Casimir III the Great had a Gothic castle built next to the cathedral, and Władysław Jagiełło and Queen Jadwiga rebuilt it in the 14th century. Sigismund I the Old rebuilt the residence from 1507 to 1536 in the Renaissance style, influenced by his wife Bona Sforza. Bartolommeo Berrecci and Francisco from Florence supervised at first, and Benedykt of Sandomierz took over. Berrecci designed Sigismund's Chapel, begun in 1517 with a golden dome.
The arcaded courtyard is Renaissance, with a steeply hipped roof and an upper arcade set higher than the lower ones. After a fire in 1595, Giovanni Trevano directed the rebuilding. Austrian soldiers turned the hill into barracks after 1795, walled up the arcades and demolished two churches. They left in 1905, and restoration began.
The infobox says construction was in the 13th and 14th centuries, while the text says the current castle is 14th century. It had 3,477,951 visitors in 2025.

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