Location: Boskovice, South Moravia Map
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Boskovice are the ruins of a castle above the town of the same name in the district of Blansko in the South Moravian Region. It is located on the western edge of the Drahan Highlands at an altitude of 448 meters. The castle hill with the ruins is the dominant feature of Boskovice and provides a view of the surrounding landscape. The area of Boskovice Castle covers an area of 64 ares, making it one of the largest castle ruins in Moravia. Since 1964, the ruins of Boskovice Castle have been protected as a cultural monument.
Boskovice Castle situated in the city of Boscovice South Moravia in Czech Republic. Unlike other castles in the country Boskovice fortress was abandoned and wasn't reconstructed since it lost its strategic value. As a result it kept much of its original medieval charm and appearance. Boskovice Castle was originally constructed in the 13th century probably by Jimram Boskovic. In 1312 the owner of the castle, Arkleb Boscovich rebelled against John of Luxembourg. The citadel was subsequently taken by the king's soldiers. A year later the castle was returned to Arkleb and forgiven. The noble increased his mansion and improved its defences considerably. During the Hussite Wars the fortress of Boskovice changed hand repeatedly. The last owner from the Boscovice clan participated in many campaigns against the Ottoman Turks. He exhausted much of his wealth on military expanses and had to sell Boscovice castle to Simon Eder Štiavnica in 1547. His son Vit Stiavnica sold it to Jaros Zastrizl. In the middle of the 16th century lords of Zástrizl undertook reconstruction that gave castle a Renaissance appearance. Over time the citadel lost any military use and its structures served local needs of farmers. The castle was abandoned in the 18th century. Its roof was torn off and much of the masonry was used to construct the buildings in the area. Today the castle is in possession of the Mensdorff- Pouilly and is open to the public.
Foundation of the castle
The legend about the foundation of
Boskovice Castle is one of the oldest preserved legends in the region.
It was recorded by Bartolomej Paprocký in his book Zrcadlo sleného
Margrave of Moravia published in 1593 in Brno.
According to
legend, the founder of the castle was the birder Velen, who entertained
and let an unknown guest spend the night at his place, in fact a
Moravian prince who had lost his way on a hunt. The grateful prince
invited Velen to Špilberk Castle, reciprocated his hospitality and
elevated him to nobility as a reward. He put a white seven-toothed comb
in a red field into his coat of arms, because with this comb Velen
combed the prince's washed hair when he hosted him. He also dedicated a
large area to him, where he began to build a castle on one of the hills
of Velen. Velen didn't know what to name the castle for a long time, but
after tripping over the threshold in the castle chamber and stubbing his
toe, he wailed "I'll never walk in the bosko-more." And so the castle
was named Boskovice. Also, the town that arose under the castle began to
be called this way.
Lords of Boskovice (1222–1389)
The castle
was probably founded in the first half of the 13th century (the first
written mention of the Boskovice castle, however, dates back to 1312).
In 1222, a nobleman named Jimram from Boskovice is known (mentioned in a
document of the Czech king Přemysl Otakar I.), who, however, apparently
resided at a fortified residence that stood at a place called Bašta, or
possibly somewhere else. After him, the castle was owned by his son
Lambert from Boskovice, who founded a Minorite monastery in Brno in
1230. In the years 1250–1255, the sons of Lambert, Velen and Jimram from
Boskovice are named in the documents.
The next mention of the
family of the lords of Boskovice dates back to 1297 and refers to
Oldřich of Boskovice, who was under King Wenceslas II. appointed royal
governor in Poland. The original Boskovice castle was probably conquered
in 1312 by the army of King John of Luxembourg, during his campaign in
Moravia, against rebellious nobles. Among them was the owner of the
castle and the local manor Arkleb from Boskovice. At the intercession of
the estate (including Jindřich of Lipé, Oldřich of Lichtenburg), the
king forgave Arkleb and returned his property to him in 1313. He built a
new residence on the site of the current castle, also restored the
burnt-out Minorite monastery in Brno and, among other things, obtained
the title of Olomouc chamberlain. He died in 1342 and his son Ješek from
Boskovic took over the estate after him. He was an important figure at
the court of the Moravian margrave Jan Jindřich. In 1353, he was elected
the highest chamberlain of the Moravian regional court. Under Ješek from
Boskovice, the estates of the family of lords from Boskovice multiplied.
