Długosz House is a historic building in Kraków's Old Town, located at 25 Kanonicza Street, at the corner with , at the foot of Wawel hill. Erected in the 14th century, it housed a royal bathhouse. It was repeatedly rebuilt and transformed. Since the first half of the 15th century, it served as a residential house for , and it owes its name to one of them – Jan Długosz. It was not until the 19th century that its purpose changed, and during this century, Stanisław Wyspiański lived there. Currently, it serves as the seat of the rectorate of the Pontifical University of John Paul II.
History
Royal bathhouse The masonry building, which constitutes the oldest part of the preserved structure, was erected in the first half of the 14th century. Located near the Wawel Castle, it neighbored the . By the end of that century, it served as a royal bathhouse,It is reported that Jagiełło likely invited Zawisza Czerwony to this bathhouse, as an emissary of Jadwiga, so that he could fully examine its appearance and report back to the queen (, , ). However, linking this event to Kraków is mistaken, as Zawisza met the grand duke in Sandomierz, according to . supplied with water from the stream – an artificial watercourse flowing along today's Podzamcze Street, encircling the building from the south and west., , , , ,
Noble residence Most likely due to the gradual drying up of the Rudawka stream, maintaining the bathhouse at this location became impractical. In 1390, on August 9th, King Władysław Jagiełło gifted the building to , who established his residence there. He expanded the acquired house by adding the adjacent one, purchased from the townsman Tomek, known as Lewek, and his wife Morzka. Additionally, in 1408, he acquired a brick kitchen from the Archbishop of Gniezno, Mikołaj Kurowski., , , , , This kitchen was situated outside the city fortifications, so during the adaptation works, it was necessary to incorporate the defensive wall into the house (various parts of the residence were attached to it), thus rendering it devoid of its military function. This was the first instance in Kraków of attaching fortifications to a townhouse.,
Chapter house In 1413, with the consent and royal confirmation in a document dated August 25th, Krystyn transferred the building to the cathedral chapter in exchange for tithes from the villages of Kamyk and Sławkowice, granted by Bishop Wojciech Jastrzębiec from his own estates, for the endowment of the altar of Hedwig of Silesia, founded by the nobleman in the Wawel Cathedral. Henceforth, the building, known as the chapter house, was to serve as accommodation for the canons. It was given to of Kazimierz and Jan of Rudzica, who in either 1415, , or 1430, , , , , carried out extensive renovations at considerable expense. The building, previously referred to as the "castle bathhouse" or "royal bathhouse", was henceforth known as the "House of Hińczy". Additionally, successive canons residing there annually paid two grzywnas for the anniversary, a commemorative mass for Mikołaj., , , , , , ,
Długosz House The house, vacant after the death of Jan of Radochońce, was transferred to Jan Długosz by the chapter's decision on 4 February 1450. Perhaps Jan Elgot, his relative, contributed to making this decision.Elgot was supposed to be Długosz's uncle, as presented by . However, rejected this interpretation, arguing that the sources do not allow for such a precise determination of the degree of kinship (). The canon initially lived alone, with the chapter's custodian also entitled to use the house whenever he was in Kraków. In 1453, Długosz was joined by his namesake brother.The situation where two canons lived in one building was quite common in the Middle Ages, especially when the Kraków chapter had fewer houses than its members. Moreover, it happened that not all of the owned properties were suitable for habitation (). The building proved too small for the two permanent residents, so a year later, renovations were carried out. A second floor was added to the existing house, and two-story wings were added to the south and west, connected at an angle to form an L-shape. From then on, the entire complex formed a horseshoe with a courtyard in the middle., , , , , ,
The fire of 1455 spared this tenement, unlike most of the buildings on Kanonicza Street, which burned down.Sometimes it is stated that it was the only building on Kanoniczna Street that did not fall victim to the flames, as mentioned by . However, Długosz himself noted in his chronicle that the house of the chapter's cantor, Mikołaj Spicmer, also survived (). In June 1461, the Długosz brothers had to leave the house as they were banished, like many supporters of Jakub of Sienno, during the dispute between the chapter and King Casimir IV Jagiellon over the appointment of the Kraków bishopric. Their residence on Kanonicza, during the tumult in which Andrzej Tęczyński was killed on July 16, became a place of brief refuge for the murdered man's son, , who was also threatened with death. He reached there through the back of the Franciscan monastery, and from this building, he managed to make his way to the royal castle. The house of the proscribed brothers was plundered later that same year by the Kurozwęcki brothers, and Dobiesław, acting with the king's consent (December 19).Such a solution to the date recorded by Długosz – "the Monday before Saint Thomas" – is contained in the latest Polish translation of his work. Another date, December 21st, is provided by . Completely erroneous dating of this event (25 December 1460) is mentioned by . The Długosz brothers returned to Kraków in 1463, receiving ten grzywnas from the chapter for the repair of the building at that time., , , , , , ,
