page_title: Renaissance in Poland
section_title: First period
hierarchical_section_title: Renaissance in Poland / Architectural trends and periods / First period
caption_attribution_description: Courtyard of Wawel Royal Castle in Kraków.
context_page_description: The Renaissance in Poland lasted from the late 15th to the late 16th century and is widely considered to have been the Golden Age of Polish culture. Ruled by the Jagiellonian dynasty, the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland actively participated in the broad European Renaissance. The multinational Polish state experienced a period of cultural growth thanks in part to a century without major wars, aside from conflicts in the sparsely-populated eastern and southern borderlands. The Reformation spread peacefully throughout the country, and living conditions improved, cities grew, and exports of agricultural products enriched the population, especially the nobility, who gained dominance in the new political system of Golden Liberty.
context_section_description: In 1499 Wawel Castle was partially consumed by fire. King Alexander Jagiellon in 1504 appointed Eberhard Rosemberger as the main architect for the renovation. Later, he was replaced by Italian-born Francesco Florentino and, after his death, by Bartolomeo Berrecci and by Benedykt of Sandomierz. As a result of their work the Royal Castle was transformed into a Renaissance residence in Florentine style. In the same period other castles and residences were built or rebuilt in the new style, including Drzewica (built in 1527–1535), Szydłowiec (rebuilt 1509–1532), Ogrodzieniec  (rebuilt 1532–1547) and most notably, Pieskowa Skała, rebuilt 1542–1580.
  In the first period of the Polish Renaissance, churches were still build mostly in the Gothic style. In this time, only new chapels surrounding the old churches were sometimes build in the new style. The most prominent of them, the Sigismund's Chapel at the Wawel Cathedral, was built in 1519–33 by Bartolomeo Berecci.
caption: Wawel Castle's courtyard exemplifies first period of the Polish Renaissance
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