By now you know that I love all things historic and charming, so it only makes sense that I would love old residences. I simply adore an old cottage and abandoned buildings intrigue me, but this time I'm thinking on a much, much grander scale. I'm thinking majestic castles, captivating chateaux, and elaborate palaces. I can even find charm in ruins and keeps. And did you know that there are over 2,000 castles, castle ruins, and chateaux in the Czech Republic? Yes indeed! According to the Guinness book of World Records, the Czech Republic has the most castles per square mile of any major country in the World (Liechtenstein has more per square mile, but it’s only 62 square miles vs the Czech Republic's 49,007 square miles.) So that being said, shall we embark on a quest to visit as many, if not all, of these fascinating structures? I think we shall...
An Emperor's Residence...Konopiště Chateau
Konopiště was the last residence of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir of the Austro-Hungarian throne. Sadly, he was assassinated along with his Czech wife, Sophie Chotek, in 1914. His assassination triggered the start of World War I. The bullet that killed him, fired by Gavrilo Princip, is now an exhibit at the castle's museum.
Konopiště was initially constructed as a Gothic fortification in the 13th century. With his inheritance, Franz bought Konopiště in 1887 and transformed it into a luxurious residence, which he preferred to his official residence in Vienna. Since 1921, the castle has been property of the Czechoslovak and later Czech state. The Ministry of Culture is said to spend more than $800,000 USD per year to maintain the castle, but recovers about as much from entrance ticket sales, tour sales, and rentals (weddings and the like...I wouldn't mind having a fairty tale wedding here would you?)
I strongly recommmend touring the interior of the castle. Franz Ferdinand was an enthusiastic hunter, as you'll see in the hallway lined with antlers and stuffed trophies. My favorite rooms are always the bedrooms, sitting rooms, bathrooms, and the dining hall...I like to take myself back and envision life as it once was. Perhaps I was a princess or duchess in a previous life!
Konopiště is a castle dear to my heart because it's very near my parent's home, thus I visit it often. There's something calming about strolling around the property in wintertime and hearing the crunch of snow underfoot. Let's take a stroll...
Spring is wonderful though for all is abloom...
There are a few ways to get from the parking lot to the castle, and one of the best is via horse-drawn carriage. It's not that I'm being lazy, not at all! Remember how I said that I like to envision life as it once was? Well, I like to pretend that I'm on my way home from market and, well, this was the mode of transportation in those days.
Now you don't have to take a horse-drawn carriage. There is a trolley available, or you can simply walk along the road leading up to the castle. Along the way you'll pass what I call the Hansel & Gretel gingerbread house. It doesn't exactly resemble the house in the storybook, but there's just something fairy tale-like about it...
Another great way to reach the castle is along a path through the woods, but watch out for bears...
(just kidding!)
The only bears you'll find are these fellas at the entrance to the castle (just like medieval times)...
Shall we take a tour?
Remember I told you that Franz liked to hunt? Well, if this isn't a testament to that then I don't know what is! He reportedly bagged some 300,000 animals (think of it this way... 20 animals a day, every day, for 40 years). Only 1% of his total hunting collection is on display, and it still ranks as one of Europe's largest collections. I'm not a proponent of hunting though.
The Main Hall
I have taken all of the tours available, and highly recommend Tour One for the first-time visitor. Tour three is fantastic for me though because I get to see more of Franz's "private" rooms, such as the bedroom (ie, the "girly" rooms to some)
PS...you're not allowed to take photos inside, but due to my ability to hide a camera and still get a pretty decent shot (even though I'm aiming from the hip), you get to see some great photos.
What do I always remind you to do??? That's right, always look up!
Follow me into the courtyard...
And out onto the beautiful terrace..
I can see why this castle is rented for weddings...
Here's my beautiful mom in the garden amongst a circle of sandstone statues of classical gods...
Here's a very interesting statue ...
...with the face of both a man and a woman
No castle grounds are complete without...
peacocks!
Can you spot the peacock?
Address: 256 01 Benesov
No comments:
Post a Comment