We had an hour and a half van ride to Ksiaz Castle. This edifice was built in the 13th century by Polish noble Bolko I, but is more widely known as belonging to the Hochberg dynasty for 4 centuries. The Hochbergs, once one of the richest families in Europe, added on 200 rooms in the 1920s, doubling the size of the castle and modernizing it only to lose it in the crash of 1929.
The Nazi party confiscated the property to use as headquarters of the Foreign Ministry with a lavish apartment for Hitler. They began a suitable renovation and spent 150 million marks to build a series of tunnels and bunkers 50 meters below ground. Historians are still trying to figure out what went on down there, whether secret scientific labs or bomb research, but it was never used to shelter Hitler from the bombing. Before it was finished (excavated by starving prisoners from a nearby concentration camp) the Soviet army invaded the area, bombing the castle and taking it for its own use.
After the bus ride back to Wroclaw we had some free time, walked around Market Square until meeting for dinner at a Czech restaurant. Goulash and Czech beer, and more gnomes of course.
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