Kynžvart Castle (German: Schloss Königswart) is a historic

château A château (; plural: châteaux) is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking regions. Nowaday ...

located near

Lázně Kynžvart Lázně Kynžvart (german: Bad Königswart, Königswart, Königswarte) is a spa town in Cheb District, Karlovy Vary Region, Czech Republic. It has about 1,400 inhabitants. It is known for the Kynžvart Castle. Lázně Kynžvart is famous for its s ...

in the

Cheb District Cheb District ( cs, okres Cheb) is a district (''okres'') within the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. Its capital is the town of Cheb. It is the most western District in the Czech Republic. List of municipalities Aš - Cheb - Dolní � ...

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 ...

. The building's architecture is in the neoclassical style. After extensive renovations, the castle was reopened to the public in 2000. A guided tour takes visitors through 25 rooms of the castle.

History

The first Schloss Königswart, built before 1600, collapsed. After the

Battle of White Mountain ), near Prague, Bohemian Confederation(present-day Czech Republic) , coordinates = , territory = , result = Imperial-Spanish victory , status = , combatants_header = , combatant1 = Catholic L ...

during the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (80 ...

, the remains of the castle were confiscated and by 1630 granted to the Metternich family. From 1682 to 1691, Count Philipp Emmerich von Metternich (1621-1698) turned the decayed ruins into a

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

residence. From 1821 to 1836, the

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n Chancellor

Klemens Wenzel von Metternich Klemens Wenzel Nepomuk Lothar, Prince of Metternich-Winneburg zu Beilstein ; german: Klemens Wenzel Nepomuk Lothar Fürst von Metternich-Winneburg zu Beilstein (15 May 1773 – 11 June 1859), known as Klemens von Metternich or Prince Metternic ...

remodeled the building in the neoclassical style with the help of architect Pietro Nobile. The castle was confiscated from the Metternich family in 1945 by the

Czechoslovak Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) **First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) **Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) **Fourth Czechoslovak Repub ...

government. The castle has a library that includes over 200 examples of

incunabula In the history of printing, an incunable or incunabulum (plural incunables or incunabula, respectively), is a book, pamphlet, or broadside that was printed in the earliest stages of printing in Europe, up to the year 1500. Incunabula were pro ...

, medieval manuscripts, valuable prints, scientific books, and scientific encyclopedias. In 1828, a museum was founded to display the castle's natural science collections, coins, historical and technological curiosities, manuscripts, ancient Egyptian monuments, marble sculptures, and pieces of Oriental art.

References

External links

Official website
(in Czech)
Kynžvart Castle information
Cheb District Castles in the Karlovy Vary Region Museums in the Karlovy Vary Region Historic house museums in the Czech Republic National Cultural Monuments of the Czech Republic {{CzechRepublic-castle-stub

History

See also

References

External links