Konopiště

Konopiste chateau was founded as a gothic fortress after the French type (stronghold) at the end of 1294, probably by Prague Bishop Tobias of Benesov. The castle was remodeled in the Renaissance style and then rebuilt into a Baroque chateau by Vrtbas of Vrtba in the 18th century.

Archduke Franz Ferdinand d'Este (from 1896 the successor to the Habsburg throne, with his wife Sophie assassinated in Sarajevo in 1914) bought the chateau from Lobkowitzs in 1887 and rebuilt it for a grand seat of the future emperor. The Archduke transformed the surrounding area into a landscape park and founded a rose garden with greenhouses in places of former baroque garden. He decorated interiors of the chateau with his extensive collections, which he inherited from his Italian ancestors, or he collected himself.

In 1921, the Czechoslovak state took over the chateau with the park from archduke´s heirs and the chateau was partially opened to the public. At World War II, headquarters of the SS were placed there. After the liberation the Konopiste Chateau was again made available to the public.

The chateau has kept in the form it had during the last reconstruction for Archduke Franz Ferdinand d'Este. The interior equipment remained the same as at the time when the chateau was inhabited by Franz Ferdinand and his family. Visitors can view staterooms, private rooms belonging to F. F. d´Este, chateau collections (armory, library, chapel, etc.), a gallery, St. George museum, and a shooting gallery.


Tour to Konopiste Chateau