lwówek Śląski, was permanently housed in this build-

ing. The fourth battalion settled in between 1893 and 1897

and a machine gun corps in 1909 (Fig. 4). The building

of the garrison lazaret in today’s Chojnowska Street was

completed in 1877.

The main barracks building at 5a Sejmowa Street is

historicist in style – it is neoGothic and has elements of

neoRenaissance and neoRomanism. It is located on the

north–south axis facing Hutników Street. The building

takes the form of a rotated letter “E” in plan and exempli-

es the monumental style of a palace entre cour et jardin

– the essence of absolutist architecture. The façade of the

corps de logis facing the street has three axes. The tall-

est part of the building is on the central axis. The corner

avantcorps make this block protrude from the façade like

a central avantcorps, which is composed of three parts.

The main portal in the central part on the ground oor

includes an archivolt and is crowned with a semicircular

arcade and framed by lesenes. The lesenes on the ground

oor jut out from the façade as halfpillars topped with

eagle gures (which have been replaced by chunky pinna-

cles) above the cornice of the rst oor. A circular medal-

lion was also placed above the portal’s keystone, causing

the cornice below the secondstory window to be angled.

On the three stories above, the space between the pilas-

ter strips is lled with sets of three slender, semicircular

windows, which could be a reference to a triforium in this

context. Two window bays on each corner are framed by

lesenes and extend beyond the face of the building like

avant-corps. These protrusions are crowned with eagles,

which are similar to those that were once on top of the pil-

lars on both sides of the portal. In the central part of each

oor, between the avant-corps segments and the lesenes,

there are two windows topped with a segmental arch. The

building is covered by a hipped roof. Its edges are decorat-

ed with busts, that hearken back to antiquity (Fig. 5), and

banners (that resemble spolia opima).

This central avant-corps is adjoined to the north and

south by two symmetrical lower parts of the corps de logis.

The façade is anked by two avantcorps, of which the

northern spans ve window bays framed by corner pilaster

strips, and the southern has three tall windows spanning

the ground oor and the second oor. The entire socle un-

der the lesenes on the lower ground oor is cladded with

stone tiles shaped like truncated pyramids. The socle in-

cludes square windows to allow light into the basement.

The socle and the rst story are separated by interstory

cornices. The frieze above the rst story is made of ceramic

tiles with a hexagram motif. The entire building is crowned

with a blind arcade, a frieze with a palmette

pattern and

Legnica’s Grenadier Barracks as a cultural capital in the urban space 25

of an arcaded frieze, a frieze with a palmette motif and

a crowning cornice made of moldings with the motif of

a sima with an anthemion.

In the same period (in the years 1879–1881) the second

building – currently at 5b Sejmowa Street – which con-

stitutes the southern frontage of the grenadier barracks

complex was constructed. It has the same design as the

frontal building, i.e. its plan has the shape of the letter

“E”, it is historicist in style and is symmetrical in relation

to the central corps de logis block, which is one oor tall-

er than the other parts of the building. The main neoRe-

naissance portal which faces the street and is anked by

pilasters with simplied Tuscan capitals with a palmette

motif and crowned with an archivolt protrudes slight-

ly from the façade, as if there was a decorative balcony

above the entrance. The building is surrounded by a plas-

tered socle with basement windows, which is accentu-

ated by wider corner lesenes and visually separated by

a rowlock stringcourse. The brick cornice, an unmolded

frieze, and a crowning cornice made of ceramic moldings

with denticuli function as a line that separates the more

stylish ground oor and rst oor from the simpler upper

oors. The entablature bends at right angles on the cor-

ner lesenes, creating the impression of a capital. Shallow

side projections sit at the east and west ends of the central

avant-corps; their corners are emphasized pilaster strips.

a crowning cornice, which is angled on top of the lesenes

and creates the impression of cubeshaped capitals.

