The Castle

Basic information

According to existing papers the castle in Bystřice was built in the first half of the 15th century. It is a unique example of how an aristocratic house has changed through the centuries. While the most castles have been rebuilt and brought up to date, the more modern buildings in Bystřice have been built out to the older ones. The rooms in the castle are decorated with paintings from the year 1805 and the end of the 19th century.

Before the 1930th the castle was surrounded by a beautiful garden. Nowadays the garden is not accessible to the public, because it has been a seat of the Czech army. The plants in the garden are no more valuable.

Exhibitions (max. 50 visitors)

On the ground floor, there you can find the permanent exhibition of the ceramic crockery from the 18th and the 19th century, modern statues and one room equipped with furniture. The short exhibitions take place every month (since April till October) on the first floor; there you can see modern art, children’s works and also historical materials.

The sightseeing of the castle is specialized for the history of the building. You will see various types of the architecture, museum exhibitions, cellar, festive hall and also rooms on the second floor, which have not been restored yet.

History

The first written mention comes from the year 1440. At that time there was built a gothic fortress. Unfortunately, nothing has survived from the fortress until these days.

In the half of the 16th century it was bought by a rich nobleman Přemek z Víckova. He built here a renaissance castle (the first building visible from the street).

Another important aristocratic owners were the Rottals. They kept the castle since 1650. The last member of this mighty Austrian family, Maria Amalia together with her Italian husband Gian Giacomo Leonardi della Rovere di Monte l´Abbate built the castle to the final look. They asked famous Moravian architect Franziscus Antonius Grimm to do the work. And Grimm built here a castle in a new European style of architecture – classicism. In 1789 Maria Amalia gave the castle to her son Franciscus Antonius della Rovere di Monte l´Abbate. He established here a ceramic manufacture.

The very last aristocratic owners were the Loudons. They were the descendants of the famous Austrian marshal serving for the emperor Maria Theresia. The Loudon family kept the castle since 1827 to 1933. The first of the Loudons, Olivier, was a botanic lover and he grew here many interesting plants, such as pineapple or water lily victoria regia. His son Ernst rebuilt the interiors of the castle, built a new chapel and in 1897 he had the honour to welcome the most precious visit, the castle has ever had, the Austrian emperor Franz Joseph I.

The last member of the family, who kept the castle, was Ernst Gideon. During the world depression he had huge financial problems and was forced to sell the castle. In 1933 the family moved away.

The castle together with the garden was bought by the Czechoslovak Ministry of defence and since 1935 until 1990 there have been stores of the army medical supplies. Since 1991 the castle has been given to the administration of the town hall. Step by step the castle has been restored and made accessible to the public.

On the ground floor, there you can find museums exhibitions, on the first floor exhibitions of modern art and also a festive hall, where you can take part in a concert or have a wedding.

Zdroj: http://www.mubph.cz/tisk.php?id=544&pageID=5944e2709bb10dbbd4c47465f3608a0e
Vygenerováno: 28.03.2024 04:26:01