Měšice Castle is a castle in

Tábor Tábor (; german: Tabor) is a town in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 33,000 inhabitants. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument reservation. Administrative parts The followi ...

in the

South Bohemian Region The South Bohemian Region ( cs, Jihočeský kraj; , ) is an administrative unit (''kraj'') of the Czech Republic, located mostly in the southern part of its historical land of Bohemia, with a small part in southwestern Moravia. The western part ...

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 ...

Location

Měšice Castle is located in the village of Měšice, which is an administrative part of

. It is situated along the

Chýnov Chýnov is a town in Tábor District in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,500 inhabitants. Administrative parts Villages of Dobronice u Chýnova, Kloužovice, Velmovice and Záhostice are administrative parts of Chýn ...

–

Pelhřimov Pelhřimov (german: Pilgrams) is a town in the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 16,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument reservation. Administrative parts The ...

road.

History

Over its 450-year history, the design of the castle has changed and evolved according to the times, tastes, requirements and finances of successive

aristocrats Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'. At the time of the word' ...

. The immediate environs of the castle is known as the Castle Park. In 1545, the knight Prokop of Hejlovec built a

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...

style

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...

in the village of Měšice. During this time, the villages of Měšice, Čekanice and Stoklasná Lhota all belonged to the Prokop family of Hejlovec. John Joseph Caretto, the Count of Mellisimo, rebuilt the manor house in 1699 into a Baroque castle. In 1792, John Hannygar of Eberg built special water toilets in the castle. These water toilets still work today. In 1817, John Schmidgräber of Lusteneg enlarged the building and, in the

Empire style The Empire style (, ''style Empire'') is an early-nineteenth-century design movement in architecture, furniture, other decorative arts, and the visual arts, representing the second phase of Neoclassicism. It flourished between 1800 and 1815 durin ...

, installed an ostentatious staircase and recreated the facade of the castle. After 1877, the castle belonged to the Nádherný family ( barons) of Borutín. Since 1997, the castle has been the property of Jan Berwid-Buquoy.

Tourism

There is a tour named "Living, Life and Work in the Château". The furniture that was owned by well-known personalities such

Aristide Briand Aristide Pierre Henri Briand (; 28 March 18627 March 1932) was a French statesman who served eleven terms as Prime Minister of France during the French Third Republic. He is mainly remembered for his focus on international issues and reconciliat ...

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

Jan Masaryk Jan Garrigue Masaryk (14 September 1886 – 10 March 1948) was a Czech diplomat and politician who served as the Foreign Minister of Czechoslovakia from 1940 to 1948. American journalist John Gunther described Masaryk as "a brave, honest, turbul ...

, Pierre Trudeau, Jan Bervida is exhibited, among others. Special exhibitions include: *"

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...

and His Times" - Policy, Economy (American historical shares belonging to well known personalities (including Kennedy, his brother

Robert F. Kennedy Robert Francis Kennedy (November 20, 1925June 6, 1968), also known by his initials RFK and by the nickname Bobby, was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 64th United States Attorney General from January 1961 to September 1964, ...

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

and James Dean) and Social affairs of the 40s, 50s and 60s in the United States. *"

Konrad Adenauer Konrad Hermann Joseph Adenauer (; 5 January 1876 – 19 April 1967) was a German statesman who served as the first chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany from 1949 to 1963. From 1946 to 1966, he was the first leader of the Christian Dem ...

- Politician, European and Humanist" - An exhibition about the first chancellor of the

Federal Republic of Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated between ...

. *"The

Occupation Occupation commonly refers to: *Occupation (human activity), or job, one's role in society, often a regular activity performed for payment *Occupation (protest), political demonstration by holding public or symbolic spaces *Military occupation, th ...

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

by the Soviet army on 21st August 1968" - Photos, stories and weapons.

Other

The castle is also the seat of the Czech Institute For International Meetings, which was founded in 2000 and its President is Jan Berwid-Buquoy.

References

Bibliography

*Cikhart, Roman: "Táborsko", Tábor 1921. *Pourová, Renata: "Hrady, zámky a tvrze, které přežily rok 2000 - Jihočeský kraj" (Castles, Chateaux and Fortresses Extant in the Year 2000 - The Region of Southern Bohemia), , České Budějovice 2006. {{DEFAULTSORT:Mesice Castle Tábor Castles in the South Bohemian Region