Ješek acquired the castle in Černá Hora. Ješek died in 1363 and his son
Oldřich z Boskovice became the heir to the Boskovice estate, historical
reports about him are fragmentary and often diverge, not even the date
of death is certain (the years 1389, 1400, 1407 are given).
In
the Moravian margrave wars, which took place at the end of the 14th
century and the beginning of the 15th century, Oldřich's son, owner of
Boskovice, Vraní Hora and Vícov castles, Jan Ozor of Boskovice, stood
against Margrave Jošt. Jan Ozor from Boskovice stood on the side of the
younger Margrave Prokop and destroyed the property of his older brother
Jošt. Which resulted in a punitive expedition, which Margrave Jošt
undertook in 1389 against Jan Ozor's castles. All the castles were
conquered and Jan Ozor from Boskovice died while defending his
residential castle Boskovice. Other literature states that he should not
have died until 1401.
Lords of Kunštát and Poděbrady (1398–1458)
Margrave Jošt seized the destroyed castle and in 1398 assigned it to his
partisan and negotiator Erhart of Kunštát with permission to restore it.
Erhart of Kunštát acquired considerable property during the Moravian
margrave wars, apart from the Boskovice estate it was also Bouzov
castle, later he acquired property in Bechyna in South Bohemia and also
Malenovice castle in the Zlín region. Erhart the Elder from Kunštát died
in 1406 and bequeathed eight castles, three cities, eight towns and 160
villages to his son Erhart the Younger from Kunštát. Erhart the younger
from Kunštát died in 1414 without leaving any descendants. With it, the
Kunštát branch died out and the property passed into the hands of the
Poděbrady branch.
At the beginning of the Hussite wars, Boskovice
was held by Viktorín Boček from Kunštát and Poděbrady, who was an
important commander of the Hussite troops and the father of the later
Czech king Jiří of Poděbrady. Viktorín was close to Jan Žižek, according
to historical sources he was one of the executors of Žižek's last will.
At the beginning of the Hussite Wars, the Boskovic Castle was apparently
conquered and occupied by the troops of Bishop Jan Železný, who was a
fundamental opponent of the teachings of Master Jan Hus (he participated
as Hus' accuser in the Council of Constance). After the outbreak of the
Hussite wars, he became one of the arch-enemies of the Hussites. He led
his troops into battle on horseback in armor, which is why he was
nicknamed Iron. He was hated in Bohemia, and the Kalisz nobility looted
his estates. As a result of his fight against the Hussites in Moravia,
Hussites did not take such roots as in Bohemia. In 1423, the Hussites
organized an expedition to Moravia against him, and the following year,
1424, the Boskovice castle was conquered again by the Hussites and then
remained in the hands of the lords of Kunštát.
In 1437, the
Boskovice estate and the castle passed into the ownership of Jiří z
Poděbrady.
Lords of Boskovice (1458–1547)
In 1458, Jiří z
Poděbrady returned the Boskovice manor with the castle as payment of
debts to Vaňko Černohorský the younger from Boskovice. And so Boskovice
Castle returned to the hands of the original owners, the lords of
Boskovice. Vaněk moved in high politics, reached the position of the
highest chamberlain of the Moravian regional court and worked close to
the Czech king Ladislav Pohrobek. He accompanied his sister Elizabeth to
the wedding of the Polish king Casimir. Vaněk also participated in the
battles against the Turks, who threatened Europe. He managed to expand
his possessions by the castles of Cimburk, Louka and also owned
Letovice. Vaněk Černohorský died in 1465 or 1466, and the estate of
Boskovice was acquired by his eldest son Václav z Boskovice, who held
the positions of chamberlain of the Olomouc court and provincial
governor. After his death in 1482, his son Jaroslav z Boskovice took
over the ancestral seat in Boskovice. He became a follower of the
Hungarian king during the war between George of Poděbrady and Matthias
Corvín. He made a huge career in the service of Matyáš Corvín and became
Matyáš's privy councilor and chancellor. His bright future was thwarted
by a cannonball that flew into the tent of King Matthias during the
siege of Ebersdorf Castle in January 1485. Jaroslav was accused of
treason, tortured and shortly afterwards executed in Vienna.
