Lenora Castle

Zámeček Lenora is a small 19th-century manor complex standing at the western edge of the village of Lenora, in the Prachatice district of the Šumava region. Perched on a rocky spur above the Teplá Vltava river at roughly 768 metres above sea level, it served for over a hundred years as the residence of the owners of the local glassworks.

How did Lenora and its manor house come about?

The settlement was founded in 1834 by glass entrepreneur Johann (Jan) Meyer, who established a glassworks here. The name Eleonorenhain — later Czechized to Lenora — honoured Princess Eleonora of Schwarzenberg, wife of the estate's owner, Jan Adolf II von Schwarzenberg. As founder and first head of the glassworks, Meyer built himself a residence at the edge of the settlement in 1833–1834, known ever since simply as the Zámeček ("little château").

What does the building look like?

Rather than a single grand structure, the Zámeček is a pair of late-Empire (classicist) style buildings grouped on the same spur of land. The complex also includes a fairly extensive park, laid out alongside the residence and still surrounding it today. A manor house overlooking the river, set within greenery, was a typical arrangement for glassworks-owner residences in the Šumava region at the time.

Who lived here?

After Meyer's death, the estate and glassworks passed to the Kralik von Meyerswalden family, relatives of the founder. For more than a century, successive generations of this family occupied the Zámeček while running the glassworks nearby — a business that, over the decades, built Lenora's reputation as a glassmaking centre known well beyond the borders of Šumava.

What happened to the manor house later?

The 20th century, and especially the economic upheavals of the 1990s, brought the decline of the local glassworks in its historic form. The Zámeček itself, however, was restored and given a new purpose: it now houses a hotel with a restaurant, making use of the historic interiors and surrounding park. Access to the building is occasional rather than routine — it is tied mainly to staying at or visiting the hotel, so it is not a monument toured on a standard guided-tour basis.

What else is worth seeing nearby?

Lenora itself, though small, remains a living record of Šumava's glassmaking history — traces of the village's former industrial infrastructure can still be found near the Zámeček, and the surrounding hills above the Teplá Vltava offer views typical of this part of the Bohemian Forest. It makes a good base for anyone interested in the region's glass-industry heritage.

Frequently asked questions

Can you visit Zámeček Lenora? It doesn't operate as a museum — a hotel occupies the building, so interior access is mainly for guests. The surrounding park grounds are occasionally accessible.

Who built the manor house in Lenora? It was built in 1833–1834 by Johann Meyer, founder of the local glassworks, as a residence for himself and his family.

Where does the name Lenora come from? From Princess Eleonora of Schwarzenberg — the settlement's original German name was Eleonorenhain.

How do you get to Zámeček Lenora? It stands at the western edge of the village of Lenora, in the Prachatice district, above the Teplá Vltava river, in the heart of Šumava.