Archbishop chateau in Kroměříž

In my post about Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach I mentioned the Archbishop chateau in Kroměříž and today I would like to tell you more about it.

Castles and chateaus are usually linked to the history of noble families but the chateau in Kroměříž used to be property of bishops and archbishops residing in about 50 kilometres distant Olomouc, they used the chateau for representative purposes.

The settlement Kroměříž became property of Olomouc episcopate way back in 1110. 150 years later it was declared a town, a castle was built there and all administration of the episcopate was brought there. In the first half of the sixteenth century the castle was remodelled into a renaissance chateau. Unfortunately, the town was destroyed by Swedish troops during the Thirty Years’ War in the seventeenth century and the chateau had to be built again.

From November 1848 to March 1849 the chateau hosted an important event – a session of the Imperial Diet of the Austrian Empire, which was relocated there from Vienna in the wake of a Vienna uprising. You can see the room where the deputies were sitting, the scheme of their seats, it all looks impressive.

I loved the chateau tower. Not only for the exhibition we saw there but also for the wonderful views of the town centre…

… which the tower offers after climbing those 206 stairs that lead upstairs.

In the chateau, there are several special collections of books, paintings, coins and sheets of music gathered and preserved throughout the centuries.

In 1998, the chateau, along with its gardens, was added to the UNESCO List of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage.

Well, I told you about the exhibition, I told you about the chateau, both of which surprised me pleasantly, but the actual reason why we came to Kroměříž was to visit another part of the chateau complex, the Flower Garden, and that is where I will take you in my next post. Stay tuned!