In the following years, the younger of the brothers occupied the eastern wing of the house, facing Kanonicza Street. Meanwhile, Jan Długosz the elder resided in the newly added section, where he worked on his works, Annales seu cronicae incliti Regni Poloniae (from 1455) and Liber beneficiorum dioecesis Cracoviensis (from 1470). Perhaps it was also one of the places where he imparted knowledge to the sons of Casimir Jagiellon, whom he tutored starting from 1467. After his brother's death in 1471, he shared the building with , a professor at the Jagiellonian University whom he knew well. In 1479, Długosz received a nomination as the Archbishop of Lviv and resigned from his canonry, yet he continued to reside in the chapter house. It was there that he died on 19 May 1480. Immediately after Długosz's death, Jakub of Szadek took over the house, and after some time, he was joined by Grzegorz Lubrański.On 2 June 1480, Jakub contributed twenty grzywnas to the chapter (). This sum, along with the obligation to pay an identical amount at a later time, was interpreted as payment for the right to occupy the house independently (, and ). However, recent research does not confirm this, indicating a cohabitant with Szadek instead. Meanwhile, his payments were considered a fee, an amount assessed for the house, which each canon paid upon taking over the building ()., , , , ,
Early modern times Among the subsequent canons who resided in the building, a notable figure was Maciej Miechowita, a professor and rector of the university, author of the Chronica Polonorum, a continuation of Długosz's chronicle. Miechowita lived there for a while, from 1514, sharing the residence with Maciej Drzewicki. He embellished the house, where he amassed a sizable library and a collection of works of artistic craftsmanship, coins, scientific and musical instruments, maps, and paintings., , , , , , ,
Władysław Łuszczkiewicz associated the renovations of the building with the time of Miechowita (and the canons who occupied the house immediately after him), during which Renaissance elements were introduced, such as cornices above the windows or the portal of the main gate from Kanonicza Street,This entrance was not to be knocked down until the 16th century, when the gate on the Wawel side was bricked up, according to . adorned with a Latin inscription. Although it is generally accepted that reconstruction took place at the beginning of the 16th century, the portal is dated to the second half of that century. Then, in 1571, renovations were carried out on the premises. The external walls were reinforced with buttresses, new window frames were installed, the interiors were decorated with paintings, a kitchen was arranged, and a new bathroom was built. The next renovation took place only in 1775 and included the galleries on the courtyard side and the replacement of the roof. It is possible that it was related to the repairs after the damage caused during the Bar Confederation conflicts., , , ,
After the Third Partition of Poland and the incorporation of Kraków into Austria by imperial decree in 1797, the chapter was deprived of most of the buildings on Kanonicza Street. Only eight buildings remained in its possession, including Długosz House, which continued to serve residential purposes. In 1825, it was placed under the administration of the chapter's procuratorship, but already the following year Canon Ludwik Łętowski moved into the building. Finally, in 1839, the house was designated as the seat of the procuratorship, which was located in the eastern wing on Kanonicza Street. Subsequently, it housed successive deputy procurators and chapter notaries., ,
Wyspiański's house
Thirty-four years later (1873), rented part of the building. It consisted of three rooms on the ground floor, in the southwest corner. Before moving in with his wife Maria and two sons, the sculptor had to carry out renovations, combined with adaptation for residential purposes. In the large, barrel-vaulted chamber in the southern wing, which had previously served as a coach house, he set up his studio, while in the western wing, he converted two rooms (former stables) into a bedroom for his wife and a kitchen., , , Some sources suggest that the residential function was fulfilled by a wooden, single-story cottage located near Długosz House (or in its annex), which was connected to it by Wyspiański., , ,
The living conditions were quite typical for a significant part of Kraków's contemporary buildings – water available only from wells, lack of sanitary facilities, difficulties with heating the rooms. Over time, the inconveniences began to affect the Wyspiański family, especially the small size of the living area, so Franciszek divided his studio in half with a curtain, keeping one part for himself and allocating the other part for students and as a place to gather materials for work. Długosz House, after a successful period in the artist's life, became a place of creative crisis, alcoholism, depression, and family tragedies – the sudden death of his younger son, Tadeusz (1875), his wife's illness with tuberculosis, and her death (1876). His mother and sister tried to help Wyspiański run the household, moving in while Maria was still alive, which, however, increased the cramped living conditions. After four years (1880), the older son, Stanisław, left, passing under the care of his uncle and aunt, the Stankiewiczes. In the same year, the sculptor also moved from Długosz House to a building on Kopernik Street., , , , , ,
Living in the immediate vicinity of Wawel, with a magnificent view of the historic complex of the hill, strongly influenced Stanisław Wyspiański's later work, as did the time spent with his father in his studio, which was also a place for playing with school friends, as recalled later by Stanisław Estreicher and Henryk Opieński. The artist dedicated a poem to this place and the role it played in his life, written in 1903 under the title At the Foot of Wawel, my father had a studio..., , , , ,
Anniversary of Długosz's death