Chotoviny Castle Audio guide

Chotoviny Castle

The castle in Chotoviny is one of the most striking country residences in South Bohemia. Its present form dates from 1873, when the building was rebuilt in the neo-Renaissance style. But it builds on a much older history of the place, because the Vlkančice fortress once stood here, documented as early as the 13th century.

From fortress to noble residence

The estate changed hands often, and over the centuries its appearance changed as well. In the eighteenth century, Chotoviny was owned, among others, by the Nostic family, the Jesuits, and later Count Migazzi, who had the castle remodeled in the neoclassical style. It was only the Nádherný family of Borutín that gave the estate its present representative character and added a French park, later expanded with an English landscape design.

Neo-Renaissance rebuilding and modern history

In the second half of the nineteenth century, castle architecture in the Czech lands often drew inspiration from the Renaissance, which was seen as a style of cultural flourishing and social prestige. Chotoviny was no exception. The castle became a family seat, but in the twentieth century it changed its function, serving as a primary school from 1945 to 2001. Since 1958 it has been protected as a cultural monument.

An important episode was also the military maneuvers in 1903 and 1913, during which the heir to the throne, Franz Ferdinand d'Este, stayed at the castle. The building is not open to the public today, yet it remains an important witness to the changing life of noble residences, landownership, and the use of historic estates in the twentieth century.