Książ Castle

A castle in Wałbrzych begun by Duke Bolko I in the 13th century, with terraces and wartime tunnels, reached from Wrocław by train to Wałbrzych and a city bus.

Książ Castle on its wooded hill in autumn sun: a long pink wing with a red roof, a grey stone tower with a green copper dome behind it, and older wings with timber-framed upper floors and pointed turrets to the left, standing over a stone arch above the trees.

Jar.ciurus Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 3.0 pl

What it is

Książ Castle (Zamek Książ) stands in Wałbrzych, a city in Lower Silesia. Duke Bolko I had it built from 1288 to 1292. For centuries it was the seat of the Hochberg family, until the Nazi state confiscated it during the Second World War.

The main tower, 47 metres high with a round cupola and lantern, took its present form in the rebuilding of the early 20th century.

The castle seen from below through bare branches: a round tower with an orange roof and a green spire, stone wings with timber-framed upper storeys and green roofs, and a pale wing on the right, all on a stone wall with high arches, under a clear blue sky.

The castle from the green trail below it.

grzegorzsenkowski Wikimedia Commons CC BY 3.0

The tunnels and the terraces

During the war, prisoners were made to dig tunnels under the castle; part of them is open to visitors. Terraces step down from the castle, and its palm house is nearby.

The castle's baroque front seen down a paved garden path: a pink wing with tall arched windows under a red roof and a dark stone tower with an onion-shaped cap, stone statues and lions on pedestals either side, clipped shrubs and red flowers, and visitors on the path and on benches.

The baroque front, from the garden terrace.

Scotch Mist Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0

By car: the drive, the car park and the walk up

The map follows the drive from Wrocław to the castle’s main car park, then the walk up past the Hochbergs’ mausoleum to the castle, and on to the stallion stud. The coloured lines around the castle are the marked walking trails. It plays by itself; the stops are listed under it.

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, under the ODbL: the roads, river, streets, paths, buildings, water, woods and the marked walking trails. The drive and the walk are routed with OSRM on OpenStreetMap data.

  1. Main car park
  2. Hochberg mausoleum
  3. Książ Castle
  4. Stallion stud
  • Marked walking trails:
  • green
  • red
  • blue
  • yellow
  • black

Checked 25 October 2026 The castle’s car parks are paid; the main one is in the park below the castle, and the walk up passes a viewpoint and the Hochbergs’ mausoleum. The castle’s leaflet for drivers is under Links.

The Hochbergs' mausoleum among bare trees: a small cream and ochre pavilion with a round window and a barred window under a red tiled roof, a gravel path beside it, and a row of small domed covers set in the grass in front.

The Hochbergs’ mausoleum, on the walk up from the main car park.

Adrian Tync Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0

The park, the trails and Stary Książ

The castle stands in the Książ Landscape Park. Below it, the gorges of the Pełcznica river and the Szczawnik stream are a nature reserve, Przełomy pod Książem.

Marked trails cross the park; the green Piast Castles Trail (Szlak Zamków Piastowskich) runs through the Pełcznica gorge below the castle.

Across the Pełcznica valley from the castle stands Stary Książ, a romantic ruin built in 1794–1797 on the remains of a medieval castle, to a design by Christian Wilhelm Tischbein.

The ruin of Stary Książ among tall trees in spring: rough stone and brick walls with arched window openings, a carved stone doorway in the middle, and grass across the floor of the ruin.

Stary Książ, the romantic ruin.

DamianButrym Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0

The stallion stud

Next to the castle, in its historic stable buildings, is the Książ stallion stud (Stado Ogierów Książ), which breeds Silesian horses.

Checked 25 October 2026 The stud offers guided visits by arrangement and riding lessons; check its site before you go.

The long stable buildings of the stud under a deep blue sky: white walls with timber framing on the upper floor, red tiled roofs with small gables and chimneys, a tall clipped hedge in front and a muddy yard.

The stud’s stable buildings.

Takasamarasa Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 3.0 pl

Getting there from Wrocław

Koleje Dolnośląskie (KD) and PKP Intercity run direct trains from Wrocław Główny to Wałbrzych. In Wałbrzych, city bus line 8 goes to Książ. More on regional trains is on the trains page.

Checked 25 October 2026 Lines, stops and times change with every timetable, so this page prints none. Check the operators’ timetables for the day you go, and look at the last connection back before you set out. The castle’s hours and tickets are on its own page below.

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