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In 1796, Tsarina Catherine II dissolved the estates of the Kamieniec bishops. She bestowed the town of Zinkivtsi (Zinkowce), located adjacent to Kamieniec Podolski, upon Aleksandra Branicka. In the early 19th c., she was to commission an impressive neoclassical palace with a sprawling park spanning several hectares. The property was to be sold to Józef Bietkowski around 1850. However, a comprehensive analysis of eleven 18th- and 19thcentury maps of the vicinity of Kamenets Podolski denies the creation of such an estate in Zinkivtsi. Furthermore, the copious published materials and archives related to the Branicki family, along with the comparatively sparse historical records of the Bietkowskis, fail to confirm the presence of the palace and park complex in Zinkivtsi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses two undated, handwritten plans for the Kamieniec Podolski fortress in 1672. The first plan (Paris) has descriptions in French and Turkish and shows the location of individual Ottoman units during the siege of Kamieniec Podolski in 1672. The second plan (Bologna) is very similar to the Paris plan. It was provided with a legend made later in Italian, but its contents do not indicate the date of its creation. A comparison of the view of the fortifications (the Black Tower and the Turkish Bridge) with other plans shows that the Bologna plan is an unfinished copy of the Paris plan and was made between the years 1672-1685, most likely after the fortress was conquered by the Ottoman army in 1672. This is evidenced by the minarets located in the city. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kamieniec Podolski was the most important fortress of the Polish Republic, defending its southeastern border. Unfortunately, there were no barracks for soldiers in the fortress. Therefore, in the 1780s, their construction began. The project of Jan de Witte, an experienced and distinguished fortifi er of the Kamieniec fortress, was rejected, and a new project was commissioned to a young but talented designer, Stanisław Zawadzki (1743–1806). He designed a fi ve-wing building on a square plan, with a central wing that divided the interior into two courtyards. The building was fi rst approved by the Polish king, Stanisław August Poniatowski, and only then they began to look for a site where it could be built. Unfortunately, it was not possible to fi nd a suitable site, which was the reason for changing the location of the barracks several times. The construction of the barracks was entrusted to Hilary Szpilowski (1753–1827), who found many errors in the project. Zawadzki’s rare visits made necessary consultations impossible and forced Szpilowski to take independent decisions regarding changes in the building design. The Committee of the Military Department of the Perpetual Council rejected all of Szpilowski’s allegations. In this article, a detailed analysis of the solutions introduced at that time was carried out based on the preserved site maps and design drawings. It was shown that the project contained serious errors, especially the mismatch with the existing terrain, which generated a gigantic scope of earthworks, a lack of water supply and sewage disposal, and the lack of a tie beam reinforcing the building. Therefore, contrary to the opinion of the Committee of the Military Department of the Perpetual Council, the entire blame for the poorly designed barracks building and the resulting problems during construction should be placed on Stanisław Zawadzki, not Hilary Szpilowski. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The article presents the author's views on the archives of architectural development which are preserved in Polish libraries. Various topics discussed include abbreviated names of libraries, brief description of printed architectural plans, other manipulated plans and its systematization. Author further discusses how these archives will help in learning about chronological layout of different architectures in 17th and 18th century and history of architectural development in Kamianets-Podilskyi, Ukraine.