Nasavrky Castle

Nasavrky Castle sits right on the main square of the small town of Nasavrky, in the Iron Mountains region of the Pardubice Region — Drahotice, one of the town's eight municipal parts, belongs to the same municipality. It's a compact but handsome Renaissance building that today works as the town's cultural hub rather than a grand estate with room-by-room guided tours.

How do you get there?

Nasavrky lies roughly 11–13 km south of Chrudim and about 20 km south of Pardubice, tucked into the wooded hills of the Iron Mountains (Železné hory), a protected landscape area. Driving is the simplest option — local roads connect the town to Chrudim and Skuteč, and the castle stands directly on the town square, so it's easy to find once you arrive. Travelers without a car can reach Nasavrky by regional bus from Chrudim.

What will you see?

The building dates to the late Renaissance period, around 1600, and was raised on the site of an older Gothic stronghold. The first written mention of a manor here goes back to 1545, when the estate belonged to Magdalena and Mikuláš Běšek of Běškovice. The conversion into a Renaissance residence was carried out under Václav Záruba of Hustířany. The result is a two-storey building with two polygonal corner towers, distinctive grouped windows, and elaborate sgraffito decoration across the façade — the sgraffito is what catches the eye first from across the square.

The castle has been protected as a cultural monument since 1964. After 1990 it passed into the ownership of the town of Nasavrky, and a full reconstruction was completed in 1999, restoring the sgraffito, the entrance portal, and the window frames. Today the ground floor houses a tourist information centre, while the first floor holds a permanent exhibition called "Tracing the Celts," dedicated to Celtic settlement in the Iron Mountains region. The castle also stays busy as a working cultural venue — hosting temporary exhibitions, musical evenings, weddings, and other social events, rather than functioning purely as a museum piece.

When should you visit?

Spring and summer are the most rewarding times to come, when the exhibition and information centre are both open and the town's calendar tends to fill with concerts and cultural events held inside the castle halls. It's worth checking the current schedule before setting off, since some rooms are occasionally booked for private occasions such as weddings.

Frequently asked questions

Can you go inside Nasavrky Castle? Yes — the permanent "Tracing the Celts" exhibition on the first floor and the tourist information point on the ground floor are both open to visitors, though access can be limited on days with private events.

How far is the castle from Chrudim? Nasavrky is about 11–13 km south of Chrudim, in the Iron Mountains landscape area.

What else happens at the castle besides the exhibition? It functions as the town's cultural venue, hosting musical evenings, temporary exhibitions, weddings, and other community events.

Why is the exhibition called "Tracing the Celts"? The castle building itself is Renaissance, dating from around 1600, but the permanent exhibition inside covers the Celtic settlement history of the surrounding Iron Mountains region, which gives the show its name.