The palace in Kijany stands on the outskirts of the village of the same name in the gmina Spiczyn of Łęczna County, above the valley of the Wieprz, about 20 km northeast of Lublin. It is a mid-19th century Neo-Renaissance residence with a portico, ballroom, old park, and a linden alley. The village lies within the Nadwieprzański Landscape Park.
Old Noble Village
Kijany are mentioned from the 14th century: in 1383 the heir Yakush lived here, and from 1390 to 1401 — Piotr of Kijany. The surname Kijański originated from the name of the village. At the end of the 17th century, the traveler Verdum saw here a heavy, massive castle. In 1739, Kijany with two folwarks belonged to the Kijany key of the Lubomirski family. In the 19th century, the estate included the folwarks Kijany and Stoczek, several villages, and a brickworks; nearby, in Ludwików, a sugar factory operated.
The Sonnenberg Palace
The palace was built around 1850, and around 1880 it was rebuilt by the industrialist Stanisław Sonnenberg. The building has a Neo-Renaissance character. Statues of the goddesses Athena and Demeter stand in the arcade-columned portico. The palace covers about 1,600 square meters, surrounded by a 19th-century manor park of 6.3 hectares, and a linden alley of 27 trees leads to the entrance. The palace and park are listed in the register of monuments.
School, Foundation, and Return
In the 1970s, the palace was thoroughly rebuilt for an agricultural school; the Zespół Szkół Rolniczych in Kijany traces its history back to 1913, when the Lublin landowner Erazm Plewiński bequeathed funds and land for a school for local peasants.
In 2018, Łęczna County sold the palace to a foundation from neighboring Zawieprzyce for 3.33 million zlotys; the first renovation works were carried out in 2021. Due to the foundation’s debts, in 2023 the county regained the building for 2.4 million zlotys. Currently, the palace awaits a new purpose, so it can only be viewed from the outside.
How to Get There
Kijany lie near the road from Lublin to Łęczna. In the village is the Baroque Church of Saint Anna with the grave of Maria Skłodowska-Curie’s grandfather, and one or two kilometers away are the ruins of the palace in Zawieprzyce. The Wieprz valley is crossed by a popular kayaking route. For Ukrainian citizens, this is Poland: a foreign passport is required.
