The Castle is Ciechanów’s most splendid monument and one of the most interesting examples of “defensive” architecture in Poland. Made of gothic-style brick, on stone fundaments and reinforcements, it is spaced out on the plan of a rectangle (48x57m) with a square yard inside. The construction of the castle began in 1344 under Siemowit II, was then continued by his son Siemowit III and finally finished by Janusz I. The castle was built by a curve of the river Łydynia on damp land. The original height of the castle walls did not exceed 5m. However, due to the damming up of local rivers for milling, the water level raised so much that it begun to flood the castle yard. The yard had to be therefore raised by 1,5m and the main gate, which was located between the castle’s towers – covered up with earth.

The gate was abandoned and another gate was built in the western wing – the new gate replaced an old side gate. The castle walls then turned out to be too low. The castle was therefore developed until its walls and towers reached their present height. The habitable part of the castle was located in its north wing, with a chapel in the northeastern corner. The castle’s best days were indisputably under queen Bona, who received it as a present from the king Sigismund the Old who adjoined Mazovia to his kingdom in 1526. Bona was a frequent visitor to the castle. Inspired by the fashion for Renaissance, she ordered the habitable wing to be rebuilt in this style. After she left Poland, the castle was left almost unattended and begun to fall into ruin, gradually loosing its former importance as a defense object. The Swedish invasions in 1657 and 1708 caused multiple damages and the Prussians contributed to its final ruining after the 3^rd Partition of Poland. The habitable wing, which consisted of a representative brick building and a smaller wooden house, was pulled down. In the period between the two World Wars, the castle was gradually reconstructed and made accessible for tourists. The original rectangular outer wall (9,8m high) and two round towers: the south-eastern (prison) tower and the western tower called “the arsenal” (which served mainly for the purpose of defense as the crenellation and pitch tank seem to suggest). Traces of an old entrance are to be found between these towers – a long drawbridge used to join the castle with the town here. A stone commemorating the death of 4 soldiers of the Home Army, who were hanged on the 17^th of December 1942, is located in the stone yard. The castle in Ciechanów was the source of inspiration for many writers and artists. It was visited and praised by: Zygmunt Krasiński, Hipolit Gawarecki, Stefan Żeromski, Bolesław Prus, Henryk Sienkiewicz, Maria Konopnicka.

The Town Hall is a neo-gothic building located on the north side of the main square. It was built in 1844 and is based on a project by the well know Italian architect Henry Marconi (1792-1863). Made of brick, spaced out on the plan of a rectangle, with a new part added from the back – the building has two floors, a cellar and a four-sided tower on the axis of the facade. The corners of the building are decorated with many-sided pillars. With ogival windows, a mould under the eaves composed of neo-gothic arcades that form the capitals of the pillars, roofed with sheet iron – the Town Hall is one of the most beautiful and visible buildings in the town

The cradle of Ciechanów as a town in former times, the Parish Mountain is located between Ściegiennego Street and Dąbrowski’s Park, by the parish church. According to archaeological data, it was here that the legendary Ciechan built his first chalet, started a family and – with the help of numerous sons – built a wooden settlement. In 1180 the town was raided by Pomorzanie (habitants of the Polish maritime districts in the north) and in 1244, 1260, 1262, 1267 and 1337 had to defend itself from the Prussians, Jadzwings and Lithuanians. A fire finally destroyed the town in 1476. Its only remains are the mysterious Parish Mountain and a park. A monument of Ciechan, the town’s legendary founder, is located at the foot of the Mountain.

The church was built in the second half of the 14th c. and is dedicated to St. Joseph. The parish is dedicated to the Birth of the Holy Virgin Mary. This building in late-gothic style is located in the center of the city (ul. Ks. Piotra Ściegiennego 11) and has become the most well-know temple in Ciechanów. Its interiors are filled with objects of historical value, plates and epitaphs. A cemetery was located by the church from its very beginnings until the middle of the 19th c. During the centuries, the church had been profaned many times and many of its most valuable treasures had been stolen.

It was almost destroyed during the Swedish wars. The year 1807 proved to be one of the most difficult years in the history of the church – the French army marched into Ciechanów while heading east. The church was devastated and transformed into a flour warehouse and a bakery. Its renovation began as late as 1821. In the mean time, masses were held at a nearby church of the Augustinians. Renovation works took place between 1876 and 1878 and another big reconstruction plan was carried out between 1913 and 1920 (basing on a project by the architect Stefan Szyller). The church walls were repainted and the roofing-tile was substituted with a lowered roof covered with iron sheet. The temple was again partly destroyed during the war and another renovation was necessary in 1946-1954. Despite the numerous attacks that the church had been subjected to in the course of history, it remains one of the fine examples of well-preserved “Mazovian gothic style” in architecture. Spaced out on the plan of a cross, constructed using bigger stones in the lower parts, with all corners and side walls covered with set-off buttresses – the church has three naves. The central nave is higher then the side naves – a rarity among old churches. A beam cross from the 16^th c., two granite stoups from the 14^th c. and a crucifix from the first half of the 17^th c. are to be found inside. The sepulcher of Stanisław Szczurzyński (who died in 1556) with a bass-relief depicting a full-scale knight has remained intact. This brass-relief is considered one of the five sculptures heralding the approach of the Renaissance in the Mazovian Region.

Thee neo-gothic belfry from 1889 was built in the place of another, wooden, belfry from the 17th century. It is a four-sided building with transparent open-works and pinnacle tops. The belfry is considered an important monument in the church-complex.

The land on which the church and the monastery were located had been given to Siemowit by the king Kazimierz I in 1353. The order then dissolved after the January Uprising and the temple was raided many times. After its last reconstruction – the side naves and the vault were pulled down, new arcades were added and the ogival windows were substituted with rectangular ones. The existing polychromy dates back to 1920 and was designed by Władysław Drapiewski. Many valuable historical souvenirs are to be found in the church: the baroque main alter, a pieta from the 18th c., a crucifix from the 16th c., a 7-voice organ from the 18th c. and a baroque pulpit, among others. The mortal remains of monks rest in the cellars of the church.

A neo-gothic belfry-gate from the second half of the 19th c. leads to the post-Augustinian church. The belfry-gate is composed of three ogival arcades with pinnacles and gives one the possibility to admire the true craftsmanship of its design.

The tenement-house is located by 2 Ks.Piotr Ściegienny Street. Built in 1912, it has become one of Ciechanów most beautiful buildings and has its place in the register of local monuments.

The building dominates over the district Bloki. The chimney (located on 58, 17 Stycznia Street ) is all that is left of the 100-year-old production plant that finally stopped producing brick at the end of the ‘70s. The clay necessary for production was taken from the adjoining grounds and the brickyard was closed after running out of clay. The two big clay-pits that remained now serve as water reservoirs. The chimney is considered an “industrial monument” of Ciechanów.