Soltis: Werner Zając

Councillors: Gertruda Proksa i  Krzysztof Glajcar

Dzięgielów is a village located in the valley of Puncowka river and on the hills surrounding this valley on 300 – 350 meters altitude above sea level that has population of about 1300 residents. From South, this village is surrounded by border hill Molczyn (442 m) and from North by western Jasieniowa mountain-ridge and Kepa (359 m) hill with many buildings on it. Name Dziegielow first came up at the beginning of the 14th century in 1305, it is therefore one of the oldest towns of Teschen Land. It used to be a noble village that history of was inseparably connected with the castle.

     Castle in Dziegielow was built in 15th century. It is a building made of stone and brick. Castle was made up from four parts – for wings (three of them remained until now).

     Western part – first floor – is a front wing with wide vestibule, with four bays in side walls with cradled vaulting and sail (rib) vaulting. On the ground floor, on the right, there is a big hall, formerly castle chapel and on the left there are rooms of a different size intended for the castle servants. Wide stone stairs lead upstairs to the first floor from opened-corridor, from the courtyard side, with three semicircular arc shaped arcades. There were living rooms on the first floor. Western floor turns into Southern, which on the ground floor, despite living rooms, has many spaces and chambers that were used for storing food, beer seasoning, wine and vodka storage, for in the past times there was distillery and brewery located inside the castle.

     Northern part is separate, rebuild in 18th century living building, single-storeyed and cellared. Living rooms were intended for many guests, coming not only for hunting, but also visiting castle for the occasion of meetings and conferences, in times when castle owners were high standing in dutchy and in Austrian monarchy.

     North East courtyard wing with separate entrances and staircase despite rooms had large pigsties and horse stables. Here, dispatch riders were changing their horses for the next journeys. Over the vestibule entrance – portal of semicircular finish, shaped, with Sreniawa and Ogonczyk crests. Similar, but bigger portal adorns western gate. Over the portal cartouche with Sreniawa, Goczalkowski and Odrowaz crests with date 1768. Over pigsties and stables – high, beamed attic, being used as a storage for fodder for cattle and horses.

     Since 15th to 18th century castle in Dziegielow belonged to the Czelow stock from Czechowice.  
Last from the Czelow stock married Katarzyna from Siedniccy, who after her husband's death remarried Jan Bludowski in 1719. After her death, castle and goods came into possession of her sister Goczalkowska from Siedlniccy. Her husband Jan Goczalkowski had rebuilt the castle thoroughly. He restored castle from partly gothic style into rococo. At the end of 18th century Goczalkowscy masculine line died. Castle shortly came into possession of baron Trach, the successor in Zamarski. In the last years of 18th century the castle was bought by baron Jozef Beess. Unfortunately he didn't care about the castle. In 1793 he sold goods with castle to Teschen Chamber (according to other sources castle was sold to Cieszyn Chamber in 1823). Chamber has changed castle into rooms for administrator and grange servants. In this way castle lost its meaning, because it wasn't the residence for nobles and barons any more. Fire in vodka distillery has destroyed bigger part of castle. Although the castle had been rebuilt afterward, but its eastern frontage with a distillery, brewery and storage haven't been rebuilt at all.

     After I World War castle was taken over by national Treasury, which assigned it for workers housing. Rarely repaired it was becoming a ruin. After II World War, as a communal property, castle was given to Goleszow commune. At that time, it was a ruin close to collapse in many places. Residents moved out and boards were put in front of castle warning not to enter the castle's premises.

     In 1993 castle in Dziegielow was bought by mgr inz. Edward Mazurek, architect living in Katowice. Thanks to him, not only renovating and preserving works were done, but also number of operations fully recreating destroyed interior architecture. Northern part is supposed to function as a hotel in the future, western part has living rooms and chambers. Ground floor is being prepared for workshops and services and rooms left after stables and pigsties are being prepared for craft and service activity.

     Karol Kulisz (1873 – 1940) was born in Dziegielow, pastor, advocate of charity, tormented in concentration camp in Buchenwald in 1940 . In a hamlet “On tuft” he founded Lutheran Caring Institute Eben-Ezer, rest-home for children and old people. This building has been extended in 1980.

     Dziegielow is a place where every year, between June and July Evangelization Week takes place (on the football pitch ground near the Lutheran Church). Centre of Mission and Evangelization of the Evangelical Church of Augsburg Confession in Poland is located in here.

     The mass street run “For Golden Dziegiel” takes place in Dziegielow every year.

For more information go onto Dziegielow's website: www.dziegielow.org.pl (click on the link)

Henryk Mróz