The exterior wall facing the courtyard is similar. The

central block of the corps de logis includes a central archi-

volt portal and 6 window bays. Pilaster strips, giving the

impression of avant-corpses, frame two corner windows

on each side. Because the window bays in these “protru-

sions” are oset vertically by half a story, the location of

staircases is revealed. This solution also produces two

por tals in the protrusions on the ground oor, which lead

from the staircases directly to the training grounds in the

courtyard. Each of the sections extending from the cen-

tral part have seven window bays. The single windows

facing the courtyard correspond to the placement of pairs

of windows on the façade facing the street. As for the

avant-corpses at the ends of the corps de logis facing the

street, they correspond to short wings on the courtyard

side. Their faces are divided into three parts by central

avant-corps, which emphasizes the placement of entrance

portals. The avant-corpses contain one window bay that

is anked by corner lesenes. The corners of the wings are

also accentuated with pilasterstrips. There is also a cor-

nice above the ground oor facing the courtyard, but the

frieze with the hexagon motif has only survived on the

façades of the wings. The corps de logis facing the court-

yard is crowned by a pseudomachicolation in the form

Fig. 4. The regenerated Grenadier Barrack Complex (currently vocational school) courtyard view (photo by M. RudnickaBogusz)

Il. 4. Koszary grenadierów po rewaloryzacji (obecnie Wyższa Szkoła Zawodowa) (fot. M. RudnickaBogusz)

Fig. 5. The entablature on the regenerated façade of the Grenadier Barracks Complex; façade view (elaborated by M. RudnickaBogusz)

Il. 5. Belkowanie na zrewaloryzowanej elewacji kompleksu koszar grenadierów (oprac. M. RudnickaBogusz)

26 Marta M. RudnickaBogusz

The crowning cornice is stylized to resemble machicola-

tions. The building is covered by a hipped roof.

The façade facing the courtyard corresponds to the fa

çade facing the street in that the middle block is one story

taller than the rest of the building, a tall NeoRenaissance

portal is located at the center of symmetry, and side wings

serve as an equivalent of side avant-corpses (Fig. 6).

These wings were designed to have ve columns of win-

dows and a singleaxis central avant-corps whose window

banks are oset vertically by half a story in relation to the

rest of the building, thus revealing the location of staircase

landings that lead to the centrally located portals, which,

in turn, lead to the courtyard. The third story features ocu

li in the central axis. The corners of the avant-corpses are

accentuated with lesenes, and a stringcourse above the

lower ground oor and a crowning cornice run across the

entire façade.

In 1882, the third building was completed and it en-

closed the grenadier barracks complex from the north.

It has the same historicist style and design as the other

two adjacent buildings, with the exception that the façade

with side wings does not face the courtyard, but faces out-

wards – probably due to the arrangement of the rooms in

relation to the cardinal directions. Since the complex was

originally located outside the city on undeveloped land,

the wall that faces away from the complex should be con-

sidered the front façade. It is shaped like the rear walls of

the neighboring buildings, i.e. it comprises the corps de

logis that is anked by two side wings. The corps de logis

is three stories high with a fourstory central avant-corps

that protrudes from the face and has a length of six win-

dow bays. Its corners are accentuated with lesenes which

are doubled above the cornice that runs on top of the low-

er ground oor. In the center there is a NeoRenaissance

portal. The building rests on a stoneclad socle which in-

cludes square windows to allow light into the semibase-

ment. The wings that sit at the ends of the main building

are slightly shorter than the central part and have central

avant-corpses with portals in the center. The entire build-

ing is crowned with an entablature that undulates at right

angles around the pilaster strips making them look like

crowned with capitals. The entablature includes a rowlock

course, a proled cornice designed to resemble machico-

lations, an undecorated frieze, and a crowning cornice

made of ceramic moldings.

The façade fronting the courtyard rests on a socle clad

with stone slabs and has a shallow centrallylocated avant-

corps that is one story taller than the remaining part of the

elevation. Its corners are accentuated with pilaster strips.

Slightly projecting from the wall is a NeoRenaissance

portal, which is anked by two Tuscan pilasters with ro-

settes and topped with an archivolt. The lower ground oor

is separated from the top oors by a stringcourse with den-

ticuli, which bends at right angles around the lesenes and

the projecting portal. The lesenes above the cornice are

doubled. The corners of the building are accentuated with

shallow side projections and the whole building is cov-

ered by a hipped roof. Additional buildings in the com-

plex were the stables which enclosed the training grounds

from the west, and auxiliary buildings in the northeastern

corner.

The complex also included the new garrison lazaret

and a villa for medical sta. The garrison lazaret was built

at today’s Chojnowska Street 111. The building plan was

in the shape of the letter “E” and had the same style as the

rest of the barracks complex. The building comprises two

corner avant-corpses that ank the smooth and axially

symmetric corps de logis. Due to the dierences in the

shape of the roof, these avantcorpses are taller than the

corps de logis. The building rests on a tall plaster covered

socle with bossage which is visually separated from the

upper section with a cornice made of ceramic moldings.

