The Třeboň Castle

The Třeboň castle complex, below the dam of the fishpond Svět, is one of the largest in the Czech Republic. It is surrounded by the English style castle park, creating a pleasant green oasis in the middle of the city. The castle complex serves as a venue for a number of festivals and celebrations every year.

There are about one hundred and twenty rooms in the Třeboň castle. These are either historical Renaissance halls and chambers or modern rooms inhabited by the Schwarzenbergs up through the 20th century. A large National Regional Archive is situated in the castle, much sought after by researchers and students. The archive holds very unique and valuable collections of archival documents from the beginning of the 13th century until the present, mainly consisting of the unique Rožmberk archive, arranged by the Rožmberk archivist and librarian Václav Břežan at the end of the 16th century. You can pass through the castle park to access the permanent exhibition “Třeboňsko – Landscape and People”, classified within the national House of Nature network from the year 2000. (open from 9:00–5:00 p.m., from May to September daily except Mondays; tel.: +420 384 727 912; www.itrebon.cz).

Václav Březan, the librarian and archivist of the House of Rožmberk, looked after Peter Vok‘s library, one of the largest privately owned libraries in Central Europe. The library catalogue had four volumes and contained over 11 000 titles (the price for one book was 50 heads of cattle). The library was transferred to Prague on rafts on the Vltava River. In 1648 it was taken to Sweden as war loot by explicit request of the Queen Kristina. Today it can be found mostly in Uppsala in Sweden and in the Vatican. Václav Březan wrote “The History of the House of Rožmberk”.

The history of the castle and of Třeboň itself is closely connected with the noble families that owned the dominion over the years and centuries.

The Třeboň castle stands on the ruins of the original Gothic stone castle, almost destroyed by a fire in 1562. Vilém of Rožmberk assigned its reconstruction from a medieval castle to a Renaissance mansion to the Italian architect and builder Antonio Ericera (aka. Antonín Vlach). The Třeboň castle was completed by another Italian architect, Dominico Cometta, as the main domicile of Petr Vok of Rožmberk. His work includes a 110-meter long hallway leading from the original fortification to the Church of St. Jiljí. There is also a Baroque fountain based on the design of the famous Baroque architect Pavel Ignác Bayer. The Třeboň castle remained empty after the 1st World War, even serving as a hotel for a few years. During the 2nd World War it was occupied by the Gestapo. The castle became state property after 1947, together with the entire Schwarzenberg holdings.

The Rožmberk Renaissance interiors - tour A

The Rožmberk Renaissance interiors feature rooms associated with the personal and social life of the Rožmberk family. A number of interesting exhibits can be seen here such as the heraldry of the five noble families which owned Třeboň and the families they were related to. You can also see the picture of the White Lady, the original pottery and tin tableware, jewellery boxes, and walls painted by Tomáš Třebechovský. A favourite among visitors is “the fraucimor” (frauzimmer), a room where the ladies would pass their free time keeping company with the princess, or the alchemist laboratory that takes us back in time to remember the works of famous alchemists such as Dr. John Dee and Edward Kelly. A sign above the window in one of the rooms commemorates the death of Peter Vok, who passed away in the castle on November 6th of 1611.

The private Schwarzenberg chambers - tour B

The monumental Baroque architecture, the sobriety of the Empirical style and the playfulness of all the historical styles used literally breathes on us in the Schwarzenberg chambers. It is interesting to notice how the technical inventions and fashion of the day manifest themselves in the interior design of the bedrooms, chambers and work rooms, reflecting the progressive nature of the castle lords. The original interiors are complemented by collections of all kinds of paintings such as portraits and hunting scenes as well as valuable porcelains, crystal glass objects and the owners’ personal belongings (trophies from trips to Africa, etc.). We learn the names all the important members of the noble families, for example both Johann Adolf I and II, and Josef Adam.