South of Prague

Two days after our visit to Průhonice, I was needed for some more logistical assistance, so we combined the drudgery with a few excursions. My dad and I drove to Konopiště Chateau, one of the most famous castles in Central Bohemia and noteworthy for a number of important residents. Konopiště was built in the late thirteenth century and has since gone through a number of renovations in various architectural styles. Its most famous residents included the Šternberks, Albrecht of Valdštějn, the Lobkovitces, and Franz Ferdinand. Frederick V of the Palatinate (the Winter King) briefly stayed at the castle during the Bohemian Revolt of 1618-20, the event that started the Thirty Years’ War.

On our way back to Prague, we made several stops. The first was at the castle Týnec nad Sázavou, a Romanesque tower appended to a small chapel, both of which look somewhat bizarre surrounded by village buildings around half the tower’s height. We were very surprised to see the beautiful sgraffitoed façade of a local house called U Micků, a building quite out of place with its glamour.

We also made an unplanned stop at the castle Zbořelý Kostelec, which appeared above a bend of the Sázava River as we were making our way north. The castle was destroyed in the lead-up to the Bohemian-Hungarian War during the late fifteenth century and has remained a ruin ever since. After seeing Zbořelý Kostelec, we briefly visited three more chateaus: Kamenice, Modletice, and Dobřejovice. Only the first of them has a Wikipedia page (albeit a very short one) and they are all in private hands, which is a testament to how unimportant they have been to Czech history. 

A house under the chateau Konopiště
The same
The same
Konopiště
Statue of Neptune
The Statues of Neptune and the Chapel of Virgin Mary of Lourdes
Konopiště
A peacock and a socialist realist statue honouring the Peasant Uprising of 1775
A tower of Konopiště
Konopiště chateau. In the foreground, statues covered for the winter
The chateau flanked by stone lions
Konopiště from afar
The house U Micků in Týnec nad Sázavou
U Micků and the town castle as seen from the town cemetery 
More of the same
The Týnec nad Sázavou Castle
U Micků
Zbořený Kostelec castle
Zbořený Kostelec above the Sázava river
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The Church of Saint Francis Seraph
Kamenice chateau
Modletice Chateau
Dobřejovice Chateau
More of the same
More of the same

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