The Giant Mountains Castles, Chateaus, Strongholds

AICHELBURG
Ruins of a Romantic-style chateau on the right hand side bank of the Upa river in Temny dul. It was built by the order of the earl Bertold of Aichelburg's officers in 1863. The only object remaining is a 10 m high lookout tower.

BRECSTEJN
Ruins of a castle on a forest hill by the Hradecek community North ot Vlcice. Mentioned first in 1336 and denoted with the name Kamen. From 1543 onwards, it was intended to guard an ancient national pathway. Left at the end of 16. century.

HORNI MARSOV
The chateau was built by the order of Alfons Aichelburg in 1792. It is a single store building, with four wings and a central risolitto facade. The last restoration was carried out in 1952.

CHOJNIK (Poland)
It was mentioned for the first time by Slezian chronicles already in the mid 12. century when a hunting court was established on the site of an original castle. The castle was originally built by the order of Bolko I. in 1292 to protect the national borders. The castle underwent a reconstruction ordered by Bolko II. after 1355. The castle was sold to one of the courtiers, who was the knight Gotsche Schoff by Bolko II's wife Agnieszka after his death. The castle Chojnik remained a property of the Schoff family until 1635. It was not until 1650 that the castle had been purchased by Christoph Leopold Schaffgotsch. The castle burnt down completely after it had been struck by lightning in 1675 and it has never been reconstructed again.

THE CASTLE OF STEPANICE
Ruins ot a Gothic castle which was built on the side of the Pasecky hill probably at the beginning of 14. century by the order of Jan of Valdstejn. The castle served as a national boundary fortification to protect a Czech pathway to Slezia. The castle was left in 1524 when the aristocracy owning it moved to Jilemnice nearby. The ruins currently contain a four-sided barbican and a part of the rampart.

THE CHATEAU OF JILEMNICE
It was established by an aristocratic family from Ujezdec in 16. century. The chateau underwent a restoration in 1716, and it was transformed into a Pseudo-Renaissance style by a reconstruction in 1892. The one-store building with three wings and polygonal corner towers is situated in a large park. The building is nowadays a home of the museum of the Krkonose (with an exhibition on history of skiing in the Krkonose).

NISTEJKA
Ruins of a castle which was probably established in the first half of 14. century on a steep rock on the right hand side bank of the Jizera river. The castle was mentioned already in records trom 1369. It was evacuated in 1519. The only ruins left from the original building are the remainders of residential palace walls and a keep tower.

TRUTNOV
Originally a castle built in 13. century, rebuilt into a chateau in 1599, which then became a town property. Demolished by the Swedes in 1647 and transformed into a school in the middle of 19. century. The building is a property of the Museum of the Lower Krkonose Surroundings Region at present.

VLCICE
A Baroque-style chateau built in 1794-1797 by a dyer's son Jan Fr. Theer of Hostinné, who bought the Vlcice estate in 1790. The castle currently houses the State Breeding Institute.

VRCHLABI
The castle was built by the order of Krystof of Gendorf in about 1546. It is a two-store Renaissance building. There are four eight-sided corner towers. Instead of a courtyard in the centre ot the building, there is a large hall with a barrel vault. Four paintings on the walls depict the hunts of the last bears in the Krkonose in the period from 1665 to 1726.

THE CASTLE OF ZACLER
It was constructed by the order of the prince Sobeslav for the purpose of providing a national boundary protection in 1136. The knight Jan Kolda of Zampach, who was a thief used the castle as a starting base for his robbing expeditions to Slezia and Luzice, and as a consequence it was demolished by the order of the aristocracy of these two regions in 1523. The castle was re-established again later and donated to Jesuits from Vienna after its confiscation. About the year 1750, the castle underwent a Baroque-style reconstruction and was transformed into a chateau. The last amendments of the castle construction date from 1894.

THE STRONGHOLD OF HORNI BRANA
The stronghold had been originally placed by the building of what is now the castle until it was demolished in 16. century. A Renaissance chateau was built between 1533 and 1582 by the order of Zdenek of Valdstejn. The ownership of the castle was held by Vaclav since 1606. The last owner was the Harrach famlly, which held it until 1945.