In the Polish city of Stinort (Sztynort) there is a castle of the same name, which boasts an incredible history, rich in the most unexpected events. For example, a conspirator against Hitler and one of Hitler’s closest confidants lived here under the same roof for three years. This mansion was almost destroyed by time, but now, according to DW, it is proposed to create an academy as a forum for European dialogue (Academia Masuria), in which Ukrainians and Belarusians can participate along with Germans and Poles.

The History of the Phoenix Castle of Steinort and the Unsuccessful Escape of the Conspirator

Steinort Castle became one of the most famous in Poland, thanks to its history and the efforts of the German historian Bettina Bouresh. According to DW, this castle is the birthplace of Count von Lendorf, the perpetrator of the assassination attempt on Hitler, today it has practically turned into ruins.

The ancestral mansion of the German von Lendorf family in the Polish Stynorte (Sztynort) for several centuries was among the most picturesque noble residences of East Prussia. The palace and park complex is located on the Mazury Lakes, on a peninsula surrounded by three lakes.

The estate of six thousand hectares belonged to the clan von Lendorff since 1400. In 1689, a large baroque castle was built here: more than a hundred rooms, ceilings with stucco, frescoes. Luxury has been an integral part of this family’s existence for centuries.

After World War I, the castle was abandoned, but completely renovated in the late 1930s under the supervision of one of the most experienced restorers of the Royal Palaces of Berlin. The last German owner of Steinort Castle was Count Heinrich von Lendorff in 1936 a 27-year-old member of the old noble family took over the management of the estate.

As a Wehrmacht officer and after witnessing the massacre of Jews in Borisov in October 1941, he joined the Resistance against Fascism and became involved in a plot against Hitler. His situation was complicated by the fact that since 1941 the Foreign Minister of the "Third Reich" Joachim von Ribbentrop settled in another wing of his mansion. Together with him, other officials and employees of the Gestapo were accommodated here, as well as in guest houses nearby. Coincidentally, one of Hitler’s closest confidants and one who sought to eliminate him lived under the same roof for three years. Ribbentrop liked the convenient location of Steinort Castle — it was only 14 kilometers from the "Wolf’s Den" (Wolfsschanze) — Hitler’s place. It was not known at that time that Hitler would be assassinated on 20 July 1944.

Hitler escaped by accident, but on the next day he ordered to find everyone who even knew about the assassination attempt. One such conspirator was Count Heinrich von Lendorf, who tried to hide in Steinort Castle and, when they came after him, jumped out of the castle window and fled to the park, but was soon caught and hanged in Pletzensee prison in Berlin.

Facade of the castle of Count Heinrich von Lendorf in Poland

For decades, nothing in the compound was reminiscent of dramatic events. In post-war Socialist Poland, the building accommodated the Soviet military for some time, and then there was the administrative center of the agricultural cooperative. It was only in 2009 that a memorial stone was erected to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Count Heinrich von Lendorf, the last owner of Steinort Castle and an active participant in the plot against Hitler.

In search of restoration

However, there are people who care about the fate of this complex and who are trying to keep it. The German historian Bettina Bouresh has been fighting for the restoration of the castle since the early 1990s. She grew up in the Ruhr Region, but her mother told her stories from East Prussia, where she was from. When the Iron Curtain fell, Buresh came to Mazura and fell in love with Steinort. "This place took me and never let go. It’s my landmark in the world," she admitted to DW. The historian founded the Steinort Support Group and the Lendorf Society to arouse interest in this forgotten place and to collect donations for its restoration. She made contact with members of the Lendorf family. One of the four daughters of Heinrich von Lendorf Vera, better known as Verushka as the first German supermodel, visited her ancestral castle in 2009 and embarked on a campaign to preserve it.
In addition, Bettina Bures was interested in the idea of restoring the complex of Polish historians and architects, as well as several private organizations. The move of the mansion under the control of the Polish-German Foundation for the Preservation of Cultural Heritage and the Protection of Monuments was a great success. And thanks to private donations from Germany, grants from the State Minister for Culture and Media of Germany and the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of Poland, the building was strengthened and the roof was sealed.

Restoration of the castle in the city of Stinort in Poland

The new life of Steinort Castle

Since then, the struggle with time and funding for further repairs has continued. At the initiative of the German Consul General in Gdansk Cornelia Piper last year a German-Polish group of experts was instructed to develop the concept of further use.

The concept of restoration of the castle was presented in mid-August 2023: the building is planned to host an exhibition and documents about the history of the castle, about the von Lendorff family, as well as about the Polish post-war history of the place. German and Polish historians who worked on the new concept noted that due to the situation in the world, the geopolitical situation around Steinort, which is near Kaliningrad, also changed. Therefore, in addition to the exhibitions, an academy should be created here as a forum for European dialogue (Academia Masuria), which, along with Germans and Poles, Ukrainians and Belarusians can participate.

The cost of this project is estimated at 30 million euros.

Photo source: Iwona Zakrzewska-Lepiarz/DW