The Kretzschmar Palace (Pałac Kretzschmarów) is an eclectic villa with a turret located at 50 Poshtova Street in Chełm, near the southern foot of the hill with the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It was once the home of a factory owner and is now the Marriage Palace: the city’s civil registry office operates here, and this is where Chełm couples get married. It is one of two buildings in the city with the status of a palace.
Factory Owner’s Villa
At the end of the 19th century, Chełm became more lively: in 1877, the Vistula River Railroad reached here, and factories appeared in the city. Engineer Wilhelm Kretzschmar, owner of an agricultural machinery factory, built himself a one-story villa in 1895–1896 designed by A. Sokolov. In 1906, the house and the factory were bought by Franciszek Hassner. In 1912, he added an additional floor and a turret designed by K. Drozdovich, and the villa acquired its current appearance—a combination of Art Nouveau and eclecticism typical of the early 20th century. The name remained from the first owner.
From the Post Office to the Marriage Palace
After World War II, the building became city property. At first, it housed the post office, later the civil registry office. The palace has been renovated several times, most recently in the 1990s. In front of it stands one of the city’s bear figurines—“Young Couple” made of two bear cubs. Such figurines are placed throughout Chełm: they remind of the legend of the white bear from the city’s coat of arms, who lived in a chalk cave under the hill, and of the spirit Bilukh, guardian of the Chełm chalk underground. Searching for them is a great activity for a walk with children.
How to Get There
The palace stands at 50 Poshtova Street, a few minutes’ walk from the center of Chełm. Chełm lies on route No. 12 Lublin – Dorohusk: about 70 km from Lublin, about 25 km from the Dorohusk–Yahodyn border crossing with Volyn. It is easiest to view the building from outside; entry inside is allowed during the registry office’s working hours or wedding ceremonies. From here, it is not far to climb the hill to the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Palace of the Uniate Bishops, and Vysoka Hirka, where the residence of Danylo Halytskyi once stood. Ukrainian citizens need a foreign passport.