After Jaroslav of Boskovice, his brother Ladislav Velen of Boskovice
took over the family estate, who became one of the most prominent
figures of the family of lords of Boskovice. He was a very educated man,
his uncle, Olomouc bishop Tas z Boskovic, had a hand in his education.
Ladislav studied at universities in Italy, where he got acquainted with
art and classical literature. He liked history, geography, physics,
excelled in Latin and Greek, wrote books and poems. On his travels he
visited Italy, Africa and the Near East. He brought back many art
objects, rare manuscripts and instruments from his travels. After
returning from studies and travels, he embarked on a spiritual path. In
1480 he became a canon in Olomouc. After the violent death of his
brother Jaroslav of Boskovice, he was released from the priesthood at
his request and took over the management of the family property.
Ladislav gradually moved his residence to Moravská Třebová (he was also
referred to by the surname Třebovský), where he had a Renaissance castle
built, which included one of the largest libraries in Bohemia and
Moravia at the time. The castle also hosted the Czech King Vladislav II.
Ladislav of Boskovic was one of the most influential men in the Czech
lands, he held the office of the highest chamberlain in the years
1496–1506 and then again from 1516 until his death. He supported
construction activities in Moravská Třebová, Boskovice and Chornice. For
his merits, he received from King Vladislav II. Úsov Castle and the town
of Litovel. His estate had an area of 190,000 acres. Ladislav Velen from
Boskovice died in 1520 in Letovice.
In 1527, the wife of Ladislav
from Boskovice, Magdalena Berková from Dubá, sold her share in the
administration of the Boskovice estate to her son Kryštof from
Boskovice. He, like his father, also held the high offices of supreme
chamberlain and Moravian provincial governor. During his tenure,
extensive structural modifications were carried out at Boskovice Castle.
The costs of repairing the castle, but especially his organizing an
expedition to Hungary to defend against the Turkish danger, exhausted
him financially. In 1544, he therefore sold the estate of Letovice. A
year later, he used the money collected to finance the purchase of the
Sovanova estate. But in 1547 he was forced to sell the ancestral seat of
the lords of Boskovice with the town and many villages of the extensive
estate to the wealthy mining entrepreneur Šimon Eder from Štiavnice. In
addition, he also sold the Cimburk castle with its estate, Úsov and
Litovel. Kryštof of Boskovic died three years later in 1550.
The
Eder family from Štiavnice (1547–1567)
The Eders from Štiavnice came
from the Slovak town of the same name, which was located in Royal
Hungary. They were originally a mining bourgeois family. Šimon Eder got
rich mining ores and was knighted in 1545. He held the office of royal
governor in Moravia. During his tenure, the reconstruction of the castle
in the Renaissance style began. He also tried to mine ores on the
Boskovice estate, specifically in the hill opposite the castle, which
local rumors said contained gold. But mining was unsuccessful. According
to legend, they discovered only a few lumps of gold during mining, which
were enough to mint one coin, and that is why the hill opposite the
castle was called Zlatník. Šimon Eder did not stay long in Boskovice,
and when he died in 1567, his son Vít Eder sold the Boskovice estate to
Jaroš from Zástřizl.
Lords of Zástřízl (1567–1690)
Jaroš from
Zástřizl continued the work of the Eders at the castle. He built the
renaissance bell tower and the new portal of the main gate, on which the
carved Zástřízl coat of arms can still be seen today. He was married
twice and had seventeen children. He greatly supported the Brethren
Unity financially and donated a house in Roženná Street. He died in 1583
and is buried in the church of St. Jakub in Boskovice.
After
Jaroš from Zástřizl, his eldest son Václav the elder Morkovský from
Zástřizl takes over the estate, he completed the rebuilding of the
Boskovice castle in the Renaissance style, among other things he built a
large armory here and the large local library became famous. He died
childless in 1600 and left the estate in debt to his wife Kunce z
Korotín, after her death in 1607 Bohuše ze Zástřizl, brother of Jaroš ze
Zástřizl, became the new owner. Bohuš from Zástřizl was elevated to
lordship status in 1606.
