Many people marvel at European historical sites. Few realise that what we see today may be quite different from what was in use. People restored, rebuilt or enhanced many sites over the years. Sometimes the restoration and re-imagining of some historical sites is a crucial part of the story. This article explains the changes in Bouzov castle, in Czechia.

Original

At some point between 1337 and 1339 a nobleman Buz of Bouzov¹ built a castle along the trade route running through the Trebuvka valley^{2 3}. This trade route linked the city of Olomouc in the east and Bohemia in the west¹. He owned much of the neighbouring land and estate so this was a logical choice for him². He built a castle out of wood², which was not uncommon in those days, but wood was also falling out of fashion.

Valečov castle is a stone Czech castle; unusual at a time when timber was more common.

A few decades later the Wildenberg family rebuilt it in stone and enhanced the living space^{1 2}.  By the end of the century the Moravian margate Jost took the castle over². He wanted to reinforce the defensive elements of the castle². He fought his brother for the right to reign over Moravia² so this influenced his design choices.

The castle changed hands over the years, each family adding or enhancing something. It burned down and was rebuilt a few times too. In 1696 Count František Josef Filip sold the castle complex and estate to the Teutonic Knights^{1 2 3}. They held on to it for two centuries until the Grand Master of the Order of the Teutonic Knights was none other than Austrian Archduke Eugene Ferdinand Pius Bernard Felix Maria Hapsburg^{1 2}.

Changes

The Archduke was a lover of history and art, as well as being a military man^{1 2}. He took it upon himself to rebuild and reconstruct the castle in the spirit of mediaeval castles^{1 2}. He wanted the castle to be more than the seat of the Order, but to also be a representative museum².

Between 1896 and 1912, this magnificent reconstruction took place². Hapsburg invested 20 million sovereigns in the castle structure and the interiors^{2 3}. The furnishings were either ordered to measure, bought or imported from other buildings which the Order owned^{1 2}. He maintained original defensive features like hoardings. He even found some hidden under floorboards¹!

The art represents Eugene’s tastes and the Order as well as the history of the castle, with many portraits of grandmasters lining the walls¹.

Significance

A lot of research went into the furnishings and items that he bought for the castle⁴. Hapsburg’s intent was to make sure that the new changes he introduced reflected the castle’s rich tapestry of history⁴.

He had this in mind when he worked on reconstructing the castle as well so the current layout harks back to previous designs too⁴. Today this is a careful and loving reflection of its past and its place in Czech history.

This makes the castle one of the most beautiful ones in the country.

1. Castle tour; Undertaken by author on 2019-08-11[↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩]
2. Hrad Bouzov; Jíří Marek, Zuzana Marková, Jitka Zatloukalová; Olomouc 2007[↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩]
3. About the castle; Castle website; (Retrieved 2020-03-28) [↩][↩][↩]
4. Hrad Bouzov; Jíří Marek, Zuzana Marková, Jitka Zatloukalová; Olomouc 2007[↩][↩][↩]