Castle in Velké Losiny: A Renaissance Noble Residence in Czechia
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 4.6
- Popularity
- Medium
- Country
- Czechia
- Primary era
- Early Modern
- External website
- Open
- Eras represented
- Medieval, Early Modern, Modern
- Civilizations
- Habsburg, Holy Roman Empire
- Site type
- Domestic
- Remains
- Castle
On this page11 sections
History
Castle in Velké Losiny is a castle in Czechia, with a Renaissance residential core built around 1580–1589 and later Baroque and Empire-style additions. Its origins reach back to a Gothic water castle that stood on the site by the fifteenth century. The Moravian noble Žerotín family, also known as the Zierotins, later acquired and rebuilt the property.
From Fortress to Renaissance Residence
The original fortress had become neglected when it passed to the town of Šumperk in 1562. Seven years later, the rebuilt complex became the center of a large estate. Johann von Žerotín commissioned the Renaissance residential castle between 1580 and 1589, transforming the site from a defensive stronghold into a noble residence.
The Velké Losiny Witch Trials
After the Thirty Years’ War, a major European conflict that ended in 1648, the castle became associated with the Velké Losiny witch trials. These proceedings took place from 1678 to 1696 under Heinrich Franz Boblig von Edelstadt, an inquisitorial judge who investigated alleged religious offences and presided over the related hearings. The trials caused numerous deaths. Fifty-six victims came from Velké Losiny, while 100 people were burned in total.
Expansion and Liechtenstein Ownership
The complex was enlarged in 1693, when a French garden was added. In 1802, Ludvík Anton of the Žerotín family sold the indebted estate to the Liechtensteins, a major Central European princely family. During their ownership, the castle served as a family residence. Alois von und zu Liechtenstein chose it as his family’s permanent residence in 1908, and the family retained the property until 1945.
The Liechtenstein period brought further changes to the complex. A library wing was constructed, and the outer fortified courtyard was remodelled in the Empire style, a Neoclassical style associated with the Napoleonic era and the early nineteenth century. In 1945, the Liechtenstein family was expropriated and the castle passed into state ownership. The arcades of the upper castle underwent general reconstruction from 1964 to 1966.
The Czech Republic is the current owner, with management entrusted to the National Heritage Institute. The castle complex has been protected as a cultural monument since 1995 and has also been declared a national cultural monument. Several rooms are used as an art gallery.
Remains
Renaissance Core and Courtyard
The castle stands within a large estate south of Velké Losiny. Its Renaissance core is arranged around a large quadrangular courtyard bordered by arcades. The exterior walls are richly covered with sgraffito, a decorative technique made by cutting through contrasting surface layers to reveal the layer beneath. Inside the courtyard, the arcades have rusticated arches whose forms anticipate later Baroque architecture. Tiled stoves from the Renaissance construction period also survive.
Chapels and Historic Interiors
West Wing Chapels
The west wing contains two chapels, the Chapel of Saint Angelo and the Chapel of the Virgin Mary. Johann Christoph Handke painted both chapels in 1742, adding an eighteenth-century layer to the earlier Renaissance complex.
Halls and Decorative Features
Important interiors include a dining hall, a knights’ hall with an elaborate coffered ceiling, and an ancestral hall containing portraits of important members of the Žerotín family. A coffered ceiling is divided into recessed decorative panels arranged in a regular geometric pattern. The interiors are well preserved and include tapestries.
Collections and Later Wings
The castle houses paintings by Italian, Flemish, and Dutch masters, together with a collection of arms. The library wing forms part of the later additions made to the complex during Liechtenstein ownership.
Park and Garden
The grounds include a French garden added during the expansion of 1693 and a park designed as a natural English landscape. The park contains a pond and numerous tree species, particularly conifers, extending the architectural complex into its surrounding estate.
Nearby sites