After the death of Bohuš from Zástřizl
in 1612, the estate was acquired by Václav the Younger Morkovský from
Zástřizl, who was a regional judge. Václav the Younger renounced the
faith of his ancestors and converted to Catholicism, which he tried to
support on his estate by inviting the Catholic priest Jan Sarkander and
the Jesuits here in 1613. The results of their work were insignificant,
and therefore they left Boskovice after two years. During the estate
uprising, Václav Jr. Morkovský of Zástřizl temporarily joined the estate
opposition, but after the defeat of the estates, he switched to the
imperial side. From 1632, the estate was managed by the widow of Václav
the Younger Morkovský from Zástřízl, Alžběta Pruskovská from Pruskov,
and Jan Bohuše from Zástřizl took over the estate in poor condition
after the Thirty Years' War in 1647. He built a Dominican monastery and
a manor brewery in the city. He died childless in 1687 and with him the
Zástřízl family died out by the sword.
The Dietrichsteins
(1690–1856)
In 1690, the widow of Jan Bohuš from Zástřizl, Zuzana
Prakšická from Zástřizl, married Walter Xaver from Ditrichštejn
(1664–1738), who was 26 years younger, and thus drove out the Boskovice
estate and the castle. Walter Xaver from Ditrichtštejn was the last
owner who lived in the castle until 1720. Since the castle no longer met
the requirements for housing at that time, Walter Xaver from
Ditrichtštejn had a new residence built in the Baroque style. This
became the so-called residence on Hradní street, which was completed in
1728. The castle itself was then used for economic purposes or as an
office, from 1733 only the forester lived here. In the 1830s, the roof
was torn off and the castle gradually began to deteriorate and became a
source of building stone for the construction of buildings in Boskovice.
It was completely abandoned in 1784. Walter Xaver from Ditrichštejn died
in 1738, and his younger son Jan Leopold from Ditrichštejn was the heir.
The last Ditrichtštejn on the Boskovice estate František Xaver from
Ditrichštejn built an empire-style castle and a greenhouse in Boskovice,
as well as the Na Rovné summer house. He died in 1850 and the Bosko
branch of the Ditrichštejn died by the sword. The Boskovice estate
gradually fell to his daughters Maria and Terezia.
Mensdorff-Pouilly
In 1843, the heiress of the Boskovice estate,
Terezia from Ditrichštejn, married Count Alfons Mensdorff-Pouilly. In
1856, Thérèse died, and her inheritance thus became the property of the
Mensdorff-Pouilly family until 1950, when all the property, including
the castle, was confiscated from the family by the communist
authorities. The Mensdorff-Pouilly family got it back in 1991 as part of
restitution and still owns it.
Well
The castle has a 26-meter-deep well with a pedal mechanism
from the 16th century, the only functioning one in the republic. A
wooden well with a pedal wheel is a construction-technical rarity.
Originally, two shackles were rotated counter-clockwise on the shaft. A
wheel with a diameter of 3.6 meters is used to drive the well. This well
used to be a passage cut in the rock connected to a well on the outside
of the walls. The water supply was disrupted, the external well was
filled in and the water no longer flows here.
Bastion
The
nearby bastion is closely connected to the castle. It is probably an
advanced fortification, created in the 15th and 16th centuries. The
exceptionally large fortifications matched the size of the castle
itself. Older researchers considered it, without proof, to be the
original castle of the Boskovic family. Other, also unfounded
hypotheses, claim that the bastion was founded in the 13th century,
others claim that it was already in the 11th century. Not even with
extinction are there united opinions. Mentions of the ruins appear in
writings from 1567, but also in 1423. In 1703, when threatened by the
invasion of the Kurucs from Hungary, the bastion was temporarily
fortified.
Castle in the movie
In 1987, footage from the
co-production miniseries Teta was filmed here. In 1993, scenes from the
fairy tale Seven Crows were filmed at the castle. The crime series
Labyrinth and the comedy Martin and Venus were also filmed here.