Lešná (zámek)
Near Valašské Meziříčí you will be amazed by the Lešná chateau, which was opened to the public after extensive reconstruction at the end of October 2011. The chateau dates back to the 14th century, when the mention of the free Lešná estate appears in the provincial plates (1355). In 1415, there is also a documented fortress surrounded by a moat, where the lords lived.
Information for visitors
Interesting facts Lešná (zámek)
The first reconstruction took place at the turn of the 16th and 17th centuries and was carried out in the late Renaissance spirit. Since then, there has been a one-storey castle with four wings and a courtyard with arcades, until the second quarter of the 18th century, when it was remodeled in the Baroque style. Rudolf Podstatský from Prusinovice took care of the Baroque style. The manor used a total of thirteen rooms on the first floor and a new part intended for representation - piano nobile. The Podstat family from Prusinovice held Lešná in the years 1684 - 1740, other owners included, for example, the Bees family from Chrostina, the Pražm family from Bílkov and the Kinští family from Vchynice and Tetovo.
The surroundings were not left behind either, the foundations of the park were laid at the beginning of the 19th century, when an ornamental garden was created and woody plants, deciduous trees and conifers were planted. Kinští took part in the development of the chateau park and planted various exotic trees, established a fruit nursery, improved a nearby game park and even had three greenhouses built. From 1894, the castle had a new water supply, which led to other possibilities. A swimming pool with a fountain was built in front of the chateau, later two ponds, a pheasant house, a skittle alley and a tennis court were created.
The current appearance of the chateau dates back to the end of the 19th century, when the Kinští family ruled here from 1888. Lešná remained their seat until the end of World War II, after which the property was confiscated by the state. From 1948, the chateau became the seat of a kindergarten and burgher school, and from 1975 it belonged to the present-day Museum of the Wallachian Region with the park. At present, you can look at the rooms furnished with original furniture from the late 19th and early 20th centuries during the tour. There are also thematic exhibitions The Beauty of Wood in Arts and Crafts, the Castle Park as a Work of Man and Nature and The Life of a Tree and its Significance in the Landscape.
Author: Petra Nachtmanová