Říčany: A Thirteenth-Century Gothic Castle Ruin in Czechia
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 4.3
- Popularity
- Low
- Country
- Czechia
- Primary era
- Medieval
- External website
- Open
- Eras represented
- Medieval
- Civilizations
- Holy Roman Empire, Kingdom of Bohemia
- Site type
- Military
- Remains
- Castle
On this page9 sections
History
Říčany is a castle ruin in Czechia, built by a medieval Bohemian nobleman during the second half of the thirteenth century, probably shortly after 1260. First recorded in 1289, it was founded by Ondřej of Všechrom, the highest chamberlain of King Přemysl Otakar II. This senior court office managed the ruler’s chamber and household administration. After completing the castle, Ondřej became the founder of the Lords of Říčany, a Bohemian noble lineage.
A Noble Residence
From the beginning, Říčany was planned as a comfortable aristocratic residence as well as a fortified stronghold. Its large vaulted hall and carefully executed stonework indicate the resources of a highly important builder. The masonry details were probably produced by a royal building workshop, a group of craftsmen employed on projects commissioned by the ruler. With Vízmburk Castle, another thirteenth-century Bohemian aristocratic castle, Říčany represented a high point of noble castle architecture in that century. Its buildings were arranged around the perimeter of the enclosed core, creating a reduced version of the layout used at royal castles.
After Ondřej’s death, the castle remained with his descendants. After 1300, Oldřich of Říčany, the highest provincial judge, lived there. This office was one of the leading judicial positions in the medieval administration of Bohemia. Oldřich was later followed by his son, who transferred the castle and its surrounding property to Jimram of Průhonice, a relative from another branch of the Lords of Říčany.
Říčany in the Hussite Wars
Much later, Diviš of Průhonice, also known as Diviš of Říčany, became one of the opponents of the Hussites. The Hussites were a reform movement that arose in Bohemia from the teachings of Jan Hus. Prague forces therefore besieged Říčany, but the defenders surrendered after several days when a Táborite army led by Jan Žižka arrived. The Táborites were the radical military wing of the Hussite movement, while the Prague forces formed another Hussite faction.
Diviš offered the Prague forces a capitulation agreement, and they accepted terms that allowed the garrison to leave freely. Both sides then violated the agreement. Several Táborites entered the castle during the handover and began looting. Women from the garrison tried to hide valuables beneath several layers of clothing, but women accompanying the Táborite forces stripped them of the concealed goods. The Prague forces also seized 54 prisoners, including the castle owner and his family, probably because other members of the garrison had likewise attempted to break the terms.
Jan Žižka, a leading Hussite military commander, ordered nine Catholic priests to be burned at the castle. Hussite forces remained at Říčany after the surrender. When they departed, the castle passed to the Prague forces, after which its importance declined.
Abandonment and Protection
The Trčka family of Lípa acquired Říčany during the 1480s. After 1516, they allowed the castle to fall into disrepair, and a record from 1544 described it as abandoned. The ruin has been protected as a cultural monument of the Czech Republic since 1966.
Remains
Castle Layout and Surviving Core
The Gothic castle stood on a small promontory at an elevation of about 340 metres. Two ponds originally helped protect it, while the side facing the town was later defended by ditches that were subsequently filled in. Urban development has absorbed the former outer bailey, the area outside the inner castle that contained additional buildings and defenses, as well as part of the inner castle, the principal enclosed core.
The surviving remains in the central area include a well, part of the principal fortified tower, and two walls belonging to the western palace. Together, these fragments preserve the arrangement of a substantial thirteenth-century residential and defensive complex whose buildings stood around the perimeter.
Palace and Tower
Western Palace
The western palace had flat ceilings on its ground and first floors. Its second floor contained a hall covered by three bays of cross vaulting, a ceiling formed by intersecting barrel-vault sections, and was heated by a fireplace. Rooms on the first and second floors received light through paired windows with built-in window seats. At first-floor level, a gallery connected the courtyard side of the palace with adjacent buildings.
Fortified Tower
A fragment of the corner of the flat-ceilinged donjon survives within the castle core. A donjon was the principal fortified tower of a medieval castle and could combine defensive and residential functions. The tower fragment, together with the palace walls and surviving well, helps define the scale and character of Říčany’s former castle complex.
