The ruins of Házmburk Castle

From 1335 until the middle of the 16th century, the castle was the property of the Zajíc family, but then it was abandoned and its importance gradually declined. The ruins of Hazmburk Castle were especially sought after during the Romantic period, for example by Svatopluk Čech or Karel Hynek Mácha and other romantics.

In the place of the later castle, there used to be a fortress or a smaller stone castle before, until the 14th century, when the Hares had a castle built here. The original castle was called Klepy and was built here by the lords of Lichtemburk. The first of the Zajíc family to own the castle was Zbyněk Zajíc of Valdek, to whom the castle was sold in 1335 by Jan Lucemburský. It was Zbyněk Zajíc from Valdek who renamed the castle Hasenburg (Hase = hare) after the family coat of arms, on which the hare motif was.

Over time, the castle underwent reconstruction and was extended by the eastern part of the top plain. During the Hussite battles, the castle was Catholic and at the same time the greatest support for King Sigismund was the troops from Hazmburk. The castle in nearby Libochovice was conquered by Jan Žižka's troops in 1424, and the Hussites also besieged Hazmburk, but without success. Another attempt by the Hussites to conquer the castle took place in 1429, but he resisted, as in the third of their attempts. Due to his impregnability, even the king's followers considered storing treasures from the church of St. Welcome.

Hazmburk Castle underwent the last building modifications in the period around 1459. Of the Zajíc family, the last owner of the castle was Kryštof Zajíc from Hazmburk, who sold it to the Lobkowitz family in 1558. Other owners of the castle were, for example, the Sternbergs, the Dietrichsteins or the Hebersteins, and in 1954 it was nationalized.

At the time, Hazmburk was one of the largest and strongest castles in the country. It occupies a strategic position on a basalt hill, making it virtually impregnable. It originally occupied an area of ​​approximately 130 x 70 m and was dominated by two towers, Black, 25 m high, which had an oval shape, and White, with a total height of 26 m and a prismatic shape. The core of the castle was a palace and two other palace buildings.

In 1994, remediation work began on the castle and the castle was also electrified. In 1996, the ruins of Hazmburk Castle were opened to the public and the White Tower offers a magical view of the surroundings and the Bohemian Central Mountains. You can see Milešovka, Kletečná and Lovoš well.

Author: Andrea Štyndlová