Grabštejn (german: Grafenstein) is a castle in

Chotyně Chotyně (german: Ketten) is a municipality and village in Liberec District in the Liberec Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,100 inhabitants. It is known for the Grabštejn Castle. Administrative parts The village of Grabštejn is an ad ...

in the

Liberec Region Liberec Region ( cs, Liberecký kraj, german: Reichenberger Region, pl, Kraj liberecki) is an administrative unit (Czech: ''kraj'') of the Czech Republic, located in the northernmost part of its historical region of Bohemia. It is named after i ...

of the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

. Originally a Gothic castle, it was rebuilt in the Renaissance style and later modified in the late Baroque and late Neoclassical styles. It belongs among the most important monuments of the Liberec Region.

History

The original Gothic castle of Grafenstein was founded in the 13th century. In 1562, it was bought by

Crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...

Chancellor Georg Mehl von Strelitz. Between 1566 and 1586, he had rebuilt the castle in the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

style and thus turned it into a representative castle. Georg Mehl also had a steward's house built below the castle, which was around the year 1830 rebuilt in the Neoclassical style. Shortly before that – around 1818 – Christian of Clam-Gallas had built the New Castle near the Old Castle. The new building was surrounded by a large garden with a number of valuable plants. The Old Castle has preserved its original Renaissance appearance despite a fire which damaged its upper floors in 1843. The House of Clam-Gallas owned Grabštejn from 1704 until it was confiscated in 1945. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the castle was open to the public, but in 1953, the whole castle complex was taken over by the Ministry of Defence. The Old Castle's condition significantly deteriorated after the army left in the late 1980s. Today the castle is owned by the state and offers guided tours. Repairs and restorations began in 1989. Nowadays, Grabštejn is one of the best restored monuments of great importance in the Czech Republic. The castle was opened to the public again in 1993. The tower offers a marvellous view of the three-border-triangle, the castle's northern wing, and the vault. The most touristically attractive part of the castle interior is the St. Barbara chapel decorated with Renaissance fresco paintings from the 16th century. All parts of the ceiling and walls are ornamented in with interlaced figural, animal, and heraldic motifs. Grabštejn Castle belongs among the most important monuments in the Liberec Region. Since 2008, it has been protected as a national cultural monument.

Gallery

Svata_barbora.jpg, St. Barbara chapel Grabstejnmazhaus.JPG, Entrance hall Grabštejn-místnost s krbem 4.jpg, Room with fireplace Grabštejn_Castle_-_courtyard.jpg, Courtyard

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Grabstejn Castles in the Liberec Region Museums in the Liberec Region Historic house museums in the Czech Republic National Cultural Monuments of the Czech Republic

History

See also

Gallery

References

External links