History of Zamosc

Morando organized the space within the enceinte into two distinct sections: on the west the noble residence, and on the east the town proper, laid out around three squares. To populate it, Zamysky brought in merchants of various nationalities and displayed great religious tolerance to encourage people to settle there: they included Ruthenes (Slavs of the Orthodox church), Turks, Armenians, Jews, and others. Moreover, he endowed the town with its own academy (1595). Modelled on Italian cities.

Zamosc is spoken of as a Renaissance town. However, on the one hand, Morando himself must have had Mannerist training, and on the other, in all the countries of Central Europe (Poland, Bohemia, Slovakia, Hungary, certain German regions and, in part, Austria proper), Italian Renaissance architecture had been well assimilated and adapted to local traditions since the 15th century. Consequently, Zamosc was planned as a town in which the Mannerist taste mingled with certain Central European urban traditions, such as the arcaded galleries which surround the squares and create a sheltered passage in front of the shops.

However, the town designed by Morando, who died in the early 17th century, was mostly built during the Baroque period. Ideally located for trade, it was also exposed to military attack. It became a strategic military point and, after the old enceinte was reinforced, new fortifications of the Vauban type were added in the 17th century.

The modem town grew for the most part outside the fortifications, which gives the old town a great degree of coherence in its plan and architecture. Having escaped the vast destruction suffered by many other Polish towns during the Second World War, Zamosc is an outstanding example of Polish architecture and urbanism of the 16th and 17th centuries