Sychrov Castle can be found near village Sychrov

Sychrov

Sychrov is a village in Liberec Region of the Czech Republic. It has around 180 inhabitants.Villages Radostín, Sedlejovice, Třtí and Vrchovina are administrative parts of Sychrov.-History:...

 in the Liberec Region

Liberec Region

Liberec Region is an administrative unit of the Czech Republic, located in the northernmost part of its historical region of Bohemia. Region borders with Saxony, and Poland...

 of the Czech Republic

Czech Republic

The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

. It is unique example of Neo-Gothic castle from second half of 19th century. Large park surrounds the castle.

History

Since the 15th century, a fort existed in the place now occupied by Sychrov. During the years between 1690–93, a small baroque

Baroque

The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...

 castle was constructed here. In 1820 the castle was bought by the family of Rohan

Rohan (family)

The House of Rohan is a family of viscounts, later dukes and princes, coming from the locality of Rohan in Brittany. Their line descends from the viscounts of Porhoët and said to trace back to the legendary Conan Meriadoc. Through the Porhoët, the Rohan are related to the Dukes of Brittany, with...

, French aristocrats exiled by the French Revolution

French Revolution

The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...

 who decided to stay in the Austrian Empire. The 125-year-long ownership by the Rohans proved to be the most important in the castle's history. In 1945 the castle was nationalised because of the Beneš decrees

Beneš decrees

Decrees of the President of the Republic , more commonly known as the Beneš decrees, were a series of laws that were drafted by the Czechoslovak Government-in-Exile in the absence of the Czechoslovak parliament during the German occupation of Czechoslovakia in World War II and issued by President...

. Since 1950, it has been open to the public to a small extent. Since the 1970s, however, large parts of the castle were open to the public. Since the beginning of the 1990s, an extensive reconstruction and restoration of the castle exteriors, interiors, and the park have been under way, the object of which is to make Sychrov look as close to its original form at the time of its biggest boom- i.e. its condition in the second half of the 19th century- as possible. In 1995 it came under the protection of the state as national cultural heritage.

Architecture

A small, dilapidated, Baroque castle was rebuilt by the Rohans and finished in 1834. A second reconstruction (1847–62) put romantic neogothic style into the castle, and this style remains today. The reconstruction was carried out according to the plans of Bernard Grueber, and all works were facilitated by domestic artists and craftsmen. The owner paid specific attention to the Castle Park, designed in the English style. The park became a model for the establishment of many now-important arboreta such as in Průhonice and Konopiště. During this period, a rare harmonising of the castle exterior, interior, and the park was accomplished. During the late 1920s/early 1930s, the castle interior was renovated. Especially valuable are the interior carvings by Petr Bušek, who worked in the castle for 38 years.

Collections

The castle boasts a collection of around 250 portraits of the Rohans, related families, and French kings. It is the largest collection of French portrait paintings in Central Europe

Central Europe

Central Europe or alternatively Middle Europe is a region of the European continent lying between the variously defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe...

. Sychrov hosts unique glass paintings by Jan Zachariáš Quast.

The park

The English park

English Park

English Park is a multi-use stadium in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home stadium of Canterbury United. The stadium has a capacity of 9,000 people....

 has an area of 23 hectare

Hectare

The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...

s. The older, classical park was remodeled into the romantic style. Since botany was a hobby of the castle owner, the park received a lot of attention: there are rich dendrological and botanical collections. Unique beech

Beech

Beech is a genus of ten species of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia and North America.-Habit:...

 (Fagus silvatica Rohani) was cultivated in the park. See detailed description for more information.

Miscellaneous

The composer Antonín Dvořák

Antonín Dvorák

Antonín Leopold Dvořák was a Czech composer of late Romantic music, who employed the idioms of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia. Dvořák’s own style is sometimes called "romantic-classicist synthesis". His works include symphonic, choral and chamber music, concerti, operas and many...

visited the castle several times (he was a friend of its administrator) and several of his works were inspired by its beauty.

Today Sychrov is a popular place for wedding ceremonies.

External links

• Castle website (cz, en)
• History of the castle (cz)