The square windows in the socle do not have casing and

are designed to allow light into the basement. On the

main axis of the corps de logis there is a tall portal that

protrudes slightly and extends beyond the socle and the

rst oor. The portal was framed with Tuscan pilasters

with rosettes and an archivolt composed of halfcylin-

drical moldings. The rst story, which includes layers of

overburned brick, was visually separated with a diamond

frieze and a cornice made of ceramic moldings, where-

as the second story was visually separated at the level of

the window sill with a stringcourse with denticuli. In the

corners of avant-corpses, above the stringcourse on top

of the lower ground oor there are pilaster strips, which

connect to the smooth frieze in the top entablature to form

a frame. The entire building is crowned with a sophisticat-

ed entablature consisting of a course of bricks with pro-

truding corners, modillions and a crowning cornice made

of ceramic moldings. The rear façade has three axes which

include a central avant-corps that is slightly taller than the

other parts, and two side wings.

The grenadier barracks complex, which took 23 years to

complete, is consistent both in terms of its plan and style.

The complex perfectly fullled its functions, including its

representative role. The three barracks were places along

the edges of the plot to showcase their grand façades. Be-

tween the buildings there was a training ground, which

was indispensable in these types of complexes and, due

Fig. 6. The southern building in the Grenadier Barrack Complex

(photo by M. RudnickaBogusz)

Il. 6. Południowy budynek w kompleksie koszarowym grenadierów

(fot. M. RudnickaBogusz)

Legnica’s Grenadier Barracks as a cultural capital in the urban space 27

to its large size, allowed all three battalions that were sta-

tioned in this complex to train simultaneously. Due to the

similar arrangement of buildings II and III and because,

contrary to building regulations, there were no addition-

al exits from staircases facing the courtyard, it is safe to

assume that the designer’s primary concern was to ensure

that the soldiers’ sleeping quarters in the buildings allow

enough sunlight from the south.

Barracks built at that time represented architecture

parlante. They were a symbol of the power and status

of the institution for which they were intended, which is

why they made references to palatial architecture. Such

buildings can be found throughout Germany and the for-

mer dependent territories, regardless of which army corps

they were subordinate to. The shape of the building is

simillar to the socalled old barracks of the 46

Infan-

try Brigade (46. [2. Königlich Sächsische] Infanteriebri-

gade) at Alaun Platz in the Albertstadt district of Dresden

Army Corps) or the Cuirassier Barracks in Wrocław

Army Corps). Such unication was not surprising and

can be associated with the generally understood visual

identity system of the urban space. This is because all of

the aforementioned values that the local communities as-

sociated with barracks were universally accepted by every

other community that coexisted with a garrison. Barracks

needed to be easily identiable by both locals and new-

comers so that these meanings could be conveyed. This

standardization might have also been due to practical

reasons. Already in the time of the castrum romanum, the

uniform layout of the camp allowed, for instance, troops

to be moved instantly.

In 1893, the fourth grenadier battalion was created,

which included a fusilier regiment. To accommodate the

new battalion, two buildings at Hutników Street were rent-

ed and a wooden barracks covered with sheet metal was

set up at Sejmowa Street [2, p. 51]. The continued growth

of the army necessitated the construction of new barracks.

In 1913, the grenadier barracks complex was expanded by

a building which faced today’s T. Szewczenki Street. The

building was nanced by the treasury of King William II,

and was named after his grandfather, William I.

The building faced the internal courtyard on the side of

earlier developed grenadier barracks. Its front façade has

three axes which correspond to avant-corpses. The central

avantcorps has four axes, ve stories and is crowned with

a triangular tympanum. The window bays at the extrem-

ities are embedded into singleaxis side avant-corpses,

which are also crowned with triangular tympanums. The

entire building rests on a tall unplastered brick socle which

is visually separated from the upper oors with a cornice,

above which there is the lower ground oor with bossage.

