Archbishop's Palace in Košice: a rococo residence on Hlavná
The Archbishop's Palace in Košice (Arcibiskupský palác) is a rococo-classical building at Hlavná 28, right on the main street of the old town and beside St Elisabeth's Cathedral. It grew out of four townhouses, welcomed Emperor Franz Joseph I and still serves as the seat of the archbishopric, a quiet landmark worth a look while strolling through eastern Slovakia's largest city.
Four ordinary houses on Košice's main street were stitched into one bishop's residence in 1809; it later hosted an Austro-Hungarian emperor and, in 1995, became an archbishop's seat.
The history of the Archbishop's Palace in Košice
For centuries Košice belonged to the diocese of Jäger (Eger), which had been founded in 1001. After more than eight hundred years it was felt that so large a territory, with an ever-growing number of believers, was hard to administer, and in 1804 a new diocese of Košice was created. Its patron saint is St Andrew, and its first bishop was Andrej Szabó.
The bishop's seat was meant to stand as close as possible to St Elisabeth's Cathedral and to the parish itself. For that reason four houses on Hlavná Street were bought and gradually rebuilt into a single building. The new palace, finished in 1809, stood next to the rectory and to a bank that was among the oldest savings banks in Košice.
On 28 May 1841 the residence burned down after flames spread to it from the neighbouring Vitéz House. Bishop Anton Ocskay had it repaired, and after the rebuilding the Austro-Hungarian Emperor Franz Joseph I lodged here, in 1851 and again in 1857. At that time the building also held the bishop's library and a rare gallery of the diocese's bishops, created in 1893. A chapel stood in the left wing. One of the diocese's longest-serving and most respected leaders was Bishop Jozef Čárský; after his death in 1962 the Košice bishop's office stayed vacant until the end of the socialist era, and the palace housed the church court, chaplains and nuns.
The most important change came in 1995, when Pope John Paul II visited Košice. During the visit he raised Bishop Alojz Tkáč to the rank of archbishop and divided Slovakia, which until then had one archbishopric, into two: Bratislava-Trnava and Košice. The bishop's palace thus became the archbishop's palace, and the archbishopric is still based here today.
The house also has a place in national memory. In 1849 two leaders of the Slovak national movement, Ľudovít Štúr and Jonáš Záborský, met here. A plaque with a double-portrait relief by the sculptor Juraj Bartusz, unveiled in 1972, records the meeting, and a white-marble plaque by Arpád Račko, unveiled in 1996, honours Bishop Čárský.
Curiosities about the Archbishop's Palace in Košice
- The palace is not one grand construction but four houses on Hlavná Street that were gradually rebuilt into one building.
- Fire from the neighbouring Vitéz House destroyed the residence on 28 May 1841, only about three decades after it was finished.
- Emperor Franz Joseph I lodged here in 1851 and 1857, when the building also held a bishop's library.
- A gallery of portraits of the diocese's bishops, created in 1893, was once displayed in the palace.
- In 1995 Pope John Paul II visited Košice and, during that visit, divided Slovakia's single archbishopric into two.
- A relief plaque of 1972 recalls the 1849 meeting of Ľudovít Štúr and Jonáš Záborský, two key figures of the Slovak national revival.
Tours near Archbishop's Palace, Košice
Experiences in the area that you can book online with Viator:
Visiting the Archbishop's Palace in Košice
- The palace is best admired from the street: its unified façade is divided by pilasters and ends in a cornice under the roof, and the central projecting bay carries a balcony on columns with a wrought-iron railing and a raised gable decorated with sculptures.
- Look for the two memorial plaques on the façade, one with the Štúr and Záborský relief and one in white marble for Bishop Čárský.
- The state rooms on the upper floor are described as having a rich stucco vault with rococo ornament. The sources do not say whether the interiors can be visited, so check before you go.
- The palace is a short walk from St Elisabeth's Cathedral; other places on this site in the same area include St Urban Tower, St Michael Chapel and the Church of Virgin Mary's Birth.
Opening hours, access and conditions can change. Check before you go.
Map: where Archbishop's Palace, Košice is
Photos of Archbishop's Palace, Košice
Questions
Where is the Archbishop's Palace in Košice?
It stands at Hlavná 28 on the main street of Košice's historic centre, next to the rectory and close to St Elisabeth's Cathedral.
What style is the Archbishop's Palace in Košice?
It is a rococo-classical building with a unified façade divided by pilasters, a balcony on columns above the central portal and a raised gable with sculptures.
Did Emperor Franz Joseph stay in the palace?
Yes. After the rebuilding that followed the fire of 1841, Emperor Franz Joseph I lodged here in 1851 and again in 1857.
When did the palace become an archbishop's palace?
In 1995, when Pope John Paul II visited Košice and raised Bishop Alojz Tkáč to archbishop, splitting Slovakia's archbishopric into Bratislava-Trnava and Košice.
Who met in the palace in 1849?
The Slovak national leaders Ľudovít Štúr and Jonáš Záborský. A plaque with a double-portrait relief by Juraj Bartusz, unveiled in 1972, commemorates the meeting.
Can you go inside the Archbishop's Palace?
The sources do not say whether the interiors are open to visitors. The palace is the seat of the archbishopric, so check the current situation before you go.
Also nearby
St Michael's Chapel, Košice
Košice · Gothic cemetery chapel with a medieval ossuary
50 m away
St. Urban Tower
Košice · bell tower with a bell that survived a fire
50 m away
Church of Virgin Mary's Birth
Košice · Neo-Romanesque cathedral that was once taken from its flock
350 m away
Plague Chapel of St Rosalie
Košice · octagonal Baroque chapel raised after the plague
2.5 km away