Český Krumlov Castle
The Český Krumlov Castle ( German Krumlov Castle ) is located in the eponymous town of Český Krumlov ( Cesky Krumlov ). It evolved from a castle that was built around 1240 from Krumlov family branch of Witigonen.
The entire area was declared a National Monument in 1989 and included in the List of World Heritage by UNESCO in 1992.
Importance
The castle is located on a ford on a long, high promontory, which is circled in the south of the Vltava River and to the north by leaves Bach ( Polečenice ). Due to its architecture and historical significance, it is one of the most important monuments in Central Europe. It is after Prague Castle is the second largest historical building in the Czech Republic. On the seven -hectare castle grounds there are forty buildings and palaces, as well as five courtyards and the palace garden. The entire complex remained valuable Renaissance and Baroque rooms and halls with art objects of the past five centuries preserved. Valuable is the collection of Flemish tapestries and the large exhibition of pictures. Worth seeing is the Rococo chapel and the large mask hall with illusionistic paintings by Josef Lederer from the year 1748. Among the curiosities include a golden carriage from 1638, which at an audience with Pope Urban VIII led Johann Anton I. von Eggenberg with it. In the fifth court the great Baroque theater with the original rich furnishings and furniture can be admired, which is one of two original still preserved Baroque theaters worldwide and its stage machinery fully functional. The entire stage mechanism is made of wood, for its operation a total of 35 people are required. Without interruption of the game can by inserting scenes new locations from a pool of 17 stage sets arise as the Hall of Columns, military camp, garden, city, dungeon or jungle. The theater in its present form was built 1680-1682 on behalf of Prince Johann Christian von Eggenberg, who was a great art lover and patron in the fifth courtyard. Today there are performances ( with very limited cards offer) during the annual Baroque Festival in June. In the castle garden is a pleasure palace and a cascade fountain. Since the end of the 16th century bears kept in the castle moat.
History
The name of the castle Cesky Krumlov ( Cesky the addition was only since the mid-15th century used ) can be derived from the Middle High German Crumbenowe. He describes the landscape on which the castle is as krumben ouwe means a point on a curved Au. The oldest written mention of the castle dates from the period 1240-1242, when she immortalized the Austrian knight and minstrel Ulrich von Liechtenstein in his poem " woman service."
The documentary first mention of " Chrumbonowe " is contained in a document of the Austrian duke Otakar from 1253. At that time, the castle belonged to the " Witiko de Chrumbonowe ", the grandson of the ancestor Witiko the Elder. the witigonischen branch of the family of the Lords of Krumlov was. In the second half of the 13th century, the Lower Castle was built with a round tower at the site of the present castle. After the death of woks of Cesky Krumlov in 1302, with the extinguished the Krumlov branch of the family, whose possessions were transferred to the branch of the family also witigonischen Rosenberger.
Henry I of Rosenberg moved its headquarters from the Rosenberg castle to the Krumlov castle, the three centuries served as the residence of the Rosenbergs. Henry's son Peter I. von Rosenberg established the Upper Castle in the first third of the 14th century. Ulrich II von Rosenberg was 1444-1447 remodel the living spaces of the Upper Castle for a three- bladed palace. There is also a small chapel from the years 1430-1440, which houses a folding altar with the monogram of the master " IP " from the first quarter of the 16th century. 1503-1513 was another renovation in the late Gothic style according to plans by the architect Ulrich Pesnitzer from Burghausen. After 1550, prompted the then Regent Wilhelm von Rosenberg, who held the office of the Czech colonel country treasurer and chief viscount, a comprehensive redesign of the castle, in addition to the private rooms and many of the staterooms were, inter alia, the Golden Hall, created. The management of rebuilding was up to the Italian architects Antonio Ericer and Baldassare Maggi. 1580 Wilhelm von Rosenberg to increase the tower and connect with a Renaissance arcade. Around 1590 he built the Little Castle.
After William's death the regency took over his younger brother Peter Wok von Rosenberg. He had to sell to Emperor Rudolf II due to increasing debt due to the exhaustion of the silver mines and castle Krumlov dominion. This left the castle to his illegitimate son Julius d'Austria, whom he had caught up to his death in 1609 at the castle. After the Battle of White Mountain, Ferdinand II gave Krumlov castle and rule 1622 of the Styrian noble family of Eggenberg. She had acquired in the Catholic League merits and was rewarded in this way. Under their rule was made in 1680 of the baroque extension of the Upper Castle, whereby the castle garden created and therein a wooden theater building was erected. 1706-1708 was the construction of the pleasure palace Bellaria.
From 1719 to 1947 belonged to the castle and dominion uninterruptedly Krumlov the Schwarzenberg family. During her reign the Cesky Krumlov castle residence in the 18th century style of Viennese baroque was redesigned. 1728-1730 the building of the castle coin has been extended for a plan of Anton Erhard Martinelli, built in 1747, the Winter Riding School, designed by Andrea Altomonte. In addition, the upper floors of the private residence and the chapel of St. George were removed and painted the pleasure palace Bellaria and the Masquerade Hall. 1760 was the construction of the new palace theater. With the expansion Cloak Bridge in 1767 a three-storey connecting passage between residence, garden and theater was created.
By moving the Prince Schwarzenberg family for female mountain in 1871, the castle lost its function as a residence, but remained stately administrative center.