Above the lower ground oor there are two, or three in the

case of the avant-corps, plastercovered stories with rec-

tangular windows under which there are decorations made

of panneau stucco. The avant-corpses on both ends house

portals and staircases hence their windows were vertically

oset by half a story. The third story of the façade was

topped with a crowning cornice, except for the central

avant-corps. In this case, the crowning cornice was above

the fourth story, which extended above the cornices of

the other avantcorpses, and like a geison encircled the

tympanum, which did not have any decorations, either in

the form of paintings or sculptures, and was accentuated

only by a centrally located oculus. The tympanums of the

side avant-corpses extended above the crowning cornice

of the central one. The building was covered with a gable

roof, punctuated by dormers. The façade at T. Szewczenki

Street (Fig. 7) had three axes, which included a corps de

logis and two side wings. The central wing, corresponding

to the avant-corps on the front façade, had two window

axes anked by pilaster strips and topped with a triangu-

lar

tympanum. The gables on the side faces followed the

design of the tympanum on the central avant-corpse. There

were panneau under all windows. Currently, the building

does not exist. What is left of it is an undeveloped plot [18].

Wilhelm II was the last king of Prussia and emperor

of the Second Reich and after the fall of monarchy the

prestige of the military declined. After World War I, Leg-

nica lost its signicance as a garrison town. In 1921, in

accordance with the provisions of the Treaty of Versailles,

some of the barracks were transformed into residential

buildings and a prisoner of war camp.

Fig. 7. Former shape

of William I’s barracks

(by M. RudnickaBogusz)

Il. 7. Dawny wygląd koszar

Wilhelma I

(rys. M. RudnickaBogusz)

28 Marta M. RudnickaBogusz

Conclusion:

the cultural capital of barracks complexes in

Legnica

Today, barracks complexes oer a wide range of possi

bilities for adaptation and people are eager to use such

op portunities. However, when revaluating and adapting

these buildings, it is important to preserve their style and

underline the spatial relationships between individual

build ings in the complex, which hint at their original func-

tion. La Marmora Barracks in Turin is a good example of

how revaluations can preserve the spatial relationships be-

tween elements of the complex. In accordance with con-

servation requirements, the revalorization did not change

the façades of buildings, just as in the case of barracks

in Legnica. The redevelopment of the training grounds

served as an occasion to introduce greenery into the urban

space, which is lacking in many contemporary cities. The

revalorization project involves the planting of trees on the

former training grounds in order to create a public square

surrounded by historic buildings, where people can rest

and relax, exercise, eat or simply laze around.

A similar solution was implemented in the revaloriza-

tion of the barracks complex in Gdańsk Wrzeszcz, which

today houses the Garrison of Culture in its southern part

(Fig. 8). The muster yard between the revaluated build-

ings took the form of a green square with a sculpture and

is a place for meetings and activities of nearby service

establishments and cultural institutions, including an art

school, a cooking school, a café, a bookstore, and a res-

taurant with an auditorium.

It could be debated whether the barracks are part of the

cultural capital in the urban space of Legnica or merely

a resource. The barracks in Legnica are undoubtedly part

of the city’s cultural capital, because they were the focus

of the most important and characteristic events in the life

of the city, which shaped its image in the national, and

perhaps even international arena. What distinguished Leg-

nica from other local towns was its ties with the military.

The complexes with military architecture in Legnica were

built in two main phases connected with the rise of milita-

rism, i.e. in the 1880s and in the 1930s. However, the most

signicant period is the time before World War I, when

the ongoing construction of the barracks symbolized the

city’s growing importance in the national hierarchy, and

the completed barracks attracted visits of the royalty and

highranking ocials. This is why the barracks in Legnica

are the medium that conveys these meanings, and thus the

identity of Legnica.

These meanings emerged during three independent pe-

riods but they form a continuous narrative about the his-

tory of Legnica. It starts with the Prussian story, when in

1809, after the Napoleonic Wars, the Commandant’s Seat

was transferred from Głogów. In his chronicles that de-

scribe in detail the most important aspects of the city life

in Legnica from the times of Frederick the Great to 1911,

Arnold zum Winkel [19] repeatedly mentions the interac-

tions between the military and the townspeople: military

jubilees, parades and exercises. From 1817 until his death

in 1888, Emperor William I was the honorary commander

and patron of the grenadier regiment, which was perma-

nently stationed in Legnica since 1860 [20], and the regi-

ment took part in every jubilee of its creation that was cel-

ebrated in Legnica. During these celebrations the emperor

dined with highranking military personnel and ocials

in the ocers’ mess, which was part of the barracks com-

plex that was located in Grenadierstrasse, a street named

to commemorate the creation of this complex. Emperor

William II who named the new buildings in the complex

after Wilhelm I also frequently visited Legnica. The pal-

acelike barracks represented the socalled architecture of

power (Herrschaftsarchitektur) and had an impact on the

local identity and the cultural landscape.

