Krásný Dvůr (chateau)

The first mention of the chateau is from 1295. In the first half of the 16th century it was owned by Václav Pětipeský of Chýš, who began to build the so-called Upper Fortress on the site of today's chateau. However, he did not complete it, because he was executed in 1547 as one of the main culprits of the resistance against Ferdinand I. The Renaissance villa, which forms the basis of the floor plan of today's castle, was completed by the new owner Jan Jr. Mašťovský z Kolovrat. Since 1649, Krásný Dvůr has been owned by the Černín family, who contributed to the reconstruction of the villa into a Baroque chateau. The construction took place in the years 1720 to 1724, according to the project of František Maxmilián Kaňka. At the end of the 18th century, the chateau chapel was enlarged, two new staircases were added and the nearby game reserve was transformed into an English park. It was enriched by many buildings such as the Gloriet, the Temple of the Lord, the Chinese Pavilion, the obelisk, the neo-Gothic lookout tower, the Romanesque gate and more. During World War II, the castle was used for recreational purposes by Joachim von Ribbentrop and also by the Nazi authorities. After 1945, the headquarters of Soviet troops was based here. Subsequently, it was handed over to the National Cultural Commission and in the 1950s it was partially opened to the public.

While touring the castle, you can see 18 rooms equipped with period furnishings with many rare pieces of furniture, porcelain and paintings. There is also a valuable set of gouache paintings of the castle from the early 19th century. A rarity is the Baroque collection of 42 paintings of dog portraits by P. V. Berger.

In the park, which covers an area of ​​96 hectares, you can enjoy not only small buildings, but also ponds and waterfalls. Many exclusively domestic centuries-old woody plants grow here. The most important is the so-called Goethe's oak, whose age is estimated at 1,000 years.

Author: Marie Bukovinská