One of the buildings of the Leopold Koenig estate, a monument of architectural art of national significance located in Trostianets, Sumy region.
The ‘Neskuchne’ Arboretum in the Sumy region covers an area of 256 hectares. The park is located among centuries-old oaks, ash trees, lindens, and three lakes, from which the Trostianets brook flows. The estate of Leopold Koenig, one of the richest entrepreneurs in the Russian Empire, is situated here, and this is a monument of architectural art.
The manor was built in 1762 in the Neoclassical style under the oversight of Tymofii Nadarzhynskyi, a clergyman. He served Peter I, who granted him the town of Trostianets. In 1832, Vasyl Holitsyn, the provincial head of the nobility in Kharkiv, and his wife Sofia, the granddaughter of Nadarzhynskyi, received the manor. Holitsyn rebuilt the estate, adding an elegant design and creating a large park around the house with the arboretum, lakes, and greenhouses.
In 1874, the manor became the property of the sugar magnate, Leopold Koenig. The Koenig family changed the appearance of the estate significantly. In particular, the facades of the complex were supplemented with baroque elements, adorned with pilasters and bas-reliefs of angels and chimaeras.
In 1911, the house of the Koenig estate manager was built, which became a new gem in the architectural ensemble of the complex. It was a two-storey building of an asymmetrical composition with a tower in its eastern part, which looked perfect amongst the picturesque landscape. A warden of forestry lived there with his family.
Built as one of the last in the ensemble, this building has perhaps the most tragic fate. The house of the Koenig estate manager was destroyed twice. The first time was during World War II, when Trostianets was occupied by German troops and the Nazis blew it up. The building was reconstructed in the early 1950s.
The second time was on March 27, 2022, when Russian troops burned down this unique national architectural monument while retreating from Trostianets. Direct shelling by Russian tanks and a fire in the building severely damaged the facades, broke down the roof and ceiling, destroyed the interiors, and smashed the windows. What the Nazis failed to completely demolish is now being destroyed by the Russians.
The site that once held memories may now turn into a memory itself.
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