The second period is associated with the presence of

the Soviet Army (JAR) in the city between 1947 and 1993.

After the end of World War II Legnica became part of the

Fig. 8. The Gdańsk Wrzeszcz

Garrison of Culture

(source: press materials

Hossa Investment Group)

Il. 8. Garnizon Kultury

w GdańskuWrzeszczu

(źródło: materiały prasowe

Grupy Inwestycyjnej Hossa)

Legnica’s Grenadier Barracks as a cultural capital in the urban space 29

Polish state. The war did not damage this part of the Tarn-

inów district. In July 1947, the Legnica City Council en-

tered into an agreement with the command of the Northern

Military Group of the Soviet Army (PGWAR, and in the

years 1984–1990 Sta of the Western Strategic Direction)

under which city districts were transferred to Soviet institu-

tions and citizens. The Russians had exclusive rights to use

more than 160 sites of various sizes and functions located

in dierent parts of the city and in its immediate vicini-

ty [18], covering a district of approximately 17 km

with

more than 1,200 buildings, including an area covering 16.5

hectares which encompassed the grenadier barracks com-

plex. For the citizens, these barracks were an antithesis,

symbolizing the part of the city that was outside of Polish

jurisdiction and was unreachable – a blank spot on the map.

The third phase began on September 16, 1993, when the

last Russian soldier left Legnica. After the Russian Feder-

ation withdrew its troops and as a result of the progressive

restructuring of the Polish Army, over the past 20 years,

all of the barracks complexes in Legnica have been de-

militarized. More than half of the buildings vacated by

the Russians were taken over by the municipality of Leg-

nica. The city authorities were faced with a challenge of

repurposing the recovered property that was comparable

in magnitude only to the immediate postwar period. The

lack of appropriate legal regulations, poor technical condi-

tion and the large size of the complexes were obstacles to

their redevelopment and the deteriorating buildings have

become a symbol of the negative eects of political trans-

formation. Some of them are decaying, unused, and bury

valuable historical data. Some have been adapted to serve

new functions. According to the historical and urban study

prepared in 2007 by the Regional Centre for Research and

Documentation of Monuments and commissioned by the

City Hall of Legnica, priorities focused on saving old, his-

toric buildings, in particular the representative ones which

could serve as public buildings. The buildings in grenadier

barracks complex were added to the list of historical mon-

uments in Legnica and the study indicated that they qual-

ify for enlisting in the register of monuments and historic

sites. This coincided with a growing acceptance of social

and cultural “diversity” in the cultural landscape and the

interest in the city’s prewar history exploded. One fact

that was noticed, was that grenadier barracks were built

using local red bricks, which, just like the ceramic deco-

rations, came from Peipe’s brickyard called Siegeshöhe (it

no longer exists), which was established in 1865 in Choj

nowskie Suburb and later taken over by Julius Röther’s

local company, who made a fortune in the Gründerzeit.

People started writing monographs about the town and re-

membered that Legnica had been a garrison not only when

Soviet troops were stationed here, but much earlier and

that these relations with the military had been a source of

pride and contributed to local development.

After demilitarization, the grenadier barracks stood emp-

ty for 5 years until the city authorities agreed to hand them

over to the Witelon State University of Applied Sciences in

Legnica. Over 20 million PLN [21] were spent to renovate

two barracks and auxiliary buildings. Today, the facility is

home to a constantly growing educational institution. The

brick façades were scrubbed and restored. Large dormito-

ry rooms were converted into lecture halls, with addition-

al installations covered by suspended ceilings. The stable

now

houses a multipurpose auditorium which is equipped

with stateoftheart multimedia and can be divided into

smaller independent rooms. The complex was ideally suited

to be adapted for educational use. The impression of gran-

deur created by these large barracks perfectly matches the

serious nature of the educational facility, and the wide

passageways that were once used by battalions of soldiers

can easily accommodate crowds of students.

