Čekyně Castle (Přerov)

Čekyně Castle is a Renaissance manor house perched on the edge of a hillside above the village of Čekyně, now a district of the Moravian town of Přerov in the Czech Republic. A stone staircase climbs up to it from the village below, and its four-wing layout, built around an arcaded courtyard, makes it one of the lesser-known but architecturally distinctive Renaissance residences of the Přerov area.

How old is the settlement of Čekyně?

The village is first mentioned in written records in 1318. Long before today's castle appeared, the site held a Gothic fortified manor house (a "tvrz"), built around the middle of the 14th century.

Who held the estate in the Middle Ages?

In 1368 the tvrz belonged to brothers Zdeněk and Protivec of Čekyně, members of the local lesser nobility who kept the property until 1447, when it passed to Jan Múkař of Kokory. From at least 1498 the estate was held by Vilém and Kuneš of Vrchlabí, whose family retained it until 1581, when it was bought by Tas Podstatský of Prusinovice.

When was the current Renaissance castle built?

Tas Podstatský's son, Tas Václav Podstatský, replaced the old tvrz with a four-wing Renaissance castle in 1618. It was this branch of the Podstatský family that reshaped the building into the form recognisable today — as late as 1602 records still describe the site simply as a tvrz, so the transformation into a proper residence took place in the early decades of the 17th century. The courtyard gained arcaded galleries, and the entrance is marked by an ornately carved, rusticated portal that still signals the ambitions of its Renaissance builders. The rebuilding also closed the courtyard into a continuous ring of construction, replacing the earlier Gothic defensive walls. The Podstatský family additionally founded a chapel dedicated to St Anne within the castle grounds.

Did the castle survive the Thirty Years' War?

Not unscathed. In 1642, Swedish troops occupying nearby Přerov raided Čekyně and left it devastated. The toll was severe: before the war the village counted 29 houses and roughly 203 inhabitants; afterwards only 7 houses and 49 residents remained. Further significant alterations to the building, focused mainly on its south wing, followed only in the 18th century.

Who owned the castle in more recent times?

In 1835 the estate passed to the Eichhoff family, who held it until 1925. From that point on, the castle building was repurposed for agricultural and estate-management use.

Can visitors tour the castle today?

No. Čekyně Castle remains in private ownership and is closed to the public — there are no regular tours or exhibitions inside. Visitors can, however, approach on foot via the staircase leading up from the village and view the exterior from the surrounding grounds.

Frequently asked questions

Is Čekyně Castle open to tourists? No, it is privately owned and its interior is not open for visits.

How old is the castle? The village of Čekyně has been documented since 1318, an earlier fortified manor stood here from the mid-14th century, and the present Renaissance castle was built in 1618 — making it over 400 years old.

Who built the castle in its current form? Tas Václav Podstatský of Prusinovice built the four-wing Renaissance castle in 1618, on the site of an older Gothic tvrz.

Was the castle damaged during any wars? Yes. In 1642, during the Thirty Years' War, Swedish troops raided the village and its surroundings, sharply reducing the number of houses and inhabitants.

How can you get to the castle? The castle stands on a hillside above the village of Čekyně, now part of Přerov in Moravia; a staircase leads up to it from the village.