Hořovice Castle is a

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

in the town of

Hořovice Hořovice (; german: Horschowitz, Horvitz, Horowitz) is a town in Beroun District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 6,900 inhabitants. Administrative parts Hořovice is made up of only one administrative part. His ...

in the

Central Bohemian Region The Central Bohemian Region ( cz, Středočeský kraj, german: Mittelböhmische Region) is an administrative unit ( cz, kraj) of the Czech Republic, located in the central part of its historical region of Bohemia. Its administrative centre is in ...

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 ...

History

It was built in two parts. The so-called "Old Castle" was built in the

Gothic style Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

in the 14th century, and the "New Castle" was radically rebuilt and extended in the first half of the 19th century under its owner Frederick William's orders and according to the plans of the Kassel architect Gottlob Engelhardt. The castle only got its final shape after further structural changes due to more refurbishings at the beginning of the 20th century, with furniture of the rooms and the interior being carried out in late

Neoclassical style Neoclassical architecture is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassicism, Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy and France. It became one of the most prominent architectural styles in the Western world. The pr ...

. The castle served as the primary residence of the Princes of Hanau, since 1867 until the end of the

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 ...

. They were the descendants of Friedrich Wilhelm I of Hesse from his morganatic marriage to Gertrude Lehmann, who was made Princess of Hanau and Horowitz (Hořovice).

Present

Today, the castle is owned by the state. The New Castle is open to the public and offers sightseeing tours. Since 2001, the castle has been protected as a national cultural monument. The courtyard enclosure is decorated with valuable sculptures by

Matthias Braun Matthias Bernard Braun (Czech: ''Matyáš Bernard Braun'', 24 February 1684 in Sautens near Innsbruck – 15 February 1738 in Prague) was a sculptor and carver active in the Czech lands, one of the most prominent late baroque style sculptors i ...

. The Old Castle houses the Police of the Czech Republic, the Municipal Library and the Information Centre, and offices of a family centre and of the Museum of the Bohemian Karst. A gallery and exposition of Hořovice Region Museum are also located there.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Horovice Castle Castles in the Central Bohemian Region Museums in the Central Bohemian Region National Cultural Monuments of the Czech Republic Historic house museums in the Czech Republic Beroun District