Radyně Castle is a castle situated on a hill of the same name, near the town of

Starý Plzenec Starý Plzenec (; german: Altpilsen) is a town in Plzeň-City District in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 5,200 inhabitants. Administrative parts The village of Sedlec is an administrative part of Starý Plzenec. Geography ...

, in the

Plzeň Region Plzeň Region ( cs, Plzeňský kraj; german: Pilsner Region) is an administrative unit (''kraj'') in the western part of Bohemia in the Czech Republic. It is named after its capital Plzeň (English, german: Pilsen). In terms of area, Plzeň Reg ...

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 ...

. Radyně, like the similarly conceived Kašperk, represents the height of the 14th-century trend towards the merging of castle buildings.

History

When the castle of

fell into disrepair in the first half of the 13th century, it was necessary to build a new centre of royal power for the administration of the region of

Plzeň Plzeň (; German and English: Pilsen, in German ) is a city in the Czech Republic. About west of Prague in western Bohemia, it is the Statutory city (Czech Republic), fourth most populous city in the Czech Republic with about 169,000 inhabita ...

. Construction apparently began in 1353, during the rule of Charles IV, and was completed in 1361. The original name of ''Karlskrone'' (Charles' Crown) did not become commonly used in the district, and the castle gradually took the name of the hill on which it was built - Radyně. The burgraves who governed the region were based in Radyně, and by the end of the 15th century it had been acquired by the Sternberg family (1496–1561),Ehrenberger, Tomaš (2003), The 88 Most Beautiful Castles, Kartografie Praha a.s., pg. 118. who settled at the more comfortable castle at

Bechyně Bechyně (; german: Bechin, Beching or ''Bechingen'') is a town in Tábor District in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 4,900 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban ...

. Its counterpart at Radyně, which was accessible only with difficulty, started to fall into disrepair, and its fate was sealed in the first quarter of the 16th century when it was burned down. As early as 1558, record indicated that it was abandoned, and not even the affluent ''Černín'' of the ''Crudenice'' family, owners of the castle as well as the surrounding district in the 18th century, invested in repair work. The mysterious abandoned ruin had to wait until the coming of the

Romantic movement Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...

in the 19th century for more interest to be shown in it. Minor repairs and alterations were however destroyed by fire in 1886. In recent years, the castle has been progressively renovated, and a permanent exhibition devoted to its history can now be seen. The tower is open to visitors of the castle. Radyně Castle is also depicted on the theatre curtain of the Pilsener Theater, which was created by the painter

Augustin Němejc Augustin Němejc (15 March 1861, Nepomuk – 16 August 1938, Plzeň) was a Czech painter, known for his portrayals of village life and costumes from the Plzeň Region. Biography Němejc was born in Nepomuk in 1861, son of a butcher and brewer. In ...

between years 1899 and 1902. The

curtain A curtain is a piece of cloth or other material intended to block or obscure light, air drafts, or (in the case of a shower curtain), water. A curtain is also the movable screen or drape in a theatre that separates the stage from the auditorium ...

is one of the most beautiful and valuable in

Picture

File:Castle Radyně.jpg, Castle Radyně File:Radyně palác 5.jpg, Inside of castles palace File:Radyně ve věži 4.jpg, Window with bench in a square tower File:Radyně model 2.jpg, Modell of Castle from medieval times File:Augustin Němejc, opona plzeňského Velkého divadla, malovaná v letech 1899–1902.jpg, Castle Radyně on the Festive Curtain of Pilsener Theatre, painted by Augustin Němejc

References

External links

Radyně Castle
at Kudyznudy.com Plzeň-City District Castles in the Plzeň Region Tourist attractions in the Plzeň Region {{CzechRepublic-castle-stub

History

Picture

See also

References

External links