Today, these buildings are part of the local material

tradition, whose preservation is all the more important in

an era of globalization and cultural homogenization. Leg-

nica continues to build its brand name but it is primarily

remembered as the former site of the PGWAR command

or as the center of copper production. However, the pres-

tigebuilding potential of these barracks complexes has

already been recognized. The Witelon State University of

Applied Sciences, which renovated and adjusted the grena 

dier barracks complex with the help of the State Treasury,

boasts the historical signicance of both the buildings and

of the historical gures associated with them. Therefore,

the accumulation of military architecture is not only a fea-

ture of the city and its resource, but also its capital, i.e.,

a resource that can be used both materialistically and ideo-

logically [22] to build prestige, as emphasized by Bourdieu.

Translated by

Dominik Rozwadowski

Acknowledgements

The research was conducted due to nancing by the National Science

Centre, Poland, project no. 2018/31/D/HS2/03383.

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30 Marta M. RudnickaBogusz

Abstract

Legnica’s Grenadier Barracks as a cultural capital in the urban space

The purpose of the article was to demonstrate that in garrison towns, barracks are a cultural capital because they are on many levels the carriers of

intangible heritage and tradition related to the presence of the army in historic towns. Second incentive was an introduction to the discussion on their

protection through suitable revalorization from the point of view of preserving their typological characteristics.

The article presents a synthetic description of the evolution of Legnica garrison before World War II, the development of the Grenadier barracks

complex at Hutników Street in Legnica and a detailed stylistic analysis of the 19

century buildings making up the complex.

In the course of the research, it was possible to establish the determinants thanks to which the historical barracks of Legnica are not only the

features of the city, its resource, but its cultural capital, i.e. a resource that can be used both materially and ideologically to build prestige etc. Leg-

nica became a garrison town at the turn of the 19

and 20

centuries, which signicantly aected the cultural landscape, population and realestate

market. Majestic barracks, built with state money, proved the government’s special attention and enhanced the aesthetic value of the city’s landscape.

An ascetic, yet expressive style helped build an impression of the wealth of the state that founded the barracks and the clearly dened typology of

complexes allowed for their immediate recognition in the urban space. A vast supply of barracks was one of the reasons why post war the military

took up seat in Legnica, which is also one of the founding myths of the city. That is why it is so important that the barracks in the garrison cities are

revitalized with respect to historiographic values as exemplied by the Grenadier Complex, and not rebuilt, densied or demolished. The regeneration

eorts must observe the plan and architectural form of buildings, which are the hallmarks of military architecture.

Key words: barrack complexes, revitalization of historic cities, cultural landscape, local identity

Streszczenie

Legnicki zespół koszar grenadierów jako kapitał kulturowy w przestrzeni miejskiej

Celem artykułu było ukazanie, iż koszary stanowią kapitał kulturowy w miastach garnizonowych, ponieważ są na wielu płaszczyznach nośnikiem

niematerialnego dziedzictwa i tradycji wiążących się z obecnością wojska w historycznych ośrodkach miejskich. Praca stanowi też wprowadzenie do

dyskusji o właściwych drogach rewaloryzacji zespołów koszarowych z punktu widzenia zachowania ich wyróżników typologicznych.

W artykule naszkicowano historię garnizonu legnickiego przed II wojną światową, dokonano prezentacji rozwoju zespołu koszarowego grenadie-

rów przy ul. Hutników oraz przeprowadzono szczegółową analizę stylistyczną XIXwiecznych budynków składających się na zespół.

W toku badań udało się ustalić determinanty, dzięki którym historyczne zespoły koszarowe Legnicy nie stanowią jedynie cechy miasta, jego

zasobu, ale jego kapitał kulturowy, czyli taki zasób, którym można się zarówno w sposób materialny, jak i ideowy posługiwać do budowania prestiżu

itp. Na przełomie XIX i XX w. Legnica stała się miastem garnizonowym, co miało znaczący wpływ na krajobraz kulturowy i strukturę ludności.

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garnizonowych koszary podlegały rewitalizacji z poszanowaniem wartości historiogracznych – czego doskonałym przykładem jest adaptacja koszar

grenadierów – a nie przebudowie, dogęszczeniu lub wyburzeniom. Adaptacji dokonywać należy z poszanowaniem planu i formy architektonicznej,

które są wyróżnikami architektury wojskowej.

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