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
More of the same
The Church of Saint Francis Seraph
Kamenice chateau
Modletice Chateau
Dobřejovice Chateau
More of the same
More of the same

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