Landštejn

Landštejn Castle is a massive fortress built in the early 12th century, it is located in the southern Czech Republic. The structure was first mentioned in 1231. At the time, it was the biggest Romanesque castle in the Czech lands. To this day, it remains one of the oldest and best preserved structures in Europe. The two massive towers are connected with a wall defining the upper castle and its courtyard. The six story southern tower is the main tower and it is still fully preserved, including a gate in the western wall.

History

The view on Landštejn as an Austrian defence stronghold was changed by new archaeological finds. Evidence of an even older castle was found under Landštejn in Pomezí, and perhaps the Landštejn of today was built by Moravian Přemyslides as their military base.When and how the Vítkovici gained Landštejn is not in the records. The Lords of Landštejn won more and more political influence through their personal bravery. Under Vilém of Landštejn their estates, besides the castle and Nová Bystřice, included Třeboň, Lomnice and Nové Hrady. After initial disagreement Vilém accepted a feudal obligation in 1317 and became adviser to King John of Luxemburg. He was on friendly terms also with King Charles IV who supported him in his bloody conflict with a militant distant relative, Jindřich of Hradec.

In 1381 Konrád Krajíř of Krajka obtained the estate and his family kept it for nearly two centuries. They strengthened the fortifications substantially and built new palaces round the five-cornered courtyard. In 1579 the last member of the Krajíř family, Anna Roupovská, sold Landštejn to ~těpán of Eincing and after that, owners came in quick succession. The Herbersteins owned the castle from 1685 till 1816 when the last member of the family, Count Josef died. In 1771 lightning struck one of the towers and the castle was burnt out. It fell into ruin and provided building material for the local population. The long struggle over inheritance ended in 1846 when the abandoned castle fell to Baron Ferdinand Sternbach.

The German poet, Friedrich Schiller, was enchanted by its thick walls and laid the scene of his play "The Robbers" in the surrounding forests.

Today Landštejn is one of the best - preserved examples of medieval fortification systems. The oldest, Romanesque part with a palace built in between two defense towers is unique in Bohemia. The later completion of the Gothic defense system with living quarters in the donjon gave the castle another courtyard. The lofty Renaissance palace of the Krajíř family and Baroque artillery bastions ended the building styles carried out in four stages of development.

Family curse

The ancestress of the Landštejn family was also called the White Lady. She is said to have punished all her descendants who did not keep the Lord's Commandments by giving them a bad illness. When she was exorcized from Landštejn, she moved to Borotín near Tábor and put a curse on the Lords of Landštejn. And therefore, it is said, the powerful and famous family perished.