The park was founded on the former estate of prince Kazimierz Poniatowski (1721–1800), lord chamberlain of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and brother of Poland's last king Stanisław II Augustus.

[3] When the property passed to the aristocratic Branicki family, a large Renaissance Revival-styled residence was erected on the site, which became known as the "Red Palace" (Czerwony Pałac).

The majority of the pre-war dwellings were either completely destroyed or had to be demolished in the post-war years due to their structural vulnerability and poor design.

The chief landscape architects who composed the layout of the new park were Alina Scholtz, Zygmunt Stępiński and Longin Majdecki.

[6] With the fall of communism, the new authorities decided to rename the parkland in honour of Poland's marshal and military commander in World War II, Edward Rydz-Śmigły.